This Saturday, Democrats Norbert “Norby” Chabert and Ledricka Johnson Thierry successfully defended the vacant 20th Senate and 40th House districts in closely-fought special election runoffs. The heavily-Democratic HD-40 was never seriously in doubt for the party, but the overwhelmingly-conservative SD-20 supported John McCain by a 72%-28% margin in November and featured a well-financed Republican campaign by Brent Callais of Cutoff, LA.

Chabert won the contest by a convincing 54.3% to 45.7%, for a total margin of 1526 votes in the Terrebonne- and Lafourche-based 20th District:

In addition to the district’s conservative leanings, Callais had the advantage of a high-profile campaign and fundraising visit from Republican Governor Bobby Jindal (which reportedly netted nearly $100,000) and heavy spending by the Louisiana Republican Party. Callais and the Republicans blanketed the district with mailers accusing Chabert of supporting President Obama’s healthcare initiative, but Chabert wisely focused his campaign on local issues like the South Louisiana shrimping industry, coastal levee protection, and the future of public hospitals in Houma, LA.

Just like in last week’s special election in Kentucky, the national attacks clearly fell flat, and the Democrat’s mastery of local issues won the race.

We’ve spent a lot of time tracking (and praising) state efforts to promote renewable energy, but today we want to highlight one such effort and how it’s expected to re-shape an economy at the local level.

Arizona’s SB 1403 provides a 10% income tax credit to renewable energy producers that meet certain requirements, and new projects investing more than $25 million in the state could qualify for local property tax reductions. With less than five months until the bill goes into effect, an official with the Yuma, AZ Economic Development Corp. took a look at what the changes will mean for Yuma:

So, how will Yuma directly benefit from this legislation? The current state of affairs at the Capitol is a lesson that we no longer can rely on construction and retail sales to fuel our economic engine. The institution of SB 1403 has put Arizona, and Yuma in particular, on an even playing field with competitor states such as New Mexico, Texas and Oregon.

Currently, we are working with two potential company locates that were monitoring this bill very closely. Their project scope estimates may account for 200+ high-wage jobs and approximately $50 million to $75 million in new capital investment.

From an economic development perspective, solar manufacturing companies that need to have a presence near large consumers of their products such as California are now focused specifically on communities that can provide the available labor force, shortest time to end markets and up-front capital cost offsets. Leveraging the presence of three large-scale solar farms developing projects in our county, California’s ravenous appetite for clean energy and our distinct regional advantages; we have the potential to become the epicenter for solar activity in the desert Southwest.

It’s worth noting that SB 1403 was passed at the end of June and signed by the governor on July 10th, despite significant Republican opposition in the House and Senate – both Republican-controlled chambers. Were it not for the overwhelming support of legislative Democrats, the bill likely would have failed in the State Senate, where it squeaked by on a 16-12 vote.

Without that close win, residents of Yuma and other cities and towns across Arizona would have lost out on potentially millions of dollars and thousands of new jobs in an emerging economic sector. We won’t know for several years whether Yuma really will become the solar powerhouse of the Southwest, but we feel confident that the city’s future has, in fact, brightened because SB 1403 passed.

Local officials in southern Mississippi, New Orleans, and Louisiana’s Gulf Coast parishes have long feared a drop in political representation and federal and state funding due to population losses from hurricanes Katrina and Rita. New Orleans officials have even taken the extraordinary step of assigning a full-time staff member to coordinate Census activities.

Now, a regional coalition of non-profit organizations has proposed a more drastic solution: a “Special Census” to be conducted in 2012 or 2013, in addition to the regular Census in 2010. The Times-Picayune explains how that would work:

A special census, in theory, would mitigate any shortfall in federal financing by setting a new, official head count for use in many payment formulas. In the past, such exercises have usually been requested and financed by localities that believe the cost of a new count will be outweighed by the increase in federal grant money it will spur.

Advocates on Monday specified that Congress should pay for the special censuses they advocate.

Contrary to expectations, New Orleans' population grew faster in the fourth year of recovery than in the third, while all parishes in the New Orleans area added residents, according to the latest New Orleans Index, which gauges Katrina recovery using a range of social and economic indicators.

There is ample precedence for this kind of action, and an updated count in 2012 could be used to reallocate state funding in the states involved (according to the Census Bureau’s website on Special Census counts).

In theory at least, the updated figures could also be used to update the states’ various redistricting plans, but it would be unprecedented for Special Census results to be used to recalculate each state’s number of congressional seats. Also unclear is whether federal funding formulas would actually award extra money to areas shown to be gaining population, since a Special Census might not reveal how many of the new residents came from other areas of the same state.

Back in April, Florida’s legislative Republicans refused to accept nearly $444 million in federal funding for the state’s unemployment system – money that would have shored up the unemployment trust fund at a crucial time and helped prevent a business tax hike in the middle of the recession.

This week, the Republicans’ stubbornness came home to roost as Florida’s unemployment trust fund officially went broke. For now, the state will be forced to borrow hundreds of millions of dollars from the federal government to keep the system running, but just as we warned in April, paying back that money will cause heavy tax hikes on Florida businesses:

Replenishing the fund won't be pain-free.

Employers will feel a bigger sting under changes lawmakers made this spring to the unemployment compensation tax system.

How much more employers will pay is based on a complicated formula that takes into account such things as the number of workers a business has laid off, its size and the number of years it has been paying into the system.

Of course, it wasn’t just the DLCC, media analysts, and Democratic legislators warning that this would happen; Republican Governor Charlie Crist opposed the decision too. But instead of accepting free money from the federal government, legislative Republicans chose to raise taxes to pay back borrowed money, all while denying extra help to Florida’s unemployed workers and their families.

As we also noted back in April, Floridians deserve better than this.

Democrat Robin Webb has won a closely-watched special election to replace Republican State Senator Charlie Borders in the northeastern 18th District. With all counties reporting, Webb leads in unofficial returns by 48.1% to 46.6%, or a margin of 282 votes:

Webb’s victory leaves the State Senate with 20 Republicans, 17 Democrats, and one Independent, and it also triggers another special election to fill Webb's now-vacant House seat. In addition to narrowing the Republican advantage, this election was widely seen as a test of the Republican legislative strategy of blocking votes on key Democratic initiatives – particularly a plan to boost state revenues and aid Kentucky’s horseracing industry by allowing video lottery machines at racetracks.

Especially worrisome for Kentucky Republicans is the fact that they lost the 18th District despite its conservative electorate - which gave Obama just over 40% of the two-party vote - and despite major independent expenditures by the national Republican State Leadership Committee. The RSLC financed a series of television ads attacking Webb and tying her to national Democrats, but based on the result yesterday, those attacks were clearly ineffective.

This is the second such district taken by Kentucky Democrats in special elections this year; the other was the 32nd Senate District left vacant by Republican Brett Guthrie.

Michigan Democrats are hitting the road this week, using a series of press conferences and town hall meetings to blast State Senate Republicans for blocking efforts to accept federal help for Michigan’s unemployed workers. The federal funding, totaling $138 million over two years, would offer temporary relief to workers undergoing job training programs or those who’ve only managed to find part-time employment.

All across Michigan, Democratic leaders are making the case for why the extra help is sorely needed:

The state expects 99,059 unemployed workers to run out of benefits by the first week in January, including 25,689 in Wayne County, 10,884 in Oakland County, and 10,158 in Macomb.

"It's really pretty horrific," said Dan Farough, spokesman for the House Democrats and Speaker Andy Dillon, D-Redford Township. "One hundred thousand people will have exhausted their unemployment benefits by year's end.

"This will hit local communities hard if we don't get something passed."

In addition to pumping $138 million in the state economy, the Democratic plans would also boost the economy by generating a more skilled workforce and eliminating the unemployment system’s penalty for accepting part-time jobs. And with the federal stimulus package footing the entire bill, the plan is a clear win-win for the state. Nevertheless, Senate Republicans have spent months blocking a vote on the measure.

This debate over Democratic plans for unemployment benefits is providing the clearest illustration yet that Michigan Democrats are the ones offering ideas and solutions, while the Republicans offer nothing but obstruction and broken promises to working families. That’s a lesson the state’s voters will not soon forget.

HD-17: Democrat Gwen Mason earned the key endorsement of the Virginia Farm Bureau in her race to pick up this Republican-held open seat based in Roanoke City and parts of Roanoke and Botetourt counties. AgPAC, the Farm Bureau’s political arm, is backing the Republican statewide ticket, but it endorsed Mason because of her superior experience and “her response to questions on property rights, open space and ‘the importance of fresh local food.’”

HD-20: Longtime Republican Delegate Chris Saxman unexpectedly announced his retirement several weeks ago, forcing local Republicans to scramble for a new candidate against Democratic challenger Erik Curren. The 20th District, based in Staunton and parts of Augusta, Highland, and Rockingham counties, voted heavily for John McCain, but with an open seat and a head start in his campaign, Curren’s chances in the race have definitely improved.

HD-51: A coalition of federal, state, county, and municipal officials, including Prince William County Delegate Paul Nichols, met yesterday to announce a major push to extend the DC Metro system as far as Woodbridge, VA. Nichols, who successfully sponsored a state study of the proposal, believes the extension will help lure more businesses to the area while giving Prince William County commuters a new option to avoid northern Virginia’s notorious rush-hour traffic.

HD-99: After months of silence from state Republicans about the increasingly extreme rhetoric from their 99th District nominee Catherine Crabill (including an apparent call for armed insurrection), the Republican Party of Virginia has finally – and quietly – decided it will not be supporting her campaign financially. Though the party has not officially condemned Crabill or her remarks, even this news was enough to set off an ugly feud between state and local party officials. Said 99th District GOP Chair Allan Webb: “I will not disavow my loyalty to the Party, the Plan or the Platform for the expediency of any candidate because they feel pressured by the liberal media and can’t handle the ‘hot seat’ when put on the spot.” Crabill campaign manager Bill Kling, for his part, advised the three Republican statewide candidates to “stay out of the rain lest their butts melt.” Pass the popcorn!

HD-100: Incumbent Democratic Delegate Lynwood Lewis also earned a boost from the Virginia Farm Bureau, which endorsed his re-election bid in the Norfolk-area 100th District. Lewis faces a Republican and an Independent on the ballot this November.

Local media have blown the lid off a major scandal involving Virginia Republican Delegate Phil Hamilton. Hamilton, who we recently learned was drawing a $40,000 salary from a teacher training program he helped fund with millions in state tax dollars, claimed at the time that he did not discuss any job possibilities while he was trying to secure funding for the center.

Not only is that false, but it turns out Hamilton discussed both the state funding and his desire for a new job in the same email. From a message to Old Dominion University administrator David Blackburn, December 2006:

The budget did not include anything for a Teacher Center. Attached is the information I sent to HAC for my $1 million Teacher Center budget amendment. My City retirement is reduced in May 2007. I will need to supplement my NNPS income ($38,000) by at least an equal amount or separate from NNPS for at least $75,000 per year. Thanks.
Phil Hamilton.

One hour earlier, Hamilton had made clear his intentions, writing to Blackburn that:

When we talked about the Center last August, I expressed an interest in being associated with the initiative from a professional perspective. Since then, I haven’t heard anything more about an employment possibility. If possible, I would like to discuss this possibility with you prior to my leaving for the GA on January 8, 2007.

After learning of these damning new facts, Old Dominion University promptly cancelled its contract with Hamilton and is beginning full review of its hiring practices. Meanwhile, Democratic leaders are calling for an official investigation:

"It's very troubling," said House Minority Leader Ward Armstrong of Henry County. "And what's troubling about it is, Delegate Hamilton indicated he had no communication with ODU about a position with the center prior to the General Assembly session in which this money was appropriated. And that is clearly not the case.

"The problem with something like this is, it puts a cloud over the legislative process and it clearly undermines people's faith and confidence in their state government. Clearly, this bears further investigation and inquiry."

Hamilton’s Democratic opponent, Robin Abbott, has made ethics reform a key issue in her campaign, and you can learn more about her at robinabbott.com.

On July 2nd, Michigan joined a growing number of states that grant struggling homeowners a 90-day window to try and avoid mortgage foreclosure (we wrote about Illinois’s plan several months ago). Today, it’s clear that Michigan’s Democratic-sponsored program has been wildly successful in reducing the state’s foreclosure rate:

Michigan's foreclosure rate plummeted by 39 percent in July as compared to June, helped by a new state law that freezes foreclosure proceedings for 90 days.

Michigan ranked 19th for its foreclosure rate in July with one filing for every 548 households, according to RealtyTrac Inc. data released today. Michigan has ranked in the top 10 for foreclosures for more than three years except for dropping to 11 in April.

Michigan did hit the top 10 for the number of filings with 8,257 last month including 5,561 bank repossessions, said RealtyTrac, an Irvine, Calif.-based foreclosure Web site.

The big drop came in a 66% fall in scheduled property auctions as the moratorium requires lenders to offer delinquent homeowners 90 days to work on a loan modification. There were 2,695 in July compared with 7,965 in June.

The numbers are even more impressive compared to nationwide statistics, in which the national foreclosure rate actually rose 7% this month. While the true test of the 90-day grace period comes in a few months, Michigan Democrats are optimistic that their plan is already saving families’ homes:

"The numbers prove that our new program to protect homeowners is working," said State Representative Andy Coulouris (D-Saginaw), who sponsored the original plan. "By giving families this extra time to work out a solution with their lender and a housing counselor, we are helping people hold on to their piece of the American Dream in these tough economic times. Over and over again, what we've heard from homeowners is that they'd have been able to keep their homes, if they'd only had a bit more time to work things out. With our economy continuing to struggle, we need to make sure that our working families are getting the helping hand they need while they get back on their feet."

Today's political landscape is radically different from what it was in 2000. That set of elections and redistricting occurred at a time before rise of political blogging or YouTube or Twitter.

That's a point that Charles Mahtesian made in POLITICO last week:

It’s easy to forget that, while the practice of drawing political districts with the intent of maximizing power dates back at least two centuries, it wasn’t until fairly recently in our history that the dark arts of redistricting were perfected by the creation of software and databases that facilitated pinpoint line-drawing.

Now, I think, we’re about to see the next evolutionary step in redistricting — a round where the blogosphere plays a significant role in determining the final outcome.

Mahtesian was in the room for the redistricting panel at Netroots Nation. He saw an engaged audience, asking thoughtful questions.

Democrats in this country are already aware that this process is unfolding and aren't willing to let Republicans control redistricting yet again.

We hope to have video from the panel soon.

Democratic candidate Robin Webb has built a dominant fundraising advantage in a key Senate special election contest in Kentucky.

Webb, a state representative from Grayson, reported raising nearly $236,000 for the Aug. 25 special election while Ditty, a Greenup County dermatologist, took in more than $134,000.

Both candidates filed their 15-day pre-election reports late Monday with the Kentucky Registry of Election Finance.

They are running to fill a vacancy in the 18th Senate District that was created this summer when Republican incumbent Charlie Borders of Grayson resigned to accept an appointment by Gov. Steve Beshear to the Public Service Commission.

The cash-on-hand disparity for the two candidates is even wider, with Webb holding a 7-to-1 lead over the Republican.

In addition to offering Democrats a chance to narrow the Republican advantage in the Senate, many observers consider the race a referendum on Senate Republicans and their effort to block video lottery machines at Kentucky racetracks. The machines would provide vital new revenue for the state’s well-respected horseracing industry, which has suffered during the recession. Democrats have mostly favored the idea.

While a fundraising advantage is always a good sign, money doesn’t guarantee victory in politics, and there’s still a week’s worth of hard campaigning before Monday’s election.

If you live in Kentucky or want to learn more about Robin Webb, you can visit her website at robinwebbforsenate.com.

Regular readers of this blog know that the DLCC is putting a heavy emphasis on redistricting, which will be carried out by state legislators in almost every state.

Now, we are taking that focus to the next level with the launch of RedistrictingFacts.com, a website devoted to providing timely, accurate information about redistricting in all 50 states.

We’re still adding more content to this site, but our vision for RedistrictingFacts.com is to create a one-stop-shop for information, including:

• State-by-state overviews of how the redistricting process works in all 50 states;
  

• Analysis of how legal structures like the Constitution, the Voting Rights Act, and changes to state laws affect redistricting;
  
• News and updates about the Census process and key reform initiatives around the country; and
  
• Most importantly, ways individuals and grassroots groups can join the fight to ensure fairly-drawn maps for Democrats.
  

All of us at the DLCC are extremely excited about the potential for this new site, and the information available now will only increase between now and 2011, when the maps are drawn. We hope you’ll take a moment to check it out, and be sure to keep checking the site for the very latest.

The good folks at stateline.org have compiled an excellent set of legislative roundups outlining how the sessions went in each state legislature in America. The information is fully sortable by issue, state, and nation-wide trend, allowing readers to see what their elected officials accomplished this year and how they performed compared to other states.

So if you want to know whether your legislators were active in healthcare reform, whether they raised or lowered taxes, or whether equal rights legislation passed in your state, the information is all there for those and many other issues.

Keep in mind, of course, that some states are currently in special session or have year-round legislatures.

After their failed coup attempt brought New York’s legislature to a standstill, it’s no surprise that State Senate Republicans aren’t exactly beloved by New York voters. Apparently, their desperate flailing has earned them a rebuke from donors as well, with Democrats out-raising Senate Republicans by nearly 3-1:

While Senate Democrats raised $6.9 million, Republicans raised just $2.5 million. That $4.4 million gap is the second-largest between the two parties since 1999, when the State Board of Elections introduced electronic filing.

The Democrats’ haul was more than twice what they raised during the first half of 2007, the last year without statewide elections. The Republicans’ total was just half of what they raised during the same period in 2007.

The big difference between the parties could hamper Republicans’ plans for retaking control of the Senate next year and underscores how much power is wielded by the dominant party in Albany, even though the Senate Democrats hold a majority of just two votes.

These early numbers are a sharp reversal from previous cycles, when Republicans routinely held a dominant fund-raising edge over then-minority Democrats. Without the millions of dollars that kept them in power for decades in such a left-leaning state, Republicans will have a tough time preventing more Democratic gains – let alone retaking the chamber – in 2010.

More and more candidates for public office at the local level are taking their campaigns online, and web tools are changing the ways that lawmakers and voters interact.

Blogs, email, and social networking offer public officials the opportunity to communicate directly with voters and their constituents in a way that promotes a type of participatory democracy that is new and exciting.

If you're going to Pittsburgh for Netroots Nation, we hope you'll join us tomorrow from 10:30 AM to 11:45 AM for a conversation on the state of online campaigns.

I'll be joined by Jim Walsh from Wired for Change, Kim Rogers from the Democratic Lieutenant Governors Association, Erin Hill from ActBlue, and Adam Conner from Facebook.

We'll discuss examples of how some technologies are helping candidates breach the divide that exists between voters and politicians, and debate the implications these developments hold for the future of government and public life.

If you have questions, follow the DLCC on Twitter @demlegislators and ask questions using the hashtag #DLCC

Utah and Massachusetts, arguably the most conservative and the most liberal states in the country, will have something in common next week: they'll be the only two states in America with state-run health insurance exchanges that let residents compare health plans side-by-side. Massachusetts’s exchange was created by that state’s universal healthcare program in 2006, while Utah’s is set to launch August 19th:

As part of HB 188, employers will have the option of depositing money into their workers' health savings accounts -- instead of just paying a portion of their premium -- allowing them to buy any plan they want.

On its launch day, the Utah Health Exchange will begin enrolling up to 150 small employer groups -- those with between two and 50 workers -- who intend to offer their workers this option.

Then, in early November, their workers will be able to log on with a pin number and pick the plan they like best. If they don't elect one, they'll be enrolled in a default plan chosen by their employer. Their coverage will begin Jan. 1.

"Our hope is it empowers consumers, or patients, to see the system and have skin in the game and make choices that influence the market," said Natalie Gochnour, chief operating officer of the Salt Lake Chamber.

By late 2011, the Utah Health Exchange will be available near-universally, giving state officials time to iron out any problems. Besides allowing much greater freedom and transparency for the state’s patients (and hopefully driving down costs), the Utah Health Exchange is an important legislative accomplishment for many other reasons:

First, it was a truly bipartisan plan co-sponsored by both the Republican and Democratic leaders in the State House. It ultimately passed near-unanimously in both chambers.

Second, it will give federal policymakers a closer look at how such exchanges operate in the real world before federal healthcare reform is voted on.

Most importantly, however, the Utah Health Exchange helps place an important element of any federal healthcare proposal – state-based insurance exchanges – firmly in the mainstream of American politics. With states as liberal as Massachusetts and as conservative as Utah enthusiastically accepting the exchanges, then they can’t possibly represent a total government takeover of everyone’s healthcare, as Republicans try to claim.

So maybe, hopefully, the Utah plan will help inject a little honesty back into the national debate. Either way, Utah legislators of both parties will have a lot to be proud of when the Utah Health Exchange goes online next week.

One of Sarah Palin's last acts as governor was to veto a bill that would have allowed her state to accept $28 million in federal stimulus money that would go to energy cost relief. Lawmakers immediately began to consider an override, but many wondered whether the measure would enjoy the 75 percent approval it would need to pass.

It did.

Yesterday the legislature approved the override by a vote of 45 to 14. If only one more lawmaker had missed the special session, it would have failed.

Democratic Sen. Lyman Hoffman told reporters:

Instead of being the last state in the union to take this money we should have been the first. We live in the coldest state in the union and we should be setting the standard in efficiencies and how energy is being used throughout this state.

The federal money will initially be used to make public buildings in Alaska more energy efficient.

This week is Netroots Nation. We're headed to Pittsburgh on Wednesday, and on Thursday, I will represent the DLCC on two different panels.

At 4:30 p.m. in Rooms 301/302 at the Conference Center, I'll be part of a discussion about redistricting.

I'll be joined by blogger Matt Glazer from Burnt Orange Report, Sam Bennett from the Women's Campaign Forum, and State Rep. Chelsa Wagner (D-Pittsburgh).

Christopher Massicotte, Director of Sales and Marketing for NGP, will moderate the panel discussion and interactive questioning.

If you will be attending Netroots, we hope you will join us.

The Facebook event is at http://bit.ly/qS1So. We're also soliciting questions before, during, and after the event with a hashtag on Twitter: #redistricting2010

The national recession is causing enormous pain for thousands of West Virginia families, and the state’s Democratic lawmakers are working overtime to make sure those families get the relief they need:

Gov. Joe Manchin will call legislators into a special session to consider extending jobless benefits, spokesman Matt Turner said Thursday.

Under the federal stimulus package, states with high unemployment rates can receive extra federal funding to give unemployed workers up to 20 additional weeks of benefits.

Because of the way the state's unemployment compensation laws are written now, the state can't get those federal funds, Turner said.

Because the extended benefits will be entirely paid for by the federal stimulus package, this action will bring millions of dollars into West Virginia’s economy without costing anything to state tax-payers. And with the state’s unemployment rate closely tracking the national average at 9.4%, that relief and economic impact are sorely needed.

Four years ago, before Hurricanes Katrina and Rita, there were 484,674 people living in New Orleans. Now, most people believe the city is home to only around 312,000 residents.

Many of those displaced by the storms might one day return to their homes, and that has government officials all along the Gulf Coast worried that their states will be undercounted in the 2010 census.

A group of community and civil rights leaders is asking Congress to ensure that Census officials give the region adequate attention.

In New Orleans, city officials are so concerned about the issue that a dedicated staffer will work full time on issues related to the county, and for its part, the Census Bureau promises that employees will hand-deliver questionnaires to parts of the region most affected by the storms.

The dedicated staffer in New Orleans will join government officials will similar responsibilities in Colorado and New York.

By most measures, Nevada Governor Jim Gibbons -- a Republican -- is one of the least popular elected officials in the country. Only one in ten voters in his state approve of his job performance. That's a reputation he's earned through shocking displays of personal and professional incompetence.

Nevada has been hard hit by the national recession, and Gibbons has done little as governor to improve things for his constituents. The state is set to receive $1.5 billion in federal stimulus money, and that has legislators worried how Gibbons would manage the funds.

For that reason, this week, lawmakers led an effort to put oversight of the money into more responsible hands:

During a meeting of the Interim Finance Committee — which exists so changes in the budget can be made when the Legislature is not in session — lawmakers rejected a plan by Gov. Jim Gibbons’ administration for how to spend some of the federal stimulus money and stripped from his office a newly created position to oversee spending of Nevada’s $1.5 billion allotment.

Legislators -- led by Senate Majority Leader and DLCC Board Member Steven Horsford proposed changes to the governors plan that would reduce the number of individuals responsible for overseeing the administration of the funds from 10 to 3; place the overall stimulus fund coordinator position in the office of the state controller; and make the coordinator position classified -- which would force candidates through the state personnel process rather than having them be appointed by the governor.

The Louisiana Legislature voted several weeks ago to dramatically improve state tax incentives for small-scale solar power systems. Unlike other states that focused on creating new tax incentive programs during the 2009 legislative session (several of which we profiled in last month’s Progress Report), Louisiana changed their existing 50 percent tax credits to encourage more participation, and the new changes have renewable energy advocates buzzing:

The act helps foster a solar leasing business, where an installer pays the money upfront, gets the tax credit and a homeowner leases the system back from them.

"You, in essence, pay a bill to them, just like you would pay your utility bill through Entergy or any other utility," [South Coast Solar CEO Troy] Von Otnott said. "At the end of the lease, after they've made their return on investment, you're allowed to purchase that system for a dollar."

Before the change in the law, it wasn't possible for anyone, other than the homeowner, to claim the state tax credit. Now, though, the new law will benefit not just third parties, but also could be used by developers.

"If you're a developer and you want to do a new development that involves solar, the developers can also claim the tax credit for all the solar they put on the homes," [Alliance for Affordable Energy representative Christian] Roselund said. "So, developers and contractors being able to claim this credit really opens the door for a lot more solar in new construction."

If successful, this new flexibility in the state’s solar incentive program will encourage a new wave of solar equipment installation across Louisiana and allow thousands of homeowners to enjoy lower energy bills.

Legislative Act 467, which allowed these changes, was passed unanimously by both houses of the Democratically-controlled legislature.

In the Ohio House of Representatives, Democrats have opened a massive fundraising lead heading into the 2010 elections:

In the state Legislature, House Republicans celebrated their fundraising figures, with more than $1 million in campaign contributions. The once-dominant GOP now holds 46 of 99 House seats, and hopes to win back the majority it lost in 2006. [sic]

House Democrats amassed more than twice as much during the period, however, raising $2.2 million. And caucus funds and the campaign committees of House leaders combined showed House Democrats raised nearly $3.8 million, compared to $1.4 million for House Republicans.

Congressional districts are drawn exclusively by the Ohio Legislature. Democrats narrowly won the State House in 2008, and by holding that chamber, Democrats can prevent yet another unfair congressional map. It's also, of course, the only way we can be sure that a Democratic policy agenda gets traction in the state.

Additionally, while DLCC doesn’t involve itself in statewide elections, we do keep tabs on races that affect redistricting. Three statewide officials also sit on Ohio’s legislative Apportionment Board, which draws State House and Senate districts, and Democrats have a healthy early fundraising edge in two of those races as well:

• Democratic Gov. Ted Strickland out-raised likely Republican nominee John Kasich $2.5 million to $516,000, leaving Strickland with a nearly 9-1 advantage in cash on hand.

• Republican State Auditor Mary Taylor was out-raised 3-to-1 by Democratic challenger and Hamilton County Commissioner David Pepper. Pepper raised nearly $317,000, while Taylor brought in only $107,900.
• In the race for Secretary of State (replacing Democrat Jennifer Brunner), Republican John Husted out-raised Democrat and Franklin County Commissioner Marilyn Brown by roughly $804,000 to $154,000.

If Democrats succeed in holding two of these statewide offices, they can take a majority on the Apportionment Board by successfully holding the State House. Then the Republicans’ gerrymander of state legislative seats can be abolished as well.

Though 8th District Democrat Carter Turner just started his campaign for the House of Delegates, he began the race with a bang late last week as Salem, Virginia Mayor Randy Foley endorsed his candidacy:

Carter Turner, the candidate for the 8th District seat, landed the support of Salem Mayor Randy Foley on Thursday.

(...)"Just a great friend," said Foley, who participated in Turner's wedding. He added, "I want to stress he's very well-qualified, he's articulate, he's intelligent."

But the late-day announcement may have also had an element of surprise.

The Salem mayor has eschewed party partisanship in his own political career. Foley ran for the city council as an independent. And this spring, when asked about partisanship in city politics, said that they had no place.

This endorsement from an independent-minded leader -– and the mayor of one of the largest population anchors in the 8th district –- gives Turner an early opportunity to build goodwill in this Salem and Roanoke County based district.

A well-respected professor at nearby Radford University, Turner announced his campaign last week after the previous Democratic nominee Ginny Weisz abandoned her campaign in order to focus on her doctoral studies.

You can learn more about Carter Turner’s campaign at turnerfordelegate.com.