The Mood at the Capitol

initiative petition restrictions - sjr 74

The moment that we have been preparing for has truly come to pass: SJR 74 was third read and finally passed this last Thursday. While there had been some discussion last week, the leadership in the Senate decided that SJR 74 was to be brought up on Monday and would not be put to rest until it was done. Around 4:00 pm on Monday, SJR 74 was brought up for debate and the Democrats began their filibuster. They worked around the clock, pairing off and debating in shifts so that their other colleagues could rest up for their turns. They made it clear that they would not rest until their demands were met and they had the capacity to do so. After nearly 21 uninterrupted hours, the Republicans gave in and introduced an amendment that was the compromise the Democrats were asking for: the removal of ALL ballot candy, leaving only the congressional concurrent jurisdictions. This way, they cannot trick voters into giving their rights away. The amendment was added by a narrow 18-12 margin and the final bill was voted do pass by a party line vote. SJR 74 has now been sent to the House, where it will proceed through the same process of committee hearing to floor debate. If the House does not change the bill in any way it can be voted out and sent straight to the ballot in November. If the House does change the bill, once it is voted out of the House it will be sent to a joint chamber conference committee where it will be discussed and changed to compromise on the language. If the ballot candy is placed back into the bill, expect another lengthy filibuster by the Democrats. The Democrats showed great strength and unity in holding the line and we want to thank them for their efforts.

more ip restrictions

HB 1749 (Haffner) was voted out of the House this last week. This bill has restrictions on the process of bringing an initiative to the ballot itself. Provisions of this bill include but are not limited to invalidating all signatures if a court changes the ballot title significantly, restricting payments to petition circulators based on number of signatures, and residency requirements for said petition circulators. Since this bill is not a joint resolution, it does not require a vote by the people and will become law if signed by the Governor. We are strongly opposed to this bill and will continue to challenge it both in the legislature and in the courts as there are constitutional questions about the residency requirements. 

SJR 78 (Ben Brown) is going to be voted out of Senate Elections this coming Monday. This bill has restrictions regarding voting machines and paper ballots, a pre-emptive banning of ranked choice/approval voting, and most importantly contains the problematic “only citizens” language that the Freedom Caucus desperately wants included. The likelihood of this bill being debated on the floor is minimal because the Senate is tired of debating the issue. However, it could be used as a compromise because of the “only citizens” language. We will continue to oppose and monitor the bill.

HJR 86 (Black) is another IP restriction bill that has congressional concurrent jurisdictions along with “only citizens” ballot candy, raising the threshold to put the IP on the ballot, and giving the General Assembly exclusive authority to enact laws enforcing provisions to the IP process. This bill is up for a vote in the House Rules - Legislative Oversight committee which does not accept testimony. Given the knockdown dragout fight regarding IP in the Senate, if this bill is voted out of the House it will most likely go nowhere in the Senate. We will continue to fight against these attacks. 



There are a few other IP restrictions that are in committees and are moving slowly but we highly doubt they will move too much given how much of a fight it was to get SJR 74 out of the Senate. We will continue to monitor and oppose any and all attacks on our democratic process.

comprehensive crime bill

A bill, HB1659, that attempts to re-pass the provisions from last year’s vetoed comprehensive crime bill has made it to the Senate. We don’t know when this bill will be heard in the Senate, but don’t expect it to move until some of the Senate deadlock is broken. This year’s version is missing a few provisions, but still has a couple of positive provisions. The bill ends different sentencing guidelines for crack cocaine and powdered cocaine. It also  raises the age at which juvenile offenders may be certified as an adult for most crimes. The bill isn’t great, but the remaining provisions are minor in comparison to some of the extremely harmful bills we are fighting this year.

comprehensive corrections bill

The comprehensive corrections bill, HB1777, also advanced this week. We expect it to be brought to the floor soon. At least two more positive provisions should be added during the perfection debate. This includes the correct Good Time Credit language, the elimination of fines and fees in juvenile court, and caps on fees for phone calls in jails and corrections facilities. We will be keeping a close eye on the bill as it moves forward.

diversity, equity, and inclusion

HB2619 et. al. will be voted out of the House Rules committee today. This anti-DEI bill supersedes all other anti-DEI bills and will be the vehicle for anti-DEI legislation. We expect this bill to be a lengthy debate once it hits the House floor and will be a major source of contention if it makes it over to the Senate.

student organizations bill

The bill that allows student organizations to illegally discriminate while receiving state resources was voted out of the Rules committee this last Monday. The bill is now in the hands of House Majority Floor Leader Jon Patterson. We are working with his office to determine when or if the bill is scheduled to be brought to the floor. If this bill does receive floor time and potentially voted out of the House, the likelihood of passing out of the Senate without controversy is slim to none. If you haven’t already, please contact your legislator and ask them to vote against this bill.

upcoming hearings

02/26/2024 12:00 PM House-Special Committee on Government Accountability

• HB1763 Establishes provisions relating to prosecuting and circuit attorneys

Rep. Justin Hicks (R)

02/28/2024 12:00 PM Senate-Progress and Development

• SB890 Creates the “Missing and Murdered African American Women Task Force”

Sen. Angela Mosley (D)

• SB969 Creates new provisions on discriminatory practices related to hair

Sen. Barbara Washington (D)

• SB1099 Establishes the “Cronkite New Voices Act” to protect the freedom of press in school-sponsored media

Sen. Barbara Washington (D)

calls to action

• Attend the NAACP Leaders Lobby Day on February 27th
• Register for the Day of Empathy on March 6th: https://www.mobilize.us/dream/event/598957/ 
• Attend the MADP Lobby Day on March 12th
• Training - bit.ly/MADPTraining2024
• Lobby day- bit.ly/MADPLobbyDay2024
• Let Olivia Pener or Sandy Jiles know if there is a week between now and May 17th you are willing to be on call to come to the Capitol on short notice.

If you have any questions about any of the legislation mentioned here or the legislative program generally, please contact President Chapel or Olivia Pener.

Tracking List

https://govwatch.net/report/M6q8o0GrzR

*This list is continually updated and improved. If you have questions, please contact Sharon Geuea Jones at sharon@jonesadvocacy.com.