Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee has announced special election dates to fill the vacancy left by the late Rep. Mike Carter who died of pancreatic cancer last month.

The special general election will be held on September 14 after the special primary election on July 27.

The Nevada Legislature adjourned sine die June 1.

In the last day of the session, the Legislature passed bills to license cannabis lounges; overhaul state voting policies; change the date of the state’s presidential primary; and mandate all active voters be sent a mail-in ballot in future elections.

Earlier in the year, Nevada passed a bill changing the definition of lobbyist to remove the provision requiring an appearance in person in the Legislative Building or any other building in which the Legislature or any of the standing committees hold meetings.

This does affect lobbyist reporting.

The July 10 lobbyist activity report for activity in June, must be filed before the termination and final report due July 1.

The Illinois Senate passed an ethics omnibus bill early this morning.

The bill expands registration requirements under the Lobbyist Registration Act to include lobbying local officials and certain deputy state officials.

Senate Bill 539 also prohibits all fundraising statewide during legislative sessions and on the day before and after the session.

It is currently only prohibited in Sangamon County.

Expanded revolving door restrictions include a one-year waiting period for anyone who participated personally and substantially in the award or fiscal administration of state contracts and a six-month waiting period for members of the General Assembly and officers of the executive branch.

The bill also requires any consultant hired by a lobbyist or lobbying entity to register and report if they communicate with an official. If signed by the governor, this bill will be effective January 1, 2022.

The Texas Legislature adjourned sine die May 31 after 140 days in session.

Talk of a special session and questions about how soon one may happen or what additional issues Gov. Greg Abbott could task legislators with has largely defined the last weekend of the legislative session.

In the final days of the session, House Democrats staged a walkout and broke quorum, making it impossible to give final approval to Senate Bill 7, a massive voting bill that would tighten the state’s election laws, before the midnight deadline.

Gov. Abbott quickly made clear that the bill, along with another other priority legislation that would have made it harder for people arrested to bond out of jail without cash, still must pass and that the two issues will be added to the special session agenda.

Before lawmakers adjourned, Gov. Abbott made clear he intends to reprimand the Legislature over its unfinished business by vetoing the section of the state budget that funds the legislative branch.

The 101st General Assembly adjourned sine die on May 25, sending less than a hundred bills to Gov. Mike Parson and leaving unfinished business, including the passage of the federal reimbursement allowance (FRA), a tax on medical providers that helps pay for the state’s Medicaid program.

They have until September 30 to pass the FRA and Rep. Sarah Unsicker has requested a special session to renew it.

Other Lawmakers have also sent requests for special sessions to Gov. Mike Parson on different topics, including redistricting, election bills, the Kansas City police budget, and race-related school curricula.

The 107^th legislative session of the Nebraska Legislature adjourned sine die May 27, earlier than anticipated.

During the session, lawmakers passed the state’s two-year budget and approved significant tax reform.

The Legislature is scheduled to convene in early fall for a special legislative session to complete the 2021 redistricting process.

The May sine die adjournment triggers a statement of activity report due July 11, which is 45 days after adjournment sine die of the legislative session.

The Legislature is scheduled to convene in its 2022 session on January 5.

The Oklahoma Legislature adjourned its 2021 regular legislative session sine die on May 27, one day before a constitutionally mandated deadline.

The House and Senate both adjourned before noon after each chamber passed a bill making some minor modifications to the state’s medical marijuana laws.

The House also gave final approval to a measure that allows the governor to fill a U.S. Senate vacancy should one occur. Both of those bills now head to the governor’s desk.

Ethics Rule Amendment 202101 related to candidate committee reporting is slated to take effect upon adjournment sine die. The amendment modifies ethics rules applicable to candidate committees formed for elections held prior to January 1, 2015, by providing a mandatory dissolution date, modifying uses of surplus funds and treatment of debt of those committees, and providing a repeal of ethics rules applicable to candidate committees formed for elections held prior to January 1, 2015.

The 2022 legislative session will convene on February 7.

The Kansas Legislature adjourned sine die from its 2021 legislative session on May 26.

During the session, lawmakers in Kansas passed proposals to ban COVID-19 vaccine passports, limit efforts to track down the close contacts of people with the coronavirus and provide up to $500 million to businesses that closed or faced pandemic restrictions.

Several bills related to lobbying law were also introduced but did not pass. House Bill 2055 would have changed the five-day grace period for the late filing notice for lobbyist reports and statements of substantial interest reports to begin when the notice is deposited in the mail.

Additionally, House Bill 2235 would have required lobbyists to wear body cameras while inside the statehouse. The bill would have required such recordings to be public records. Additionally, House Bill 2235 would have prohibited any economic benefit or hospitality provided by a lobbyist to a legislator or candidates for the Legislature.

The 2022 legislative session will convene on January 10.

The North Dakota Ethics Commission has proposed a limited food and drink exception to the rules banning gifts between lobbyists and public officials implemented last year.

The proposed rule change adds an exception for food or beverage with a value of $10 or less, excluding gratuity, purchased for a public official in conjunction with an informal social and educational event.

The purchased food and beverage must be consumed during the event and a state resident must be present, but is not required to be the purchaser of the food or beverage.

The revised rules also define informal social and educational event as any meeting, session, or interaction occurring within the state between a public official and a state resident, including but not limited to a registered lobbyist who is a state resident, for the purpose of informing or educating the public official on a matter of interest or concern.

The proposed rule changes are open to public comment through July 9.

The city of San Diego has declined to renew their contract with Netfile, the city’s longtime online campaign disclosure vendor.

There have been reports that online campaign disclosures will be available for eFile-SD by June 2021.

During the outage of the reporting site, people wishing to file can call the office and request copies of the disclosure filings in PDF format.

Ohio State Rep. Mark Fraizer and Rep. Brian Stewart filed a resolution to expel Rep. Larry Householder from the House of Representatives.

Lawmakers voted unanimously to remove Householder from his position as House speaker in July 2020, though he retained his seat in the Legislature and was reelected in November.

Householder pleaded not guilty on Thursday in connection with a $60 million federal racketeering case related to House Bill 6, Ohio’s nuclear bailout law.

Three co-defendants in the case have pleaded guilty.

Wisconsin lawmakers convened the special session called by Gov. Tony Evers on May 25 for less than a minute and adjourned without considering the governor’s plan.

Evers called the special session to consider the expansion of BadgerCare, the Wisconsin Medicaid system, and invest the $1 billion in cost savings realized under the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) into Wisconsin’s economic recovery.

As of today, 38 states have approved Medicaid expansion to become eligible for the additional federal funding.

Texas Secretary of State Ruth Hughs announced her resignation May 20, prompting Gov. Greg Abbott to search for the fifth secretary of state during his time in office.

Hughs’ nomination for another term as the state’s top elections officer was not taken up by the Senate Nominations Committee, effectively forcing her resignation.

Hughs stated she plans to transition back into her private practice. Her resignation will become effective May 31 when the session ends.

With the 87th legislative session nearing conclusion, Gov. Abbott’s next appointee, if made after the session, will not need Senate confirmation until the Legislature convenes again.

The Vermont General Assembly adjourned sine die on May 21.

Due to COVID-19 restrictions, the 2021 legislative session was conducted remotely.

During the session, lawmakers failed to pass proposed ethics bills including House Bill 64 prohibiting gifts to legislators from lobbying entities.

Lawmakers are expecting to lift all COVID-19 restrictions by the summer and resume an in-person legislative session for 2022.