The non-partisan Annie E. Casey Foundation has released the 2010 edition of its annual Kids Count ranking, which measures each state on 10 key indicators of children’s welfare and educational opportunities. Unsurprisingly, states with Democratic legislatures dominate the 2010 rankings.

Eight of the top-ten overall states have Democratic legislatures – New Hampshire, Minnesota, Vermont, Massachusetts, Iowa, New Jersey, Connecticut, and Wisconsin. Only one Republican-controlled state and one state with a nominally non-partisan legislature made the top ten.

More impressively, states with Democratically-controlled legislatures outnumber Republican-controlled states in the top-ten* of every single subcategory. The breakdown of each subcategory is:

• Fewest Low-Birthweight Babies: 6D-3R-1Split

• Lowest Infant Mortality: 9D-1R-0Split
• Fewest Child Deaths: 10D-0R-0Split
• Fewest Teen Deaths from All Causes: 10D-0R-0Split
• Fewest Teen Births by Age Group: 9D-1R-0Split
• Fewest Teens Ages 16-19 Not in School and Not H.S. Graduates: 9D-1R-4Split*^
• Fewest Teens Ages 16-19 Not in School and Not Working: 7D-4R-2Split*^
• Fewest Children Living in Families where No Parent has Full-Time, Year-Round Employment: 6D-5R-2Split*^
• Fewest Children in Poverty: 9D-2R-2Split*^
• Fewest Children in Single-Parent Families: 6D-4R-1Split*^

*Because of ties in the subcategories, some top-ten lists contain more than ten states.
^We counted Nebraska’s non-partisan legislature as being under split-control.

The release of the Kids Count ranking comes on the heels of CNBC’s “Top States for Business” ranking, in which not a single state in the top ten of the education subcategory had a Republican-controlled legislature.

Both rankings reinforce the larger argument we make each and every day: that the states that are moving forward and working to provide opportunity for future generations, by and large, are states with Democratic leadership.

According to CNBC’s latest 50-state ranking of the best places for business growth, three of the top-five states for business have Democratic legislatures (Massachusetts, Colorado, and North Carolina), and a fourth is currently under split control (Virginia).

But unlike other rankings that view business-friendliness as a race to see which state can drown itself in a bathtub the quickest, CNBC ranked the full range of issues businesses consider when choosing to locate or expand – everything from public education to quality of life. And it’s no surprise that states with Democratic legislatures dominate many of these key issues:

• Overall: Democratic-controlled Massachusetts, Colorado, and North Carolina all ranked in the top five, along with Virginia (which is under split control). Only one Republican-controlled state made the top five.
  
  

• Education System: Republicans were shut out of this category – four of the top five (and nine of the top ten) states for education have Democratic legislatures. Pennsylvania, which was tied for fourth, is under split control.
  
  

• Technology and Innovation: This was the Democratic states’ second most consistent category (behind education). Again, four of the top five states are Democratically-controlled. But only 2 Republican-controlled states even made the top-fifteen.
  
  

• Access to Capital: All five of the top spots, and eight of the top ten, went to Democratic states, led by California. One split state, Virginia, and only one Republican state also made the top ten.
  
  

• Quality of Life: Four of the top five states, and eight of the top ten, were Democratically-controlled.

The trend from these rankings should be obvious: The states that are moving forward (by investing in technology and education, by making it easy to start businesses, and by continually improving the quality of life) are mostly states where Democrats set the agenda.

Meanwhile, Republicans continue their race to the bottom.

An AP-GfK poll conducted earlier this month indicates that, by a 46 percent to 39 percent margin, Americans want Democrats to win control of Congress this fall.

And when it comes to the financial concerns that weigh foremost on American minds -- and will likely continue to do so for years to come-- people trust Democrats more than Republicans to guide the economy.

But if Americans want Democrats to continue to steer our economic recovery, they need to peel back a layer of this fall’s elections and focus on not congressional races, but on the state-level legislative races taking place across the country.

Republicans seem to get it. GOP pollster David Hill put it well in today’s edition of The Hill:

While many look at control of Congress as the biggest story of the 2010 elections, it’s likely that state legislative races across the nation … will end up having more impact on party and other political fortunes in the long run.

The parties that control the legislatures after the 2010 elections and census will be masters of the redistricting process in many states, deciding which party is advantaged when legislative and congressional lines are redrawn for the next decade.

Simply put, a Republican-controlled state House, Assembly, or Senate chamber is going to draw congressional district lines designed to favor the election of Republicans to the U.S. Congress.

The more Republicans who win the numerous state legislative races this fall, the more state legislative chambers they’ll control.

The more state chambers Republicans control after the 2010 elections, the more congressional districts they get to draw in 2011.

The more congressional districts Republican-controlled chambers draw in 2011, the more Republicans get elected to Congress in 2012.

And 2014.

And 2016.

And so on, until the 2020 Census gives state legislatures the opportunity to draw those lines all over again.

Americans hope congressional Democrats will have led us out of this economic crisis by then. But if the new district lines lead to a Republican-run show in Congress, there’s no telling where we might be in ten years.

So while this fall’s congressional elections are getting top billing on the national stage, they’re certainly not the only show in town.

And in terms of long-term impact, congressional elections are being upstaged by state races everywhere.

The statistics say the recession is over, but to every American still struggling to support their family, those statistics are a lie. That’s why Democratic leaders in states all across America keep fighting for new legislation to attract good-paying jobs. But a few of those efforts stand out:

• Iowa led the way with an historic government efficiency plan expected to save at least $270 million, all of which is now being used to create jobs through clean energy projects, low-cost loans and financial training for small businesses, and dozens of other new job-creation plans.
  
  

• Wisconsin lawmakers passed at least 50 separate bills this year to boost job growth, including everything from new development incentives and job training programs to tax credits for cornerstone Wisconsin industries like dairy production.
  
  

• Washington State passed a bill to use tax credits to attract high-tech jobs in computer and data management. Each new project could mean thousands of construction jobs in the short term and even more high-paying technology jobs for years to come.
  
  

• Connecticut is adding a temporary small business hiring tax credit, to help convince local businesses that now is the time to start hiring new employees.

This is just a tiny sample of the Democratic-led effort to make sure Main Street families get to share the economic recovery. And this is one fight Democrats in all 50 states are determined to support.

Sadly, much of the opposition to bills like these (where there was any opposition at all) came from Republicans. And many of the best ideas for creating jobs never even come to a vote in states where Republicans control the legislature.

There are no silver bullets that will fix the entire economy overnight. But even the smallest idea can make a huge difference for a family on the brink of losing everything.

Sometimes it’s important to find humor in everyday life, but we don’t think too many of Republican State Rep. Eddie Fields’ constituents are laughing about a recent poll on his website asking if they care more about “the economy,” “stray squirrels,” or “not enough toilet paper:”

[Hat Tip thelostogle.com]

In normal times, this might have been acceptable -- but not with over 117,000 Oklahomans still unemployed.

As best we can tell, Fields hasn’t issued any sort of apology, but he was clearly ashamed enough to take down the poll and replace it with one that, while not exactly offensive, is still puzzling. It asks if, among other things, “job growth,” “the economy,” or “Oklahoma Economics” are people’s top issue.

Democrat Dale Christenson, Jr. is seeking the nomination to face Rep. Fields for an open State Senate seat.

With hiring only now beginning to pick up across the country, it’s worth looking back at the American unemployment insurance system to figure out how it can be more effective in the future. Seventeen mostly Democratic states have turned to a more proactive approach – one that uses unemployment dollars to keep people employed:

Called work sharing, or short-time compensation, the program has helped thousands of companies avoid layoffs in New York and 16 other states. This year, lawmakers in seven more states are considering bills that would authorize the widely praised approach to saving jobs.

Here’s how it works. When a business enters a slump and needs to cut payroll, it can seek state approval for a plan to reduce employees’ hours instead of cutting jobs. For example, a 20 percent reduction in the workforce could translate to a 20 percent reduction in hours, or a four-day workweek. To help employees stay afloat, the state would pay workers about half of their lost wages through the federal-state unemployment insurance program, which temporarily provides laid-off workers with a portion of their paychecks.

“Every day, workers tell me they’d rather work at least part of their regular week instead of face a layoff,” says New York Labor Commissioner Colleen Gardner. At no additional cost to states, the program helps businesses retain skilled employees, allows workers to stay on the job and keep their benefits and boosts the local economy.

Twelve of the seventeen states that offer this kind of program have Democratic-controlled legislatures. And that’s no surprise – Democratic legislators across the country have been proactive about protecting jobs ever since the recession began.

Despite the recession beginning to ease, Wisconsin’s Democratic legislators know their constituents still face a tough economy. But the State Senate’s Democratic Caucus is determined to make next year’s legislative session all about jobs -- starting with a package of job-creation bills unveiled on Monday:

One of the proposals would spend $2 million to increase partnerships between businesses and the University of Wisconsin.

Tax credits that can be claimed for those who make investments in startup companies would be increased under another idea.

Other bill would create a $2 million tax credit for businesses that pay university or technical college tuition for their low-income employees.

The hallmark of the Democrats’ initiative is its focus on leveraging private investments, rather than relying entirely on tax dollars, and it’s exactly the kind of innovative approach Wisconsinites expected when they elected Democrats to lead their state legislature.

Managing a state budget during this recession is not easy. Falling tax revenue can open huge budget deficits, and closing those gaps is almost always a painful process. But North Carolina’s Democratic legislators have gotten it right, and they have the ratings to prove it:

The three financial rating agencies have given North Carolina a AAA rating in the wake of a budget crisis.

The rating is the highest possible and the three rating agencies, Moody's, Standard & Poor's and Fitch Ratings affirmed the top score, which like an individual credit score is a measure of credit-worthiness and financial security. North Carolina is one of only seven states to have the top score.

The high ratings can also be seen as a vote of confidence that the Democratically-controlled legislature is making the tough decisions now that will put North Carolina on solid financial footing for years to come.

But it’s more than just a feather in lawmakers’ caps. High credit ratings will save North Carolina taxpayers millions of dollars by allowing the state to sell bonds for major projects at lower interest rates.

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.

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.