On July 18, the Alaska Legislature adjourned its fifth special session.

The Legislature failed to pass any deficit reduction measures the special session was called to address.

Following the unsuccessful eight day session, it is expected that further work towards budget reforms will wait until after the November election.

Photo of the Alaska State Capitol by Jay Galvin on Wikimedia Commons.

Gov. Mark Dayton, Senate Majority Leader Tom Bakk, and House Speaker Kurt Daudt have tentatively agreed to call a special legislative session during the third week of August.

The governor and lawmakers have met several times since the Legislature adjourned in late May to work through details of approving a tax bill and bonding bill.

While the three men were able to reach an agreement regarding the tax bill during a meeting last week, negotiations on the bonding bill must continue before the governor will announce a definitive date for the special session.

Photo of the Minnesota State Capitol by Jonathunder on Wikimedia Commons.

On July 13, the Utah Legislature adjourned its special session sine die.

Lawmakers voted for the state to allocate up to $10 million in funds for a new stadium in the Fairpark area of Salt Lake City.

An additional bill passed during the one-day special session regulates the use of personal drones over wildfires.

Photo of the Utah State Capitol by Scott Catron on Wikimedia Commons.

Gov. Jack Dalrymple called a special session to convene August 2.

The session is needed to address North Dakota’s budget shortfall, and it is expected to last three days.

Hawaii legislators convened a special session Tuesday after Gov. David Ige vetoed a bill intended to assist state employees who will be affected when three Maui county hospitals are taken over by Kaiser Permanente on October 1.

The state must decide how to transition employees from state service to private service in the largest privatization project in modern state history. Lawmakers met briefly on Tuesday before breaking for recess; they will reconvene Monday.

On Monday, July 11, Utah Gov. Gary Herbert issued a call for a special legislative session to be held this Wednesday, July 13. The session was called to consider legislation related the Judicial Nomination Commission, the Justice Reinvestment Initiative, the Utah State Fairpark, and other matters.

One major concern the governor wants addressed in the special session is unmanned aircrafts being used near wildland fires. “This summer, wildfires in the state have become significantly worse due to drones interrupting air operations,” Gov. Herbert said in his press release.

A special session is now unlikely until after the primary elections, due to lawmakers’ increasingly busy schedules.

Lawmakers have sought a special session to pass tax and bonding bills since adjourning the regular session in May, but Gov. Mark Dayton required agreement on several issues before he was willing to call the session.

To date, Dayton and lawmakers have been unable to reach an agreement on those issues.

After failing to pass a budget before the end of its spring session in May, the 98th Illinois General Assembly wrapped up its business on Thursday, June 30.

While concerns over the state budget were not completely alleviated, lawmakers were able to pass a short-term budget deal to keep basic services running.

Gov. Bruce Rauner believes further compromise and budget reform could occur in the 60 days following the November election when legislators will be more comfortable tackling tougher issues.

Alaskan lawmakers have been busy strategizing how to continue campaign fundraising ahead of the July 11 special session.

State statute bans lawmakers from soliciting or accepting contributions in the capital city or any municipality where the Legislature is convened.

Despite calls by some lawmakers to hold the session in Anchorage due to a lodging shortage in Juneau, the formal legislative session will remain in Juneau allowing political fundraising to continue in Anchorage.

Photo of the chamber of the Alaska House of Representatives by L’Aquatique on Wikimedia Commons.

Lawmakers in Montana rejected a request for a special legislative session to address the state’s campaign finance laws.

Ten legislators called for a special session to address the law controlling contribution limits. In May, a U.S. District Court found Montana’s current law concerning political contribution limits unconstitutional. The ruling reinstated most contribution limits in place before the statute was enacted.

In order to convene the special session, 76 lawmakers, just over half the 150 total number of legislators, needed to agree to the special session. However, only 20 legislators voted in favor of a special session. Montana Public Radio reports Sen. Cary Smith, a supporter of the special session, as saying, “I know the standard is high to call a special session, and that we will be back in session in 2017 and be able to work on this issue.”

Photo of the Montana State Capitol by Maksim on Wikimedia Commons.

For the second year in a row, the General Assembly adjourned on June 30, the final day of the regular session, and entered into a special session through the early hours of July 1, 2016.

Gov. Jack Markell signed the budget bill at 5:15 a.m. Friday, marking the end of the state’s legislative proceedings for the year.

The North Carolina Legislature adjourned its short session on Friday, July 1, 2016. The session lasted almost 10 weeks with the biggest accomplishment being the passage of the state budget.

The next regular session is not scheduled until January 2017.

Photo of the North Carolina State Legislative Building by Jayron32 on Wikimedia Commons.

The House agreed to a bill allowing the governor to dip into the state’s rainy day fund to fill a deficit in the budget.

Lawmakers returned for a special session on Tuesday, June 28, to take up the issue, and the Senate quickly passed the measure. The House, however, required a second day but eventually agreed to the plan and adjourned the special session on June 29.

The deficit was the result of tax collections falling below expectations since the fiscal year began last July.

Gov. Phil Bryant has called a special session for June 28, 2016. The Governor is asking lawmakers to give him authorization to use the state’s rainy day fund, known as the Working Cash Stabilization Reserve Fund, to cover the nearly $75 million budget deficit.

If approved, it will be the third time Bryant has had to take such action. The shortfall has been blamed on lagging tax collection so far this year.

Photo of the Mississippi State Capitol by Shawn Lea on Wikimedia Commons.