On October 1, the Connecticut General Assembly adjourned their second special session of the year.

During the special legislative session lawmakers passed House Bill 7005 concerning the processing of absentee ballots.

The Legislature also passed bills reforming the state’s hemp program, regulating the public utilities, and enhancements to state environmental law.

The bills were immediately released to the governor for his signature.

This does not affect lobbyist reporting.

The Louisiana Legislature will convene in a special session on September 28 to address issues such as COVID-19, storm relief, and unemployment.

The Louisiana Constitution authorizes lawmakers to call themselves into special session upon the written petition of a majority of the elected members of each house.

Lawmakers may file and consider bills on 70 items. House Speaker Clay Schexnayder announced the special session will focus primarily on Hurricane Laura disaster relief and recovery efforts, on-going issues with COVID-19 relative to funding and the economy, and the state’s Unemployment Trust Fund.
Several House members have also asked to address the continued proclamations issued by Gov. John Bel Edwards during the pandemic and what many see as an imbalance of power.
The session is set to begin September 28 at 6 p.m. and must adjourn by 6 p.m. on October 27.

This does not affect lobbyist reporting.

Lawmakers ended the 2020 legislative session beleaguered by COVID-19, wildfires, a tanked economy, and a looming eviction crisis.

Each chamber worked through roughly 100 bills on their final day, before adjourning after midnight.

The Senate kept passing bills until shortly after 1 a.m.

Some of the bills lawmakers sent to Gov. Gavin Newsom include eviction relief, police reform, COVID-19 response, and a flavored tobacco ban.

The governor has until September 30 to sign or veto any of the bills.

North Carolina’s General Assembly has extended the legislative session to adjourn sine die on September 3.

This extension will allow for consideration of matters related to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Registered lobbyists who make an expenditure on legislators and legislative employees will also be required to file monthly reports.

This is the case, as the General Assembly is still in session due to the extension.

Monthly reports are due 10 business days after the end of the month.

In addition, the August report will be due on September 15.

A monthly report for September will not be required as that activity may be incorporated in the Quarterly report due on October 21.

The Mississippi Legislature passed a resolution extending the legislative session to adjourn sine die on October 10 to consider matters concerning the COVID-19 pandemic.

This extension pushes back the due date for the Lobbyist End-of-Session Report due 10 days after adjournment sine die to October 20, unless the Legislature votes to adjourn earlier.

On August 25, the Vermont General Assembly will reconvene the legislative session to discuss the governor’s proposed 2021 budget.

Lawmakers will return to a virtual statehouse and all meetings will be conducted remotely.

The budget public hearings will be available to watch live on YouTube at the following link: https://legislature.vermont.gov/committee/streaming/house-appropriations.

The Utah Legislature announced a special session beginning August 20 to consider COVID-19 relief, reopening schools, and to determine how to hold the November 3 general election.

The August 20 special session marks the sixth special session of the year. The election changes aim to modify a practice known as ballot harvesting or allowing a third party to collect and deliver multiple by-mail ballots.

Among the non-COVID issues to be discussed is a request for $20 million to bail out developers of a port in Oakland, California Utah lawmakers believe would ship Utah coal abroad.

The Legislature will hold the special session electronically, encouraging the public to participate by submitting inquires and feedback directly to their legislators or by remotely attending committee meetings.

The Legislature has exercised its ability to call itself into session, a method approved by voters in 2018. Before then, only governors could call a special session.

The special session does not affect lobbyist reporting.

Senate President Harvey Peeler announced he will call the Senate back to session early on September 2 to consider the impact of COVID-19 on upcoming elections.

The Legislature recessed in May and was set to reconvene on September 15.

Peeler emphasized the need to protect the voter and the vote as the chief reason from reconvening early.

Gov. Ned Lamont announced a special legislative session to start on Tuesday, July 21.

The Legislature will reconvene to discuss bills relating to police reform, absentee ballots, telehealth insurance, and insulin drug costs.

Legislative leaders and Gov. Lamont have also discussed returning for a second special session in September to consider housing reform legislation.

In a 3-2 decision on June 16, the New Mexico Supreme Court denied a request allowing lobbyists and public into the Capitol, known as the Roundhouse, during the special legislative session beginning June 18.

Chief Justice Judith Nakamura described the decision as a difficult ruling to make. However, Nakamura concurred with Justices Barbara Vigil and Michael Vigil in denying the petition. 24 lawmakers submitted this proposal which would have opened the Roundhouse to lobbyists and the public for the special session.

The petition argued that prohibiting lobbyists from entering the Roundhouse violates the constitutional requirement to make all legislative sessions public.

New Mexico’s constitution provides all sessions of each house must be public. Justices challenged attorneys on both sides to define the term “public” and explain in detail what constitutes a public session.

Justice C. Shannon Bacon expressed concern about large parts of the state not having broadband. She also emphasized that thousands of people do not have access to computers, describing New Mexico as a technological desert.

The Supreme Court concluded virtual proceedings balance the need to protect the public from the public health concerns of COVID-19 with the need to ensure the legislative session remains open and transparent.

The ruling means those who wish to follow the session will watch the hearings from their computer screens. This will be current reality, rather than gathering in committee rooms and House and Senate galleries.

The public will be able to speak at the discretion of the House committee chairs via Zoom video conference call. However, the public will only be allowed to send emails, rather than joining a video conference, to address the Senate’s committee.

Beginning June 18, lawmakers will begin debating how to shore up an estimated $2 billion shortfall in projected revenues for the fiscal year 2021 budget. This shortfall is largely due to the pandemic-related government shutdown.

The Mississippi Legislature has adopted a resolution to once again extend the legislative session.

The resolution initially called for the session to be extended until December 31.

However, a Senate amendment was passed setting the date for adjournment sine die on October 10.

The resolution calls for the Legislature to now reconvene for six days in October.

The Legislature will consider matters regarding any additional funds appropriated by the U.S Congress to the state for the COVID-19 pandemic.

The session was previously extended from May 10 to July 12 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Lt. Gov. Geoff Duncan and Speaker of the House David Ralston announced the Georgia General Assembly will resume its 2020 legislative session on June 15.

The General Assembly’s session has been on pause since March 13 due to COVID-19 concerns.

Upon reconvening, a key issue will be the state budget.

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the General Assembly has canceled legislative sessions for the week of June 1 to June 5.

Committee hearings have been scheduled in both chambers of the General Assembly and will be live streamed at www.rilegislature.gov/CapTV.

During this time, the State House building will remain closed.

Members of the public wishing to testify on any of the matters before the committees may submit written testimony.

The General Assembly is scheduled to meet on Tuesday, June 9.

This does not affect lobbyist reporting.

The Illinois Legislature adjourned on May 24 at the end of a special session that started on May 20.

Initially, the Senate met at the Capitol and the House at the Bank of Springfield Center to accommodate social distancing due to COVID-19 concerns.

The abbreviated special session focused mainly on budget issues and COVID-19 related legislation.

No bill permitting the Legislature to convene virtually was passed during this session.

Therefore, the Legislature will convene in person for the veto session scheduled to begin November 17.