Congratulations are in order for Providence Democrat Gordon Fox, who has been overwhelmingly chosen by his fellow Representatives to be the next Speaker of the Rhode Island House of Representatives.

Interestingly, Speaker-Elect Fox will break more than one barrier when he takes the lead in the State House:

Besides being the first openly gay lawmaker to preside at the speaker’s rostrum, members of the House minority caucus say that Fox, the child of an Irish-American and a mother of Cape Verdean descent, is the first minority lawmaker to hold what is arguably the state’s most powerful political post.

He will preside over a veto-proof Democratic majority and have wide sway over which bills come to a vote and which bills die.

During a closed-door caucus, Democratic lawmakers also picked Nicholas Mattiello of Cranston as their majority leader and J. Patrick O’Neill of Pawtucket as the party whip.

Congratulations to all the newly-elected leaders in Rhode Island, and we wish them the best of luck solving the challenges Rhode Island faces in this tough economy.

Bob Burns, Arizona’s Republican State Senate President, is bragging about how the Republican-controlled legislature is getting hardly any work done.

For much of the last legislative session, Burns refused to let his chamber to vote on any substantive bills until the state budget was passed. It was an interesting bit of gameship, but its predictable result was to throw the entire legislature into chaos:

The result was a huge backlog of bills, with several months’ worth of legislation being voted on in just weeks. It also meant that the majority of proposals, including many by the Republicans who control the Legislature, never got a Senate hearing, much less became law.

Yet it still took lawmakers to the last possible minute of the fiscal year — and actually slightly beyond — to adopt a new spending plan.

Hundreds of bills wound up as collateral damage from Sen. Burns’ maneuver. In all, the legislature passed nearly a third fewer bills than last year. But Burns, amazingly, boasts that the legislature’s gridlock is actually a good thing, claiming that “we’ve been criticized for passing too many bills.” (Because voters hate it when their political leaders are too productive – or something)

As for the budget itself, which was late anyway, it’s “still is not in balance for this year,” something lawmakers will have to fix in the next session. Overall, this whole episode was a remarkably pitiful performance by the Republican leadership.

Indiana State House Speaker Pat Bauer, a DLCC Board Member, has unveiled a comprehensive ethics reform package aimed at cleaning up the ethical climate in both the legislative and executive branches. The centerpiece of Speaker Bauer’s plan is a year-long waiting period for former legislators and executive appointees who want to become lobbyists:

“I think you just have to have a cleaner playing field in both perception and reality,” he said.

One proposal that has been discussed for years is a one-year cooling-off period before legislators can become lobbyists once they leave the General Assembly.

In recent years, a large number of lawmakers have left the legislature and immediately moved into the halls to lobby former colleagues.

Just by announcing his plan, Bauer has broken through the partisan rancor that engulfed Indiana politics during the state’s budget fight. The state’s Republican Governor and Senate President called Bauer’s plan “a very good initiative” and “timely,” respectively, while the Republican House leader said he was “thrilled” by the proposal. Even the staunchly-conservative Indianapolis Star editorial board called Bauer’s waiting period idea “a much-needed reform that could help break up the insider network that's pervasive in the Statehouse.”

Nevertheless, the waiting period is just one piece of Bauer’s overall plan, which also includes:

• Requiring lobbyists to report any gift to a legislator, legislative candidate or legislative employee of more than $50 – down from the current $100 – and changing the definition of what constitutes a gift.
  
  

• Prohibiting the governor or any candidate for that office from fundraising during the long budget session of the legislature. This rule already applies to the General Assembly. (…)
  
  

• Prohibiting people and businesses having contracts with state government or bidding on contracts from making political contributions to people who hold or run for state office.
  
  

• Prohibiting lobbyists or lobbying firms from representing multiple clients if there is a conflict of interest between those clients.

Libby Mitchell first ran for the Maine Legislature in 1974. Eventually, she became Speaker of the House. She ultimately served nine terms in the lower chamber before moving to the Senate, and in December, she became Senate President.

Sen. Mitchell is the first woman in the history of the United States to have held both positions.

She recently gave a long interview with Maine Insight, where she talked about her career in politics and her policy goals for the state:

Libby is a woman of many talents, having been a teacher, the director of Maine State Housing, holding a law degree and blazing the trail for women in Maine. Her tremendous sense of humor has defused situations, helping bipartisan cooperation, and her steadfast focus on education continues to motivate her.

For her entire career as an elected official, Sen. Mitchell has been focused on improving education -- in particular working to expand scholarship opportunities.

In the short term, she is working to fill Maine's $140 million budget shortfall.

Next month, Democratic State Senator Gerald Malloy of South Carolina will be named one of “Katie’s Heroes” for his tireless advocacy of a state DNA registry for violent felons, which passed in 2008, and for his work as chairman of the Senate Judiciary Criminal Justice System Task Force:

John Walsh, host of America’s Most Wanted, will be presenting the award at a luncheon hosted by the family of Katie Sepich, a young woman who was brutally raped and murdered in Aug of 2003, and whose family has established a nonprofit organization called DNA Saves.

(…)DNA Saves feels that Senator Malloy’s contributions to enacting DNA arrestee legislation in South Carolina deserves recognition and appreciation for a law that will benefit many in the succeeding years. In presenting him this award, Katie’s family wants to let Senator Malloy’s constituents know that he is a hero to them as well as to the many victims of violent crime.

“This will be a vital tool for law enforcement and it is essential that we provide our law enforcement with the best tools to keep our citizens safe. This methodology is already used by the Federal Government and should be a logical extension to our State,” said Senator Malloy.

The ceremony will be held on July 22nd as part of the National Conference of State Legislatures conference in Philadelphia. We applaud Senator Malloy for this award and for his ongoing fight to keep South Carolina’s families and children safe.

Yesterday was Colorado Senate President and DLCC board member Peter Groff’s last day in the Colorado Senate. With the end of legislative session, Sen. Groff will be resigning his seat to accept a high-level appointment in President Obama’s Department of Education.

Before he left, he urged his fellow senators to pass a bill repealing the death penalty in Colorado. That impassioned plea -– on an emotional issue with no national consensus -– should remind all of us why we put so much effort into legislative elections; why Sen. Groff was so respected by Democrats and Republicans across the state; and why all of us at the DLCC were so proud to have him as a board member:

And here was the challenge: "We will say we did what's right because that's what we're supposed to do. This is our opportunity, yet again, to actually be the moral voice in this state, to actually rise above the politics of the moment, to rise to that one moment where we say, 'You know what, if this costs us the majority, so be it. If this costs us our seats, our titles, our gavels, so be it, because this is the right thing to do.' "

He conceded that it was easy for someone like him, from a safe seat, to make this vote. But he said this was not about saving your, uh, seat, but about "one of those moments when a leader has to rise above politics, when morality has to rise above what is safe and convenient."

It was a fitting sendoff for an inspirational legislator. The bill in question failed by a single vote –- a much closer margin than expected –- after passing the State House, also by a single vote.

Sen. Groff was clearly the right choice for a presidential appointment, and we wish him and his family well in their move to Washington.

North Carolina Speaker of the House Joe Hackney -- a Democrat -- is the current president of the National Conference of State Legislatures. At the end of Hackney's term, Georgia State Senator Don Balfour -- a Republican -- will succeed him.

Both men recently sat down for an interview with Stateline:

Despite their personal history and different party affiliations, they agree mostly on the big stuff: The economic stimulus and financial system rescue plan are starting to help in their states. The public has no idea about the depth of the financial troubles facing state governments, even after the stimulus money is spent.

Nationally, Republicans have spent a lot of time arguing that the Federal Recovery Package was unnecessary. Even at the state level, some GOP governors (and Republican-controlled chambers) have turned down parts of the program. But responsible leaders from both parties recognize that the Troubled Assets Relief Program and the stimulus are both key parts of future economic recovery.

The recession poses stiff challenges for lawmakers, as both leaders make clear. Georgia was forced to make $1.6 billion of cuts to balance its budget, while North Carolina faces a budget gap between $3 and $4 billion.

Complicating the situation further is the fact that both leaders have plans for necessary state improvements. Balfour believes that Georgia needs to invest $3 billion a year for 20 years to upgrade transportation infrastructure that will confront traffic congestion. North Carolina has made serious investments in reducing class sizes and improving early childhood education that are now at risk as lawmakers examine ways to make ends meet in this economy.

Watching serious legislators come up with ways to make responsible choices really does make you wonder what the heck Virginia Republicans are thinking.

Now that Colorado Senate President and DLCC board member Peter Groff has earned a well-deserved appointment to President Obama’s Department of Education, Colorado Democrats have acted quickly to choose new leadership – effective upon Sen. Groff’s departure at the end of the legislative session.

Current Majority Leader Brandon Shaffer, representing Longview, was unanimously chosen to follow Sen. Groff as Senate President, while Colorado Springs Sen. John Morse will replace Shaffer as Majority Leader.

In accepting the appointment, Sen. Shaffer offered a tribute to the outgoing President:

Shaffer said he was "humbled" by being elected president, and he thanked Groff for his service.

"You're an inspiration to all of us, the way you carry yourself, the confidence you project," Shaffer said. "You are able to articulate the way I feel about issues, hit the right tones, hit just the right notes, when we are talking about issues that matter."

Sen. Morse, for his part, will be making history as the first Democrat from Colorado Springs ever to hold a leadership post in the State Senate. Sen. Morse’s rise in the state’s toughest Republican stronghold illustrates the broad and dramatic gains Colorado Democrats have made over the last several cycles.

Both new leaders have promised to forge a pragmatic governing style that focuses on how best to meet the needs of Coloradans. All of us at the DLCC wish them luck in their new positions.

Colorado State Senate President and DLCC Board member Peter Groff has been appointed to head the Faith-Based and Community Initiatives Center in President Obama’s Department of Education.

Sen. Groff, one of the state’s leading advocates of education reform and innovation, has promised to serve until the end of the legislative session before moving to Washington with his family.

The days following the announcement have been filled with near-universal praise for Sen. Groff’s leadership in the Senate and his long history of consensus-building in state politics.

A glowing Denver Post editorial noted that respect for Sen. Groff extends across the political spectrum in Colorado – including even the Senate’s Republican leadership.

In statements over the weekend, Governor Ritter and legislative Democrats expressed pride in the appointment but also sadness over Sen. Groff’s departure:

"Sen. Groff is a man of faith, and I believe President Obama and Secretary Duncan made a great choice," the governor said in a statement. "While I consider him a great partner in the legislature, I know this is a wonderful opportunity for him and his family, and I wish them the best."
(…)
House Speaker Terrance Carroll, D-Denver, praised the appointment.

"Peter is more than a leader, more than a barrier-breaker, more than a role model: Peter's been a friend and a mentor to me and to so many African-Americans, so many Coloradans," Carroll said in a statement.

"It has been a true privilege and honor to serve with my partner in history, my dear friend and colleague. I will truly miss having his presence in the Capitol and in Colorado."

The Faith-Based and Community Initiatives Center is intended to support “faith-based and community groups, enlisting them in support of the department's mission to ensure equal access to education and to promote educational excellence for all Americans.”

Based on his success in the legislature, we at the DLCC are certain Sen. Groff will be an incredible success as the Center’s director.

We congratulate him and wish him all the best in his new role.

For Democratic State Senator Paul Bookout, leadership runs in the family. Nearly two decades ago, Sen. Bookout’s father, Jerry Bookout, served as President Pro Temp of the Arkansas Senate. On Thursday, his fellow senators voted to elect the younger Sen. Bookout to that position starting in 2011:

"What more can you ask for when your colleagues believe in you well enough to be the leader in the next session in the Senate?" Bookout, D-Jonesboro, asked after the secret-ballot election. "It is a ways off but we'll certainly be looking forward to doing a lot of good things when the time comes."

The election took place on Thursday, the final day of the 2009 regular session, as prescribed in the state constitution. Regular legislative sessions in Arkansas occur on every odd-numbered year.

Sen. Bookout, who represents the Jonesboro-based 14th senate district, will follow outgoing President Bob Johnson. In the past, Sen. Bookout has been an effective advocate for middle-class tax cuts, state funding for medical research, and other Democratic priorities in the legislature.

All of us at the DLCC congratulate Sen. Bookout on his win and wish him luck in the 2011 legislative session. We also salute Senator Johnson for his vision and effective leadership in this year’s session.