The Missouri General Assembly held its annual veto session on Wednesday, September 14. Lawmakers were successful in overriding some of Gov. Jay Nixon’s vetoes, including the vetoes of two highly controversial bills.

One bill abolishes a state law requiring permits, training, and background checks for those seeking to carry concealed weapons. The other requires voters to show a photo identification before casting a ballot. The voter ID law will take effect in 2017 only if voters pass a state constitutional amendment in support of it.

Photo of the Missouri State Capitol by Nickbigd on Wikimedia Commons.

Gov. Brian Sandoval plans to call a special legislative session in early October to approve an estimated $1.9 billion stadium funding plan. The Southern Nevada Tourism Committee is working with the Oakland Raiders and a group of private developers to bring the first professional football team and major events arena to Las Vegas. In addition, vacancies needing to be filled in the Legislature make a special session likely.

Legislators have expressed concern about holding a special session so close to the November 8 general election in part because lawmakers are prohibited from receiving campaign contributions during a legislative session and for 15 days after adjournment.

Gov. Sandoval will decide whether to call the session once he reviews the committee’s recommendations and all questions have been answered. If called, the special legislative session would be the 30th in Nevada’s 152-year history.

Photo of the Nevada State Legislature by Ryans Jerz on Wikimedia Commons. 

The Tennessee General Assembly adjourned a three-day extraordinary session on Wednesday, September 14.

Lawmakers repealed a drunken driving law threatening to cost the state $60 million in federal highway funding.  The U.S. Department of Transportation threatened to withhold the funds if the state did not change the maximum allowable blood alcohol content for drivers under 21 to comply with the federal zero-tolerance standard.

Lawmakers also expelled Rep. Jeremy Durham after at least 22 women accused him of improper sexual contact during his four years in office. Earlier this year, House Speaker Beth Harwell moved Durham across the street from the main legislative office building and limited his access to the main buildings to official legislative business. Because he did not serve enough time in the House, he is no longer eligible to receive a state pension.

Photo of the Tennessee State Capitol by Ichabod on Wikimedia Commons.

West Virginia’s Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin plans to call a special legislative session next week to address funding for flood recovery.

The session is expected to take place on September 19 and 20 to coincide with previously scheduled legislative interim meetings.

The Legislature will need to authorize funding from the state’s rainy day emergency fund to cover flood recovery costs.

The first special session of 2016 adjourned sine die on September 7, 2016. Gov. Robert Bentley’s lottery proposal failed in the Senate. Instead, the Legislature approved House Bill 36 to use part of the BP oil settlement to provide funds for the Alabama Medicaid Agency.

Despite legislators attempts to use the special session to revamp the ethics laws, House Bills 10, 11, and 32 were not passed.

The Tennessee General Assembly convened a special session today, September 12. State lawmakers have been tasked with fixing the state’s drunken driving law to prevent a loss in federal highway funding. The U.S. Department of Transportation will withhold funds if the state does not change the maximum allowable blood alcohol content for drivers under 21 in order to comply with federal rules.

Gov. Bill Haslam expects the session to last up to three days.

Photo of the Tennessee House Chamber floor by Ichabod on Wikimedia Commons.

On August 31, the California Legislature adjourned its regular session.

Before adjourning, the Legislature sent several ethics bills to Gov. Jerry Brown, including Senate Bill 215, which contains provisions requiring those seeking to influence actions taken by the Public Utilities Commission to register as a lobbyists.

Brown has until September 30 to sign or veto legislation.

Missouri Sen. Bob Dixon wants Gov. Jay Nixon to call a special session to close a loophole in the state’s drunk driving law and to ask the Legislature to support a pilot program for the Missouri Public Defender System.

If the drunk driving loophole is not addressed, thousands of drunk drivers could be released on a technicality or given a lesser charge because of a mistake in the law regarding how breathalyzer equipment is calibrated.

Dixon is asking for the special session to occur next to the Legislature’s veto session. The veto session begins September 14.

Gov. Nixon has not yet commented on whether he will call a special session.

Photo of the Missouri State Capitol by Nickbigd on Wikimedia Commons.

Speaker Galen Hadley is in favor of calling the Nebraska Legislature into a special session to address the issue of Sen. Bill Kintner. Kintner was recently fined $1,000 for using his state-issued laptop to engage in cybersex. Both Hadley and Gov. Pete Ricketts have called for Kintner to resign, though Kintner appears unwilling to do so.

The Legislature’s Executive Board meets today and can recommend impeachment, expulsion, or censure of Kintner, but such action would have to be taken with lawmakers in session. If Kintner resigns before September 8, he could place his name on the ballot in November and allow the voters to decide if he should continue his work as a senator.

Gov. Susana Martinez plans to call a special session to address budget issues. The exact date of the session has not yet been determined, but it will likely convene in September.

Martinez’s office is speaking with leaders of the Legislature, hoping all parties will be prepared to resolve the state’s financial shortcomings in a timely manner.

Photo of the New Mexico State Capitol by Urban on Wikimedia Commons.

After negotiations on Thursday broke down, Gov. Mark Dayton announced no special session will take place.

Republican leaders would not agree to a special session to fund a light rail project, while Democrats would not agree to holding the session without approval for the project.

The result is a tax bill that would have provided $260 million in tax breaks for certain groups will not be passed this year.

Photo of the Minnesota State Capitol dome by Mulad on Wikimedia Commons.

Oklahoma Gov. Mary Fallin is considering calling a special legislative session for lawmakers to address the issue of teacher pay raises.

Budget cuts during the fiscal year were deeper than necessary, resulting in $140 million of unused and unallocated funds. She claims if legislators do not agree to a special session, the money would be distributed equally among all agencies.

While most lawmakers believe teachers deserve a pay increase, they are less than enthusiastic about a special session. Many feel the money should go back into the agencies suffering the most from the original budget cuts.

Gov. Mark Dayton previously hoped to call a special session of the Legislature during the third week of August.

Lawmakers have been unable to agree on key issues, including a controversial light rail bill, so no special session is currently scheduled for this week.

Dayton will meet again with leadership from the Legislature on Thursday, in what he has said may be the last meeting to discuss a special session.

Gov. Tom Wolf and lawmakers have agreed a special session is necessary to confront the growing problem of prescription drug abuse and illegal opioids.

Last year, 3,300 people died in Pennsylvania, and this year the number is expected to grow.

The session will focus on creating a comprehensive approach to treating those with substance abuse disorders, including alternatives to prison. No date has been set for the special session, but it is expected to be this fall.