Brooklyn District Attorney Eric Gonzalez – Innovative Approach to Safety
NYS Gov. Hochul’s 2025 State of the State – Legislative Recap
PODCAST: Williams Mullen's Gavels & Gowns - What’s Next in VA K-12 Education? An Interview with Scott Brabrand, Executive Director of VASS
Podcast: Discussing Florida’s 2024 Legislative Session
Orrick Public Policy Podcast #26 – A Conversation with the Minnesota State Senate Majority Leader Jeremy Miller
Update and Discussion on Legal and Practical Issues
Overview of 87th Texas Legislature
Pennsylvania COVID-19 Update Featuring Former Pa. Gov. Tom Corbett
In May, the annual New York State Property Tax Report Cards for School Districts were released by the Department of Education. The report cards include estimates of fiscal reserves that each school district expects to have...more
House Passes Budget Bill - The NC House on Thursday passed the biennial budget bill (S 257) by a vote of 86 to 20. The vote was bipartisan with 25 Democrats joining 61 Republicans in supporting the bill. This action...more
On May 8, 2025, the New York State Legislature passed the state’s budget legislation and, on May 9, 2025, Governor Hochul approved it. The legislation included several provisions that modified the New York State Education...more
On May 2, the Governor signed the state budget that will fund the remainder of the biennium through June 30, 2026. This marks the first time in eight years the legislature completed its work without requiring a special...more
On May 1, 2025, the New Jersey Senate Budget and Appropriations Committee convened to hear testimony regarding Governor Phil Murphy’s proposed higher education budget for FY 2026, which reduces state funding for higher...more
Like air out of a balloon, the Georgia General Assembly concluded its 2025 Legislative Session on Friday with an exasperated but exhausted "PFFFFffffT." While many lawmakers and lobbyists floated through the halls during the...more
Strike up the band! The penultimate day of the 2025 Legislative Session has come! Legislative Day 39 continues as this Gold Dome Report goes online, and Sine Die Eve has already proven to be a spectacle. From a marching band...more
Unusually heavy traffic that stalled commutes to the Georgia State Capitol for many on Thursday morning may prove to be symbolic of the waning days of the 2025 Legislative Session. With many bills and resolutions still...more
While we spend much of our time watching bills and budgets under the Gold Dome, lawmakers and elected officials spend much of their time honoring constituents and other notable figures....more
Blood rolled in the streets at the Georgia State Capitol on Thursday — the LifeSouth Bloodmobile, to be exact. While some lawmakers and lobbyists chose to voluntarily give the gift of life, for others, it was a painful...more
Legislative days are better with dogs, even if they are the oversized mascot variety. Tuesday’s tail-wagger was CALi, the “spokespuppy” for Bright from the Start: Georgia’s Department of Early Care and Learning, who scampered...more
While many lawmakers and lobbyists crawled into the Georgia State Capitol on Monday after the double-whammy of Crossover Day and the return of Daylight Savings Time (to Senator Ben Watson’s chagrin), a few select legislators...more
March came in like a lion on Monday as the Georgia General Assembly began its blitz toward Crossover Day on Thursday. With over 80 measures slated for hearing in House and Senate committees, state senators began their...more
Look out biscuits — cornbread is making a comeback in the Georgia State Capitol. After failing to fully bake in the State Senate in 2024, legislation designating cornbread as the official state bread (HB 14) returned to the...more
In his final budget address, Governor Phil Murphy is proposing a $58.05 billion plan, with a strong emphasis on preserving funding for critical priorities while cutting spending on various programs. The address underscores...more
On Wednesday, February 19, Governor J.B. Pritzker delivered his seventh annual Budget Address to a joint session of the General Assembly, where he unveiled his $55.2 billion FY26 Executive Budget - marking an approximately $2...more
Week 5 of the 2025 Iowa Legislative Session closed with the first major deadline of the year. Individual legislators had until Friday, February 14, to request bills and joint resolution drafts to the Legislative Services...more
On Tuesday, February 4, Governor Josh Shapiro delivered his third annual Budget Address to a joint session of the General Assembly, where he unveiled his $51.47 billion FY26 Executive Budget — marking an approximately 7.5%...more
Reforming Tier 2 pensions could cost the state $30 billion, actuary says “A new Illinois pension reform bill would increase contributions to the state’s three largest retirement systems by a total of nearly $30 billion...more
In this episode of Gavels & Gowns, an Education Law podcast, co-hosts Hal Johnson and Micah Schwartz speak with Scott Brabrand, executive director of the Virginia Association of School Superintendents. Scott provides a...more
Governor Josh Shapiro recently announced that the proposed 2024-2025 budget for the Pennsylvania Department of Education includes a $1,436,815,000 special education appropriation....more
The 113th Tennessee General Assembly adjourned sine die on April 25, 2024. The session was dominated by debate over the size and scope of the $1.6 billion legislative fix to the state franchise tax that naturally dashed plans...more
Legislative Day 40 is a roller coaster, full of ups, downs, and zero gravity turns (also known as conference committee reports). One goes from celebrating a bill achieving final passage to lamenting a measure being gutted...more
This week, the House and Senate each voted on their changes to the Governor’s introduced budget – with some noticeable differences between the two chambers and omissions that wipe out most the Governor’s top tax priorities....more
The Senate this week passed the budget bill and both houses voted to override a veto of the abortion bill. Senate Budget Bill The Senate this week passed its version of the budget bill (H 259). The vote to approve was 37 to...more