Lawmakers concluded the fall veto session on November 9, after passing Senate Bill 76 lifting Illinois’ moratorium on nuclear power plant construction in 2026.

Neither chamber voted on legislation extending the Invest in Kids Scholarship Tax Credit Program.

It allows people to donate to private school scholarship programs and receive a 75 percent tax credit.

Voters passed Issue 23, a ballot initiative amending the city charter in several ways.

Introduced by council member Liz Keating, the issue has been in the works for at least two years.

The main change is to amend the city charter to mirror state law regarding the ballot initiative process, requiring a copy of any initiative, referendum or charter amendment petition to be filed with the clerk of council before any signatures can be collected.

These would be made public so anyone could see what proposed amendments are circulating.

The amendment also limits initiatives to one subject and provides a cure period for insufficient signatures.

Issue 23 also updates the charter to reflect the fact that City Council terms were changed from four years to two years by a 2018 charter amendment and gives city council members the option to vote electronically in addition to voice votes.

Democratic Gov. Andy Beshear won re-election to a second term over challenger, Republican Attorney General Daniel Cameron, who prevailed in a crowded primary in May.

Beshear became governor in 2019, winning by a narrow margin in a historically conservative state.

As of this morning, Beshear won with 53% of the vote and Cameron received 47%.

Eight candidates were vying for three seats on the Akron Public Schools board.

Former state representative and Akron City Council member Barbara Sykes was overwhelmingly elected with 25.72% of votes cast, over 10,000 more votes more than any other candidate.

Summer Hall earned the second seat with 13.47%, and incumbent Rene Molenaur secured her first full term on the board with 11.83%, according to unofficial results as of this morning based on all precincts reporting.

Each seat is for a four-year term.

All 13 Akron City Council seats were up for election on Tuesday.

Most incumbents will keep their seats, but some newcomers will join them.

Incumbents Linda Omobien and Jeff Fusco were selected for Akron City Council at-large seats, along with newcomer Eric Garrett, according to unofficial results from the Summit County Board of Elections.

As of this morning, Omobien received 29.44%, Fusco received 28.49%, and Garrett received 27.21% of the votes with all precincts reporting.

Most Ward races were unopposed, except Ward 9, where Tina Boyes defeated Republican Micah Townsend, 68.27% to 31.73% with all precincts reporting.

Shammas Malik defeated write-in candidate Nathaniel Green to become Akron’s next mayor by an overwhelming margin.

Malik received 12,603 votes (96.73%) compared to 426 votes for write-in nonpartisan candidate Nathaniel Green, according to unofficial election results with all precincts reporting.

Malik will take office as the city’s 63rd mayor on January 1, succeeding Mayor Dan Horrigan who’s been in office since 2015.

On November 7, voters in Ohio approved Issue 2, a ballot initiative to legalize marijuana in Ohio, including: allowing adults who are at least 21 years old to use and possess marijuana, including up to 2.5 ounces of marijuana; allowing the sale and purchase of marijuana, which a new Division of Cannabis Control will regulate; and enacting a 10% tax on marijuana sales.

As of this morning, the amendment passed 56.97% to 43.03%.

On November 7, voters in Ohio approved a constitutional amendment to provide a state constitutional right to make and carry out one’s own reproductive decisions, including but not limited to decisions about abortion, contraception, fertility treatment, miscarriage care, and continuing pregnancy.

The amendment also allows the state to restrict abortion after fetal viability, except when necessary to protect the pregnant patient’s life or health.

As of this morning, the amendment passed 56.62% to 43.38%.

Citizen activist Robert Davis filed a lawsuit challenging the plan to hold the state’s presidential primary election on February 27, arguing even if the Legislature adjourns early, the law authorizing the early primary election must also go into effect 91 days before the county election boards authorize the printing of absentee and overseas ballots in January.

Secretary of State Benson’s attorney acknowledged if the House and Senate do not adjourn next week the election may not take place until March 12.

Davis’s lawsuit also seeks to remove former President Donald Trump from the ballot due to his role in the insurrection on January 6.

A hearing on both issues will be held on November 9 at 8:30 a.m. and streamed live on YouTube.

Lawmakers adjourned the veto session on after sustaining Gov. Sununu’s veto of House Bill 142.

The vote did not have the two-thirds majority required to override the veto of the bill providing support for Berlin’s Burgess BioPower plant.

The Legislature adjourned the special session on October 25 after authorizing a budget to ensure the continued operation of state government.

During the three-day session, 14 bills were passed to reconstruct the legislation that was invalidated by the state Supreme Court as unconstitutional for violating a single-subject requirement.

The bills included transfers from state government funds, K-12 education funding, a $125 million incentive program for the development of a fertilizer plant, a criminal penalty for supplying drugs resulting in overdose deaths and injuries, and effective dates for transitioning the state’s public employee pension plan to a 401(k)-style plan for new hires.

Gov. Doug Burgum issued Executive Order 2023-09 calling for a special session of the Legislature to begin Monday, October 23, to authorize a budget bill to ensure the continued operation of state government.

The North Dakota Supreme Court invalidated Senate Bill 2015, which included the budget, declaring the bill unconstitutional because it violated the state constitution’s single-subject requirement for bills.

The special session is expected to last three to five days.

The Appellate Division, Third Department granted a stay and injunction in the matter of Cuomo v. COELIG.

The state Commission on Ethics and Lobbying in Government issued a statement from Chair Frederick A. Davie and Executive Director Sandford N. Berland announcing this decision allows the Commission to continue its work and fulfill its mission as the appeal works its way through the judicial process.

They also announced that registration terminations in the online lobbying application (‘LA’) have been launched for lobbyists and public corporation registrations for the 2023-2024 biennial period.

Lobbyists and public corporations wanting to terminate earlier than the end date specified in the lobbying agreement are now able to terminate the entire lobbying relationship within LA.

Additionally, the lobbying application will automatically terminate registrations with lobbying agreements that reach the end date specified in the agreement, and all registrations that reach December 31st of the second year of a biennial period, with no action required by the lobbyist or client.

Lawmakers will return to session on October 26 to decide whether to override eight vetoes issued by Gov. Sununu.

In addition to considering veto overrides, lawmakers will also consider deadlines for the 2024 session.