Capitol Ideas | Issue 4 | 2021 | Shifts in American Life by The Council of State Governments

T H E

C O U N C I L

O F

S TAT E

G O V E R N M E N T S

Honoring American Heroes

Reflections on the 9/11 terrorist attacks that changed our country forever

Increasing Broadband Access

States commit federal and state dollars to improve connectivity, bandwidth for a post-pandemic future

Moving Toward Permanent Remote Work States consider ways to attract the new mobile American workforce

SHIFTS IN AMERICAN LIFE Innovation and inspiration in the wake of challenges from the on-going COVID-19 pandemic

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I S S U E

The Council of State Governments is the nation’s largest nonpartisan organization serving all three branches of state elected and appointed officials. CSG champions excellence in state government to advance the common good.

STRONGER TOGETHER 3 B R ANC H E S OF GOVE RN M E N T 5 6 STAT ES AN D T E RRITORIE S 4 ST R O NG RE GION AL OF F ICE S

CSG is where you belong.

SHIFTS IN AMERICAN LIFE

ISSUE 4 / 2021

O N T H E C O V E R The ongoing global COVID-19 pandemic has brought about challenges to nearly every aspect of life. But amidst the challenges, the country has seen innovation and inspiration, and across America, state leaders are noting some resulting changes as positive ones. Learn more about these shifts in American life.

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In an effort to ensure the post-pandemic recovery is inclusive and sustainable, the American Rescue Plan Act provides funding to serve students and others with disabilities. Learn what funds are available and examples of how states are utilizing the money.

V O I C E S F R O M T H E PA N D E M I C

State leaders from across the country reflect on the challenges and triumphs they’ve experienced over the past year and a half and how they have found new and innovative ways to serve their states.

T H E I M P O R TA N C E O F B R OA D B A N D

Before the COVID-19 pandemic, states had already begun taking an active role in expanding access to broadband. Learn more about potential funding and how to implement improvements.

T H E M O V E T O WA R D P E R M A N E N T R E M O T E W O R K

In 2021, as the move toward remote work seems to be permanent, an increasing number of states and cities are creating incentive programs to encourage highly skilled and newly mobile workers to relocate.

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S TAT E U T I L I Z AT I O N O F A R P F U N D S

SHIFTS IN AMERICAN LIFE / ISSUE 4 / 2021

24 Back to School 6 Utilizing American Rescue Plan Funds The American Rescue Plan Act increases funding for home and community-based services and for education for students with disabilities, widens eligibility for stimulus payments to include older dependents with disabilities and enhances safety net programs widely used by people with disabilities.

8 Voices From the Pandemic Amidst ongoing challenges, the U.S. has seen innovation and inspiration, and across America, state leaders are noting some resulting changes as positive ones. Hear from state leaders who have been encouraged by recent shifts in American life.

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Broadband Access Few could have foreseen the 40% increase in broadband usage between spring 2020 and spring 2021, the highest annual growth rate in nearly a decade. Learn how the states have responded.

20 Attracting a Remote Workforce An increasing number of states and cities are creating incentive programs to sweeten the deal for a highly skilled and newly mobile workforce. But what do remote workers really want?

As students headed back to college campuses across the country this semester, masks weren’t the only addition to their list of classroom essentials. In many cases students had to decide — and many are still grappling with the choice — of whether to get the COVID-19 vaccine, as many public and private colleges and universities modify their policies.

28 On the Road Again States that saw promising tourism industry signals over the summer pointed to common factors — rebounding numbers of visitors and aid from the American Rescue Plan.

32 Remote Court Officials from Texas and Michigan, two early adopters of remote proceedings, say that new ways to connect have not only kept state courts open — they have increased participation rates, boosted public engagement and increased diversity.

36 COVID Drives Election Innovation COVID-19 contingency protocols have made public officials rethink the ways elections have traditionally been conducted — and some protocols may be here to stay.

38 Remembering 9/11 State leaders reflect on how the tragedy of 9/11 inspired their involvement in public service; CSG East staff remember the effort to rebuild after their offices at 5 World Trade Center were destroyed.

Gov. Laura Kelly

Sen. Joan Ballweg

KANSAS CSG National President

WISCONSIN CSG National Chair

Publisher

Graphic Designers

DAVID ADKINS dadkins@csg.org

THERESA CARROLL tcarroll@csg.org

Managing Editor

STEPHANIE NORTHERN snorthern@csg.org

BLAIR HESS bhess@csg.org

Associate Editors JOEL SAMS jsams@csg.org

JESSICA RUSHER jrusher@csg.org

Email capitolideas@csg.org

MARY ELIZABETH LONERGAN mrobertson@csg.org

Hon. Ted Arnott, Speaker ONTARIO, CANADA CSG East Chair

Senate President Pro Tempore Greg Treat

Sen. Gary Cammack SOUTH DAKOTA CSG Midwest Chair

Rep. Clark Kauffman IDAHO CSG West Chair

OKLAHOMA CSG South Chair

Contributing CSG Staff Writers ROGER MOORE rmoore@csg.org

AMELIA VORPAHL avorpahl@csg.org

SEAN SLONE sslone@csg.org

RACHEL WRIGHT rwright@csg.org

Correction: In Issue 3 of CSG Capitol Ideas, it was incorrectly stated on page 21 that Rep. Louise Stutes was the speaker of the Arkansas House of Representatives. She is the Alaska speaker. CAPITOL IDEAS, ISSN 2152-8489, ISSUE 4, Vol. 72, No. 1 – Published five times annually by The Council of State Governments, 1776 Avenue of the States, Lexington, KY 40511-8536. Opinions expressed in this magazine do not necessarily reflect the policies of The Council of State Governments nor the views of the editorial staff. Readers’ comments are welcome. Subscription rates: in the U.S., $42 per year. Single issues are available at $7 per copy. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to Capitol Ideas, Sales Department, The Council of State Governments, 1776 Avenue of the States, Lexington, KY 40511-8536. Periodicals postage paid at Lexington, Ky., and additional mailing offices. Mailing lists are available for rent upon approval of a sample mailing. Contact the sales department at (800) 800-1910. Copyright 2021 by The Council of State Governments.

David Adkins CSG EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR/CEO dadkins@csg.org

Lindsey Gray CSG SOUTH DIRECTOR lgray@csg.org

Michael H. McCabe

Edgar Ruiz

CSG MIDWEST DIRECTOR mmccabe@csg.org

CSG WEST DIRECTOR eruiz@csg.org

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David Biette CSG EAST DIRECTOR dbiette@csg.org

An accessible version of this publication is available upon request. Please email capitolideas@csg.org.

WHAT’S

HAPPENING AT CSG

Join us in Santa Fe for the 2021 CSG National Conference CSG Launches Project Focused on Reducing Crime on Public Transit

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The Council of State Governments is launching a new project, Crime Prevention and Safety Awareness on Public Transit. which will focus on human trafficking. It is funded by the Federal Transit Authority and will be centered around organizing a virtual learning seminar for transportation industry stakeholders to discuss policy solutions and best practices in reducing crime and human trafficking in public transit. This project will present opportunities for policymakers to learn about the challenges and opportunities in transit safety and share innovative solutions to this growing issue. To gather policymakers and stakeholders in the field of transportation safety, CSG will invite participants to engage in a two-day virtual learning seminar to discuss and share strategies for crime prevention on public transportation. If you are interested in participating, contact Sydney Geiger at sgeiger@csg.org.

We look forward to seeing you in person in Santa Fe, New Mexico for the 2021 CSG National Conference, Dec. 1-4. Find information on hotel accommodations as well as a preliminary conference agenda, an outline of the CSG Safe Meetings Guidelines, travel information and partnership opportunities on the conference website, web.csg.org/2021.

CSG Partners with FVAP on New Military Ballot Tracking Pilot The Council of State Governments Overseas Voting Initiative has partnered again with the Federal Voting Assistance Program to conduct the Military Ballot Tracking Pilot. Alongside the United States Postal Service, Military Postal Service Agency and the Department of State, the project seeks a way for military and overseas citizens to have roundtrip tracking capabilities for their balloting materials including through military or foreign post. Learn more at ovi.csg.org.

Reentry 2030: A New Decade of Action to Ensure Successful Second Chances

New Analysis from the CSG Justice Center: The Impact of Supervision Violations on Prison Populations

The CSG Justice Center is igniting a national effort to improve outcomes for people who have been incarcerated or involved with the justice system. The effort will engage state leaders and partners to unlock opportunities for people with criminal records. States will set ambitious public reentry goals and commit to work across systems, with a focus on human-centered investments that will result in economic mobility and better outcomes for those exiting prison and on parole or probation. To launch this effort, the CSG Justice Center will bring together federal and state leaders, private sector partners and others who are on the front lines. A series of virtual convenings will lead up to a national launch event in December 2021, setting a vision for reentry success.

A new state-by-state analysis by The Council of State Governments Justice Center, supported by Arnold Ventures, revealed that prison populations shrank by 14% in 2020, equating to 167,000 fewer people in state prisons. Despite the decline in total prison population however, supervision violations still drive a substantial share of new admissions, accounting for 42% of prison admissions in 2020. This included roughly 98,000 people admitted to prison for technical violations such as missed curfews or failed drug tests. Take a closer look at the national and state-by-state findings in the full report, “More Community, Less Confinement: A State-by-State Analysis on How Supervision Violations Impacted Prison Populations During the Pandemic,” at csgovts.info/prisonpopulations.

THE Y T WEETED IT Lt. Gov. Suzanne Crouch @LGSuzanneCrouch • June 30 I joined @IvyTechCC and @CSGovts this afternoon for a webinar. I shared information about our #NextLevelVeterans initiative as Indiana continues its partnership with @INvetsIndiana to attract and recruit men and women transitioning out of the military to move to our state.

Representative Christina Haswood @HaswoodforKS • July 11 And a 10 hour drive later …I’m in South Dakota for the @CSGovts Midwestern Legislative Conference where the Speaker of the House appointed to the Ag and Natural Resources Committee #ksleg

Senator Shelli Yoder @SenatorYoder • June 28 Thank you to @CSGovts for naming me a #BILLD Fellow! 39 legislators from the Midwest & Canada are chosen for the fellowship each year. I’m excited to meet & learn from fellow legislators & share my knowledge from the #INLegis with some of our neighbors! Lt. Governor Juliana Stratton @LtGovStratton • June 14 I’m honored to have been selected to serve on the @CSGovts Healthy States National Task Force! Leaders from across the U.S. gather today to address #healthcare policy, particularly in the wake of COVID and I serve on the Civic Health Committee.

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Iowa Secretary of State Paul Pate @IowaSOS • July 13 Thank you @CSGovts for the opportunity to speak on elections and how to restore voter confidence during the 75th Annual #Midwestern Legislative Conference. #2021MLC #CSGMidwest

Representative Liz Boldon @LizBoldonMN • July 12 A phenomenal talk today by @TawannaABlack “Hope is not a strategy, you also need action”. Best talk of the day at @CSGovts about building economic revitalization through equity and inclusion.

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UTILIZING AMERICAN RESCUE PLAN FUNDS Opportunities for inclusive recovery for individuals with disabilities

EMPLOYMENT

ONE

in four U.S. adults — more than 6.1 million people — have some type of disability that impacts their daily life. People with disabilities have been disproportionately impacted by the coronavirus pandemic because of potential disruptions to service delivery, underlying health conditions and potentially limited access to information, among other factors. For example, having an intellectual disability was shown to be the most serious independent risk factor for contracting COVID-19 and, other than age, was the strongest determinant for mortality. This reality should accelerate investment in initiatives that remove barriers to social, educational and economic success for people with disabilities, consequently reducing their reliance on state finances and services in the long term.

States can leverage the ARP Coronavirus State and Local Recovery Fund to invest in employment opportunities for people with disabilities. This fund includes approximately $350 billion in new federal fiscal assistance for states, territories, tribes, counties and municipalities to respond to the public health and economic impact of COVID-19. Using this support, states can implement the provided policy options to build strong and inclusive workforces during post-pandemic recovery. In particular, funds can 1) support state as a model employer initiatives; 2) increase opportunities for people with disabilities through public sector engagement; and 3) improve employment opportunities for youth and young adults with disabilities. To learn more, read the full analysis from The Council of State Governments at csgovts.info/arpdisability. For additional fiscal recovery and American Rescue Plan resources, visit web.csg.org/recovery.

INNOVATIVE WORKFORCE APPROACHES

In an effort to ensure the post-pandemic recovery is inclusive and sustainable, the American Rescue Plan Act increases funding for homeand community-based services and for education for students with disabilities, widens eligibility for stimulus payments to include older dependents with disabilities and enhances safety net programs widely used by people with disabilities.

States can also use discretionary funding from the American Rescue Plan Coronavirus State and Local Recovery Fund to build a more inclusive workforce. To maximize the one-time nature of this discretionary funding, states can explore policies and programs that otherwise would prove difficult to implement and sustain without a direct infusion of federal funds.

EDUCATION

Below, find some examples of how states are utilizing ARP funds.

The ARP includes $130 billion designated for the Department of Education. Of that amount, $3 billion is specifically allocated to the Individuals with Disabilities Act (IDEA) program for fiscal year 2021. IDEA funds are allocated using existing formula grants to deliver funds to state education agencies to support early intervention and special education services for infants, toddlers, children and youth with disabilities and their families. As such, they do not require formal applications. The ARP also directs $7 billion for increased internet access to close existing access gaps among students in preschool through 12th grade, with a specific focus on low-income communities and students with disabilities. The Federal Communications Commission defines the parameters of the Emergency Connectivity Fund to close the homework gap by providing guidance that connected devices be accessible to and useable by individuals with disabilities.

HOME AND FOOD SECURITY

States can use these funds to keep people with disabilities living in their community, transition them into their community from nursing facilities and ensure adequate pay for caregivers. The ARP also contains additional funding for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP). This funding provided a 15% increase in benefits until the end of September for individuals facing food insecurity. At least 25% of SNAP recipients have disabilities.

To support youth and young adults with disabilities, Nevada allocated $7 million of Coronavirus State and Local Fiscal Recovery funding to the Collaboration Center Foundation and $5 million to Achieving a Better Life Experience (ABLE) Nevada savings. The Collaboration Center Foundation is a disability network of treatment and therapy providers, medical professionals, nonprofit organizations and government agencies with a common goal to focus on social inclusion, family and peer engagement, therapy and education for individuals, youth and young adults with disabilities. ABLE Nevada allows people with disabilities to create a special account to invest savings for disability-related expenditures that receive tax advantages and accumulate savings that do not affect means-tested programs like Medicaid or Social Security. The Nevada legislature clarified the intent of the appropriation is “to assist persons with disabilities who have been negatively or disparately impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic with expenses related to education, housing, transportation, employment training and support, assistive technology, personal support services, health care costs, financial management and other qualified disability expenses.”

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The American Rescue Plan includes several infusions of resources to assist people with disabilities (and others) who face home and food insecurity. For example, the ARP provides $12.67 billion in additional funding for Medicaid Home and Community Based Services. This increased funding is critical for providing services to older adults and individuals with disabilities. Increased federal funding can help states provide more community living options for people with disabilities and reduce the need for them to enter long-term care facilities and group home living environments.

Colorado directed $3.5 million from its Coronavirus State and Local Recovery funds to provide programs and services to populations disproportionally impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic through a concurrent enrollment and innovation grant program and a career development success program. The programs will provide incentives to schools to increase participation in qualified industry-credential programs, preapprenticeship and apprenticeship programs and programs for college credit to help lessen the long-term impacts on education and economic outcomes from low-income communities.

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SHIFTS IN AMERICAN LIFE

The ongoing global COVID-19 pandemic has brought about challenges to nearly every aspect of life in America. We’ve seen changes in the way we work and go to school, increased unemployment and economic uncertainty, disruptions to international supply chains and new ways of conducting government and judicial proceedings. But amidst these challenges, the country has seen innovation and inspiration, and across America, state leaders are noting some resulting changes as positive ones. Hear from these leaders who have been encouraged by recent shifts in American life.

Speaker Eric Barlow WYOMING Rep. Eric Barlow is used to social distancing — his family operates a ranch 30 miles from town. “Social distancing is par for the course,” the speaker of the Wyoming House of Representatives said, “but with internet access, I didn’t miss much.” While there were weeks he didn’t leave the ranch at all, Barlow said as presiding officer, he remained focused on ensuring members and the public had the best opportunity to participate in the legislative process while minimizing the health risks to staff, the public and elected officials. “The deployment of technology has expanded the opportunities for the public to participate in the legislative process exponentially. Our gallery and committee rooms have approximately 75 seats and yet there would be hundreds, even thousands at times, participating in our work virtually,” he said. Barlow acknowledges the country is not out of the pandemic and challenges continue to evolve along with changes in information and understanding, new technology and public concerns. “We are still in the thick of it,” he said, “and much of what we learned [in the early days of COVID-19] is being further refined.”

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“Former Wyoming legislator and U.S. Sen. Mike Enzi passed away recently and left behind some very meaningful advice he lived by: ‘Trust in God and push ahead’ and ‘Do what’s right, do your best and treat others the way you want to be treated.’”

Despite the pandemic, a bright spot over the last year has been Lt. Gov. Molly Gray’s engagement and marriage to her best friend, Michael Palm, now the second gentleman of Vermont.

Lt. Gov. Molly Gray VERMONT Despite having been in office since January, first-term Vermont Lt. Gov. Molly Gray is only just now meeting her colleagues in person. While she was in the Vermont State House every day presiding over the Senate, the state was holding a remote legislative session. “I would stand at the dais and recognize senators who were Zooming in from home and displayed on a big screen placed in the center of the chamber,” Gray said. “This has meant my time as the lieutenant governor of Vermont has been nothing short of unprecedented.” There is no playbook for a remote legislative session in Vermont, Gray said, but there were positive changes that came from the temporary shift away from in-person governance. Vermont held remote gatherings, or advocacy days, during which the State House allowed hundreds of people to participate in and listen to testimony from the comfort of their own homes. “For many Vermonters, this allowed them to engage with the legislative process for the first time. The ability to access the legislature and my office remotely meant that travel, child care, leave from work or other barriers to their ability to physically be at the State House were no longer impeding their ability to reach government.” The accessibility that the shift to remote legislating allowed for in 2020 has set a new precedent for governing in Vermont, Gray said. “Our new expectations for accessibility, accountability and transparency are aspects of the pandemic response that I sincerely hope are here to stay.”

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While the COVID-19 pandemic has been a source of tremendous loss and anguish for so many Americans, Gray said it has presented opportunities to do things better or differently.

“I’ve often been reminded that from crisis comes opportunity. I’m optimistic that not only in Vermont, but also across America, we can focus on addressing human needs and put the well-being of people, communities and families at the forefront of our policy agenda.” Over the past several months, Gray has traveled to communities across Vermont on the Recover Stronger Tour, which has allowed her to hear firsthand stories of resilience, adaptation and recovery from the pandemic. She hopes that listening to individuals in these communities will help Vermont decide how to invest funding and ensure the state recovers and addresses issues that were brought to the forefront by the pandemic. “Our communities, nonprofits and innovative businesses have often served as laboratories for creative solutions to some of our most pressing challenges,” she said. “We can’t let these lessons pass us by.”

Commissioner Vicki Schmidt D E PA R T M E N T O F I N S U R A N C E , K A N S A S She has a new favorite word: grace. “This pandemic has reminded me nearly every day that we all have unique challenges in life that are completely outside of our control,” said Commissioner Vicki Schmidt of the Kansas Department of Insurance. The biggest challenge for her during the COVID-19 pandemic has been finding the balance between expectations and what is realistically possible. “Labor shortages, new work arrangements, virtual meetings — all are challenges we have faced, but none of them are unique to us. I have tried to remember that during these challenges we could all use a little more grace.” When the pandemic first hit in early 2020 and it became clear daily operations would change, Schmidt and her team acted quickly. The first step was to outfit the entire staff with laptops so they could work from home. They deployed internet hotspots and cell phones to help with workflow. The result? Sustained improvement across the department. “Our operations are better than they were before,” Schmidt said. “The department was forced to become more efficient, and we have continued those efficiencies since returning to the office.” In the Kansas Department of Insurance, this translates to every employee being equipped to work from home. Additionally, license applicants have more locations to take an insurance exam, including online, and the state is getting ready to launch digital fingerprints for its test centers, which will expedite the licensing process for applicants.

While the pandemic isn’t over and there are still lessons to be learned as the country continues to navigate challenges, Schmidt said she and her team continue to do everything possible to ensure they can still provide a high level of service to Kansans. Over the past year, she drew inspiration from weekly nuggets of wisdom from her pastor and was often guided by the Serenity Prayer. “There was and still is so much beyond my control that I had to learn to accept that and focus on the things I could control, which was my department and how we served Kansans while keeping the workforce safe.” As Schmidt, Kansas and the country continue to navigate this global pandemic, she draws inspiration from the innovative ideas of small business owners across her state and seeing her fellow Kansans step up to help their neighbors. We’re all still learning lessons from the changes that COVID-19 forced on us, she said, but she is focusing on the path ahead, not looking back. “Hindsight is always 20/20. We don’t have the benefit of going back in time with the information we have today,” she said. “I try my best every day to make the best decision with the information I have at the time. I try not to make a habit of second guessing myself in the future. Of course, all of us have things we wish we could have done differently in our lives, but I believe if you spend too much time dwelling on the past it distracts you from being better in the future.”

“On the home front, I am fortunate to have a very patient husband who offered me love and support during this incredibly challenging time. However, I think he was really excited when I was able to return to the office and he didn’t have to listen to me on Zoom calls all day. It took a while for me to get to travel to see my kids and grandkids. While FaceTime and Zoom are no substitute for the human connection, I am thankful we were able to make use of them to stay connected with our loved ones during the pandemic.”

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“Most folks don’t realize the number of steps we go through to ensure an insurance agent is qualified. At the start of the pandemic, testing centers shut down and law enforcement centers were not accepting appointments for fingerprints or background checks. Both of these steps are critical to the

licensing process. On the other side of the issue were prospective agents who wanted to get to work. I am proud to report that despite the obstacles, Kansas became the first state in the country to get our licensing processes reopened, while helping Kansas get back to work and ensuring critical consumer protections.”

Director Bill Panos D E PA RT M E N T OF T R AN S PO RTATIO N , N ORT H DA KOTA As it did for many Americans, COVID-19 took a variety of stressful personal challenges — including sickness, anxiety over getting sick, virtual school, aging parents, absent support networks and more — and forced all those heavy issues to be top priorities in the lives of the team at the North Dakota Department of Transportation. “It was a lot for people to deal with,” said Bill Panos, director of the department. “Right away, we recognized the importance of validating work/life balance. Sometimes we spent more time in leadership meetings talking about our team and how to help them than we did about transportation topics. The health and well-being of our team became our priority, and it still is today.” Work culture improved, and because of the pandemic, the department now has a telework option for office staff. The office doesn’t just claim to be family-friendly; it now has policies and expectations with supervisors to ensure that it is. “We have a culture that accepts the whole person, not just the one who does the work for us.” The biggest challenge of the pandemic, Panos said, was the unknowns associated with COVID-19.

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Early in 2020 as COVID-19 was beginning to take over media headlines and social media, Panos had a conversation with his older brother, Peter, who was expressing his frustration over how the pandemic was being handled.

“Empathy overtook me. I said to him, ‘How are they supposed to know what to do?’ COVID-19 was all so new, and information was changing so quickly. From then on, my opinion was cemented: it’s OK to not know everything. It’s OK to change direction and pivot when we have new information and can make a better decision. We can only do the best we can with the information we have. As long as our values are true, we take care of our people, we’re smart with the information we receive and our hearts are in the right place, I’m confident things will work out.”

“No one knew how it was going to evolve, how long it would last, if the solutions we developed were sufficient. But as a person who deals in a very scientific, policy-driven space, I found it all very interesting and am grateful for the opportunity to explore and navigate something that there is no handbook for or training on.” In the transportation department, Panos’ goal was to protect the safety of the team and the public while keeping the transportation system as open as possible. Whether in a pandemic or not, transporting people and goods is always a necessity. While they encountered challenges, the North Dakota Department of Transportation had many successes including sending its team members home to telework within 72 hours of initial outbreaks; adopting strict cleaning measures to keep public offices, work areas and rest areas open and safe; having the driver’s license and motor vehicle divisions go to appointment-only operations; and assisting the state department of health in transporting supplies and vaccines across North Dakota. “Personally, it was rewarding to see how we could handle such a fluid, long-term, high-stakes situation,” he said. “Our agency did not see hardship (financially, operationally or culturally) that many around the country did. It really seemed like our team was taking challenges in stride, problem solving, and our agency came out of COVID-19 stronger for it.” Panos said he and his team have started to look back and learn from what happened, including the administrative, behavioral and engineering controls needed to be successful in disaster situations. As a result, they’re modifying their office building to make it more functional for a new hybrid environment and they have updated the Continuity of Operations Plan. He has been inspired by the dedication and commitment of the staff to serve the citizens of North Dakota. For example, Drivers License Division Director Brad Schaffer got his driver’s license examiner certification so he could come in every Saturday and help his team serve the public quicker by working through the backlog caused by being closed for weeks. Everyone worked together to help the state overcome a difficult and stressful time. “On a larger scale, I wish we could be better at mixing the science and politics of COVID-19,” Panos said. “So much of it became politicized and the perception was an imbalance … Both the science and policy side serve a purpose and have the same goal to protect.”

Rep. Cristin McCarthy Vahey CONNECTICUT Connecticut state Rep. Cristin McCarthy Vahey realized the necessity of communication as the COVID-19 pandemic took hold of the United States, recognizing that her constituents would face unique challenges as “two weeks to flatten the curve” became the national mantra. “I have wanted to help my constituents stay up to date and understand how their choices and efforts can make a difference for the community at large,” she said. “At the beginning of the pandemic and still today, many constituents have needed assistance with accessing unemployment benefits in order to feed their families and pay their bills. The system was not prepared for either the volume of claims or the self-employed workforce. As federal leaders made resources available, it was important to get information out and help people know where to turn.” Connecticut, like other states, had to navigate new voting protocols in light of pandemic practices. McCarthy Vahey said state leaders began to look at voting rules in Connecticut and make changes to be prepared, should another pandemic-like event occur. “Access to voting during the pandemic was a challenge for states like Connecticut that do not have vote by mail or no excuse absentee balloting,” she said. “This session, the legislature took a critical first step towards a change in our state constitution that would allow no-excuse absentee ballots in our state.”

She was impressed with the way so many businesses managed the pandemic and still tried to serve customers while accommodating rules. “COVID reminded all of us how much we take for granted, including enjoying a meal out with family and friends,” she said. “The restaurant industry has taken a beating, but the creativity and resilience they have shown has been inspirational. Working with our Planning and Development committee and the governor’s office here in Connecticut, we were able to expand outdoor dining opportunities. Between that and the shift to take-out options, it’s been amazing to see the creative solutions from our restaurants.” McCarthy Vahey said she hopes that in the future, people will remember to use compassion like they did during COVID-19. “It’s so easy to second guess our decisions. People are doing the best they can to survive what has been a global trauma,” she said. “We will be dealing with the impact of this pandemic on every level — physically, financially and psychologically — for years to come. I hope that as we continue to navigate the pandemic, we can focus on facts, make choices that keep the community as a whole in mind and offer each other grace and compassion.”

Early in the pandemic, McCarthy Vahey’s friend and congressman, Jim Himes, recommended a book: “Mountains Beyond Mountains: The Quest of Dr. Paul Farmer, A Man Who Would Cure the World.” “It is a story of hope, resilience and the use of science to help address tuberculosis in Haiti, Peru and Russia,” she said. “In times of crisis, our imaginations and sense of hope and purpose are critical to recovery. Paul Farmer’s story was a source of inspiration to me, particularly in the days before the vaccine was available.”

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She said she did see some positive changes and habits because of the pandemic.

“As the co-chair of the Planning and Development Committee, I worked with colleagues to pass legislation that would allow our town bodies to continue to use Zoom and other online platforms to conduct public meetings. The use of these tools has already increased access to government and allowed us to hear from those voices who were not historically at the table. This will benefit all of us,” she said. She also began walking any time she was on the phone, since in-person meetings were no longer happening.

Chief Justice John Minton KENTUCKY Like many others, Kentucky Supreme Court Chief Justice John Minton had to learn new lessons about balancing work and life when COVID-19 hit. It would be the first time in his more than 40-year career that he had simply walked upstairs to the office — and while he appreciated extra time with family, he also experienced a blurring of personal and professional life that made it hard to fully disconnect from work.

all-electronic court record. We already had several attorneys who had adopted electronic filing as part of their practice, but the pandemic made everyone realize the value and necessity of it.” He said that thanks to appropriations from the Kentucky General Assembly, technology and infrastructure can provide support for remote capabilities in the future.

“I quickly learned that working from home is a double-edged sword,” he said. “The goal is to make a fully digitized court record and wider use of virtual “It is hard to step away from work and be present with your family when court appearances a part of our regular operations to continue realizing your office is now located on the nearby laptop.” those cost savings and efficiencies.” Minton said workplace flexibility became a necessity — not just for him, but Minton said the pandemic also brought great sadness. He lost a personal also for staff. Especially for staff who couldn’t work remotely, new flexible friend, Dr. Rebecca Shadowen, who was an infectious disease specialist options became important for maintaining safety. and epidemiologist at the Medical Center at Bowling Green in Bowling “We were able to offer employees whose jobs did not allow them to work from home the option for flexible staffing to minimize exposure at work while continuing our necessary operations. Additional leave options were also available for high-risk employees. These measures helped our workforce to balance the stress of the pandemic by allowing them additional time at home with family while ensuring we fulfilled our obligations to the public.”

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Minton said the pandemic caused lasting changes for the legal field. Before the pandemic, state courts including Kentucky were designed for fully in-person operations. The pandemic, however, has increasingly shown states that virtual hearings can be beneficial on multiple fronts (see page 32).

“It may not be every person’s first choice and it may not be appropriate in every instance. But the ability to conduct a hearing or a meeting virtually saves time and money for the state and for the people we serve,” he said. “The pandemic also forced more attorneys to electronically file documents, which will be beneficial as we continue to move towards our goal of an

Green, Kentucky. Shadowen provided early guidance during the pandemic, Minton said, “urging mask-wearing and warning of the dangers of the virus.”

“Sadly, she contracted COVID. But even as she became increasingly disabled by the disease, she continued to attend the regular meetings of the local coronavirus workgroup remotely from her hospital bed,” he said. “Dr. Shadowen’s dedication to her community is inspirational and a reminder of the importance of bold leadership, especially in uncertain times.” With the benefit of hindsight, Minton said he would push for more 21st-century upgrades in Kentucky courtrooms. “If I could have peered into the future to see what March of 2020 would hold, I would have pushed for more technology upgrades in our courtrooms and conducted trainings on the use of remote technology. I am so proud of our elected officials and employees for their adaptability and creativity throughout the pandemic to ensure the continued operations of the court system. But I am certain we all would have benefited from some time to prepare for an event that has completely and irretrievably reshaped the way we conduct business.”

Through the grief of losing his friend, Chief Justice John Minton was happy to know Dr. Rebecca Shadowen made an impact. “I am proud that my alma mater, Western Kentucky University, is posthumously inducting Dr. Shadowen into its Hall of Distinguished Alumni,” he said.

Rep. Marvin Abney RHODE ISLAND Rhode Island state Rep. Marvin Abney was keenly aware of his role once COVID-19 hit. He knew people would have questions about the virus and the state’s response. In his local community, he did everything he could to embody that role. “I tried to be the face of state government in my local grocery stores, gas stations, churches, restaurants, food pantries,” he said. “While it is important to put out newsletters, articles in local outlets and such, I found it critically important to help one person at a time, who, in turn, recommend two or three more who were in the same or similar situations, and it worked exponentially. Once trust was established, government was viewed as ‘for the people.’”

Abney said the pandemic gave him an opportunity to learn about himself as a person and a leader. “I have become in tune with my personal and professional strengths and weaknesses. I’ve come to realize that I can’t solve every challenge for every person, but I have learned to become a much better listener,” he said.

Abney, a retired major in the U.S. Army, takes public service to heart. “First, be true to yourself,” he said. “Understand that no one knows everything or how to solve all problems. Take some time to arm yourself with knowledge from the best reputable sources of information available to you. Second, don’t be afraid to be wrong. It happens to best of leaders. Be honest, make necessary corrections and move on. Third, and most important to me: you cannot lead from behind. I learned that in Army Officer Candidate School many years ago. Let people see that your hands get dirty and that you are there for them, and most importantly, with them.” Abney said he and other legislators have prepared Rhode Island in case another pandemiclike event should occur. “My main legislative responsibility within the House of Representatives is chair of the House Finance Committee,” he said. “We are working extremely hard with our Senate and executive branch partners to find out what we didn’t know about widespread, fast-moving public health related issues; what worked, what didn’t.” Other projects include creating a “war book” that defines agency roles and responsibilities and offers guidelines on working with federal partners. Abney said looking back, he wishes the pandemic had not become so politicized, and he would rather the focus remain on saving lives.

Abney said he drew strength and inspiration from fellow Americans as the country fought the virus. “I am always amazed to see Americans, regardless of our many differences, come together and support each other during difficult crises,” he said. “I saw this happening in churches, food pantries, small business adapting to the needs of their communities, citizens generously donating to worthy causes, front line professionals in many fields answering a call to duty. My heroes were those who showed up without necessarily being called — the ultimate warrior spirit.”

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“I personally would have done more to take the politics out of a public health emergency,” he said. “Politics are certainly healthy in a democratic republic form of government. However, in my opinion, saving lives, personal health and a healthy economy, which fuel our democracy, is more important than sheer politics. “

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increasing broadband access

States commit state and federal dollars to address connectivity and bandwidth for the post-pandemic future

by Sean Slone

When it comes to providing broadband internet service to its residents, the state of Hawaii faces some unique challenges, but also a few that are all too common. “Hawaii has density in its urban areas, but it also suffers the same sort of issues that rural areas (elsewhere) do in terms of large land masses, sparsely populated,” said state Rep. Aaron Ling Johanson, who represents a suburban section of Honolulu. “Added to it, we’re not one contiguous landmass, so deployment is a little bit different when you have deep Pacific Ocean channels of water in between your land masses.”

“I think it was a recognition that government can’t do everything all by itself,” said Johanson. “But sometimes it’s just not feasible for the private sector to undertake something from a market perspective either.” Beyond the issue of access to broadband, Johanson heard stories from his constituents about competing with family members in the same household for bandwidth for Zoom meetings, distance learning and telehealth appointments.

Johanson believes increased broadband usage and capacity needs are a pandemic trend that won’t go away once the pandemic is behind us. “Our connectivity is going to [continue to] be incredibly important in education and health care … in enabling commerce and the 21st-century economy,” he said. “It’s changing workforce patterns. It’s changing employee preferences. … If we’re going to do it well, I think we as states have to support that kind of infrastructure to ensure that there is access to these resources.”

STATE BROADBAND INITIATIVES Before the pandemic, states had already been taking an active role in expanding access to broadband in recent years, Anna Read of the Pew Charitable Trusts told members of the CSG Healthy States National Task Force in June. Nearly all states now have some form of broadband program and 40 states have created broadband funds, she said. Many have focused on rural and unserved areas. But few could have foreseen the 40% increase in broadband usage between spring 2020 and spring 2021, the highest annual growth rate in nearly a decade, according to the broadband network management technology provider OpenVault.

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Witnessing the dramatically increased demand for broadband service during the pandemic, Johanson and his colleagues took a course of action many states have turned to in recent years: establishing a broadband infrastructure grant program to facilitate projects to bring service to unserved and underserved areas of the state. Under Johanson’s House Bill 1191, internet service providers willing to foot the bill for 60% of a project can be subsidized 40% by state matching funds.

“Literally every segment of Hawaii was online,” he said. “It exposed our finite infrastructure capacity and, really, our ability to support that sort of technological revolution. Like many states, we found areas where we were lacking.”

The Federal Communications Commission’s (FCC) official broadband standard of 25 megabits per second download speed and three megabits per second upload speed, which many state broadband programs have adhered to, proved woefully inadequate for the types of video conferencing that quickly became commonplace in many households. Meeting the growing broadband needs of consumers will likely require not only creating access in unserved and underserved areas, but also upgrading existing copper cabling to fiber optics. The telecom industry has long argued for lower broadband speed standards, like the FCC’s, to avoid the need for the costly upgrades. States including Maine, South Dakota and Washington have increased their internet speed requirements in anticipation of future needs, according to Pew. Minnesota requires that state funds to build broadband infrastructure only be authorized if the infrastructure can be scaled to provide symmetrical upload and download speeds of at least 100 Mbps.

FEDERAL SUPPORT FOR BROADBAND The increased demand on the nation’s digital infrastructure has prompted significant renewed investment at the federal level as well.

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• T he Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security (CARES) Act passed by Congress in 2020 allocated billions of dollars to state and local governments and allowed states to use that funding for broadband, which some states took full advantage of. Arkansas, North Carolina and Oregon were among the states that directed CARES Act funding to existing broadband programs, while seven other states established grant programs with the funding.

• T he American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 included $350 billion for state and local governments that could be used for broadband projects. The ARP’s $10 billion Capital Projects Fund, administered by the Department of the Treasury, was set up specifically for use on broadband expansion. The Treasury’s rule for use of the funds prioritized flexibility for states, community-based solutions, unserved or underserved communities, fiber optic technology and higher upload/ download speeds. States were also able to use the funds on last-mile connection projects and building accountability into broadband business models. As of July, nine states (California, Colorado, Hawaii, Indiana, Kentucky, Maryland, Montana, Vermont and Washington) had approved legislation to allocate ARP funds for broadband.

AFFORDABILITY AND COMPETITION Policymakers face other challenges beyond the issue of getting broadband into unserved and underserved areas. Where broadband is available, cost is often a major barrier to adoption.

According to a Consumer Reports study, the median monthly cost of broadband in areas with three internet service provider options is about $68 per month while the cost in areas with one provider with no competition is $75 per month. People who don’t have a home broadband subscription are more likely to be low income, older and non-white, Read noted. Municipal broadband, systems in which municipalities partner with a local internet service provider to offer their own internet plan, could aid affordability and competition. However, 22 states have telecom company-supported laws on the books that restrict the authority of local governments to build such networks and offer such plans. Broadband providers including Comcast and Charter have offered specialized low-cost options for qualifying low-income users. Federal and state policymakers have also provided subsidized broadband options. But often these subsidized plans and low-cost options can come with low speeds that fail to meet connectivity needs of the modern age. That may do a disservice by making it seem as though people are connected when they really aren’t, according to Craig Rice, a council member in Montgomery County, Maryland. Rice co-chairs the National Association of Counties’ Broadband Task Force, and he also spoke to the CSG Healthy States Task National Task Force this year. Low connectivity speeds, Rice says, reflect a need for better data mapping of what speeds people are getting with their service.

ACCOUNTABILITY As billions of dollars are committed to addressing the nation’s broadband needs, many also point to a need for accountability measures to ensure the funds are well spent. Advocates seek not only better data collection on nationwide broadband penetration, but also service standards for broadband speeds from internet service providers, and measures of customer satisfaction. Johanson, the sponsor of Hawaii’s broadband fund legislation, said his state has been fortunate to have service providers willing to keep policymakers up to speed on infrastructure upgrades and their impact on connectivity. Still, he sees accountability as an important key to a better-connected future after the pandemic. “We’re learning on the fly, but we have to figure out metrics for assessing how we’re spending these taxpayer dollars,” he said. “That’s, I think, one of the reasons our bill has capped the amount of money that can go into this particular grant fund. … I think everybody is trying to get to what does success look like and how do you measure it.”

Your

State and local programs seeking to attract remote workers face a question —

by Joel Sams

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Long before lockdowns, toilet paper shortages and ubiquitous Zoom meetings, Vermont state Sen. Virginia “Ginny” Lyons was already thinking about remote work. Vermont is a rural state facing a declining population. Remote workers, Lyons realized, could become a growing segment of the workforce. They just needed a reason to choose the state.

“When I went in to draft the bill with legislative council, I felt like I was working in a little dark closet, because there were no models out there for this type of incentive,” Lyons said. “But I felt very strongly that we needed to have incentives to bring people to our state.” With the 2018 passage of legislation that Lyons co-authored, Vermont became one of the first states to create an incentive program to attract remote workers. Shortly afterward, Tulsa, Oklahoma, launched a similar program to attract remote workers to the city. In 2021, as the move toward remote works seems to be permanent, an increasing number of states and cities are creating incentive programs, like Vermont’s and Tulsa’s, to sweeten the deal for a highly skilled and newly mobile workforce. But while Vermont and Tulsa have seen success, other programs have shown that research is key — what do remote workers really want?

VERMONT Lyons’ bill was signed by Vermont Gov. Phil Scott on May 30, 2018, and quickly attracted national attention. The program, which was funded through 2020, paid workers with jobs outside of Vermont up to $10,000 over two years for eligible moving expenses to Vermont and costs of remote work. The program was subsequently expanded to include new workers moving to Vermont for any job. By 2020, the program’s funds — a total of $500,000 — had been awarded to a total of 140 successful applicants, according to a 2020 annual report. The average grant size was $3,571, and counting family members, the program resulted in a total of 298 new Vermont residents. Other demographic data from the annual report shows that grantees hailed from 38 states, and 64% of grantees were under 40 years old. The program primarily attracted workers in information technology (20%), management (26%) and writing and editing (5%). New funding was temporarily halted due to COVID-19, but a bill signed by Scott on June 1 included $630,000 to continue funding eligible relocation expenses for new and remote workers, in addition to calling for a study of the program’s effectiveness.

M ve W H AT D O R E M O T E W O R K E R S R E A L LY W A N T ?

Lyons says the program has a bigger impact than just the number of grants awarded. While the program draws new workers, it also draws attention, helping create awareness of Vermont as an attractive option for remote workers — even those who don’t receive a financial incentive. “In some ways, it’s public relations‚ saying ‘We’re open for business, and we welcome you,’” Lyons said. “It’s an opportunity to bring people into the local community. It will send that message consistently — we’ve seen that.”

Tulsa, Oklahoma, also launched a remote work incentive program in 2018. Funded by the George Kaiser Family Foundation, the program offers a $10,000 grant for successful applicants, as well as co-working space in downtown Tulsa. To be eligible, applicants must hold full-time remote employment outside of Oklahoma, be 18 years old or older, be able to move to Tulsa within 12 months of application and be eligible to work in the U.S. Since its 2018 launch, the program brought more than 1,000 new residents to Tulsa, according to the program website. More than 10,000 people applied during the first cycle, with 250 successful applicants. Writing in a case study for Harvard Business School in 2020, Prithwiraj

WHAT DO REMOTE WORKERS WANT? By any metric — applications, media interest, tax revenue — Tulsa Remote has been a success. According program creators, though, the financial incentive was not the only driver — maybe not even the main attraction. After the program launched, media coverage focused on community life in Tulsa, availability of housing, low cost of living and quality of life. These concepts had been promoted through press releases, the Tulsa Remote website and a media kit, to help shape public messaging about the program. According Houda Elyazgi, a marketer quoted in the Harvard Business School case study, the Tulsa Remote team focused on crafting messaging that would address those concerns: “We wanted to find those elements that make Tulsa unique, that we could really elevate and promote: the

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TULSA, OKLAHOMA

Choudhury and Emma Salomon cited documents from the George Kaiser Family Foundation showing that Tulsa Remote workers have an average salary of more than $100,000. The first cohort alone brought $249,538 in potential income tax revenue, and potential income tax revenue by the end of 2020 was estimated at $1,377,398. Potential sales tax revenue was estimated at $536,503 by the end of 2020.

quality of life, the cost of living, the community connections, the ability to make a difference.” Since the onset of the pandemic and the growth of remote work, many towns have tried to implement incentive programs similar to Tulsa’s. MakeMyMove.com, a website that tracks offer and incentive packages, has identified 45 of these programs. None, however, have seen the level of success Tulsa enjoyed. Writing in The Atlantic, Daniel Block suggests this is because other programs have not accounted for what Tulsa learned in its research phase: that certain quality of life indicators (including arts, culture and restaurants), walkability and community are more important to high-earning remote workers than just a financial incentive. “In the battle to attract remote workers, cities can’t simply pay to win,” Block wrote. “If they don’t have the types of restaurants and walkable neighborhoods that professionals are looking for, $15,000 just isn’t going to cut it. They might even need to offer attractive, in-person jobs: New residents may work remotely when they arrive, but they could eventually want or need to switch careers.”

“

“I think this is a once-in-generation opportunity to reverse those flows. And as Tulsa Remote has shown, we can effectively do it. If that model can work in Tulsa, it can work anywhere else. I would urge federal, state and local officials to really think about what does it take to replicate the Tulsa success.”

Folks have lost out on employment opportunities because of where they live. Women have lost out on employment opportunities because of dual career situations. If I’m a woman and in a certain town, I get a great opportunity in a different city, my spouse doesn’t want to move, so I forego that opportunity. In a work from anywhere model, you don’t have to move. You can take that new job without leaving town.”

Additionally, Choudhury emphasizes that the work-from-anywhere model offers an opportunity to make work more inclusive. This is certainly true for people with disabilities, some of whom may have greater access and be more comfortable in a remote environment, but Choudhury says others can benefit as well. “Folks have lost out on employment opportunities because of where they live,” Choudhury said. “Women have lost out on employment opportunities because of dual career situations. If I’m a woman and in a certain town, I get a great opportunity in a different city, my spouse doesn’t want to move, so I forego that opportunity. In a work from anywhere model, you don’t have to move. You can take that new job without leaving town.”

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Regardless of how well state and local remote work incentives programs fare in coming months, Choudhury is convinced remote work will be a permanent feature — Prithwiraj Choudhury, professor at Harvard Choudhury, one of the authors of the of the post-COVID-19 workforce. He Business School and one of the authors of the Harvard Business School Tulsa Case sees it as beneficial for both workers Harvard Business School Tulsa Case Study Study, thinks well-designed incentive and employers. Workers get flexibility; programs still have a role to play as employers get more productivity (one of the workforce adjusts to a new “work Choudhury’s pre-COVID studies found a from anywhere” model. It won’t be easy, he says, but states can 4.4% increase), a nation-wide or even global talent pool, and more and should learn from successful programs to take advantage of a diverse workforce participation. singular opportunity to attract talent to smaller towns. “My logic is it’s not us versus them — it’s a win-win, both for worker “We’ve had several decades of talent leaving smaller towns for and for the organization,” Choudhury said. “It’s a great change to coastal cities, and we’ve all read about the hollowing out of Middle make, and that’s why I think it’s going to stay.” America,” said Choudhury, a professor at Harvard Business School.

VACCINE REQUIREMENTS FOR EMPLOYMENT As the Delta variant drives new COVID-19 cases, U.S. workers face increasing requirements to show proof of vaccination to return to work. On July 26, California became the first state to require either proof of vaccination or weekly COVID-19 testing for all state employees and health care workers, and on Aug. 11, the California Department of Public Health required all school staff to show proof of vaccination or undergo weekly testing.

According to The Hill, 17 states have since implemented some kind of vaccine requirement for public employees. These range from a vaccine requirement for all state employees, with no option for weekly testing instead (Oregon) to a twice-weekly test and indoor masking requirement for unvaccinated employees (Colorado). On the other hand, Ballotpedia reports that 20 states currently prohibit or limit proof of vaccine requirements.

The Chronicle of Higher Education reports that 829 colleges and universities (public, private and for-profit) are requiring vaccination for at least some students or employees. At the national level, President Joe Biden announced new requirements for federal employees on July 29. Under the new rules, federal employees are required to disclose whether they have gotten a vaccine, and unvaccinated employees are required to wear masks, practice social distancing, take COVID-19 tests weekly or twice weekly and abide by restricted travel rules. He also instructed the Department of Defense to determine when COVID-19 would be added to the list of vaccines already required for military service members. Following Biden’s announcement, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said COVID-19 vaccination would be mandatory for U.S. military service members beginning in mid-September. The Department of Veterans Affairs and the Department of Health and Human Services have also required vaccination for some employees. “All FDA-authorized COVID-19 vaccines are safe and highly effective,” Austin wrote in a memo to all DOD employees. “They will protect you and your family. They will protect your unit, your ship, and your coworkers. And they will ensure we remain the most lethal and ready force in the world.”

In the private sector, growing numbers of companies require employees to show proof of vaccination to return to the office. According to Barron’s, eight of the 30 companies in the Dow Jones Industrial Average have required some or all employees to get the vaccine. Included in that number are Cisco Systems, Microsoft, Salesforce.com, Walgreens Boot Alliance, Walmart, Walt Disney and McDonald’s. Dow companies are far from the only ones mandating the vaccine — other major employers include Facebook, Google, United Airlines, Frontier Airlines, Tyson Foods, Gilead Sciences, Lyft, Netflix and others, according to Reuters. The Wall Street Journal reports that 1,200 new job postings per million on the job website Indeed require vaccinations for new hires — a significant increase from the 50 per million reported in February. The move toward vaccination requirements carries risk for states and employers, however. According to Quartz, research from Qualtrics suggests that as many as 44% of employees say they might quit their job if their employer requires vaccine (in March, 39% of employees gave the same answer). On the other, hand, 38% of employees say they might quit if their employer doesn’t require vaccines.

EMPLOYEES SAY

44% 829

of employees say they might quit their job if their employer doesn’t require vaccines. Source: Qualtrics, cited in Quartz

colleges and universities (public, private and for-profit) are requiring vaccination for at least some students or employees. Source: The Chronicle of Higher Education

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of employees say they might quit their job if their employer requires a vaccine. In March 2021, 39% of employees gave the same answer.

38%

Back to School

FROM KINDERGARTEN THROUGH COLLEGE, SCHOOLS ACROSS THE U.S. GRAPPLE WITH HOW TO KEEP KIDS SAFE

by Mary Elizabeth Lonergan

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s students headed back to college campuses across the country this semester, masks weren’t the only addition to their list of classroom essentials. In many cases students had to decide — and many are still grappling with the choice — of whether to get the COVID-19 vaccine, as many public and private colleges and universities are actively modifying their policies.

According to the Chronicle of Higher Education, 829 colleges and universities required proof of vaccination for at least some students or staff at time of writing. In most cases, these requirements apply to all students, although the Chronicle notes that “the vast majority” of these institutions “plan to grant exemptions to their vaccination mandates, even if [students are] included in the ‘all students’ category.” Often, university policies have become dependent on the political dividing lines of their states or districts. Howard University in Washington, D.C., requires proof of a COVID-19 vaccination for all students returning to campus as well as for all faculty, staff and trainees. The mayor of the District of Columbia issued an order

requiring all employees and interns of any Washington, D.C., agency to provide proof of full vaccination by Sept. 19. Similarly, Gov. Ned Lamont of Connecticut rolled out restrictions in August allowing municipalities the option of requiring masks. Lamont also issued an executive order requiring employees of long-term care facilities to be vaccinated. In New Haven, Connecticut, Yale University requires all faculty, staff, trainees and students who want to return to campus to be fully vaccinated. In Texas, where Gov. Greg Abbott banned mask mandates and vaccine requirements in July, colleges and universities are divided in their policies, but overall, do not require masks or vaccines. At Texas Christian University, vaccinations are a personal decision, though the school is asking students to answer a survey as to whether they have received the COVID19 vaccine, and whether they intend to do so. The University of Texas, the state’s largest higher education system, encourages but does not require masks or the COVID-19 vaccine. Colleges and universities that have stricter COVID-19 policies are not

DISTANCE LEARNING RESOURCES FOR STUDENTS WITH DISABILITIES As a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, many schools had to shift to distance learning formats (or hybrid/blended formats) in lieu of traditional classroom teaching. This unprecedented shift posed new challenges for parents, educators and students, but especially for students with disabilities. While methods of support for these students are well established in the classroom setting, distance learning brought a new set of associated needs. Students with disabilities may require a range of new accommodations including assistive technology, one-on-one teaching, alternative assignment mediums and schedule flexibility. At the start of the 2021-22 school year, many K-12 districts were making plans for potential closures as COVID-19 continues to persist. The Council of State Governments and its partners on the Center for Advancing Policy on Employment for Youth (CAPE-Youth) have gathered resources and recommendations for distance learning that is accessible to students of all abilities.

TOOLS FOR ACCESSIBLE DISTANCE LEARNING

taking enforcement lightly. In August, the University of Virginia unenrolled 238 students who failed to comply with the school’s policy. Of those students, 49 were already registered for fall semester classes. The university currently requires students, staff and faculty to be vaccinated before they can return to campus unless they can obtain a medical or religious exemption.

After his state reported one of the country’s lowest vaccination rates earlier in the summer, Louisiana Gov. John Bel Edwards temporarily reissued mandatory masks in K-12 schools. “My biggest push is trying to encourage parents and their kids to get vaccinated,” said Louisiana state Rep. Ken Brass. “In my district, we are holding vaccination community events.” Brass said students at public K-12 schools are currently required to wear masks and maintaining that requirement will depend on the state’s COVID-19 positivity rate. While colleges in the state are not mandating

Together, the ADA, the IDEA and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act require that schools provide an accessible and equitable education for students with disabilities. Although these laws mandate equal access, they provide states flexibility regarding how access is provided.

For examples of accessible options for distance learning and resources available in your state, visit capeyouth.org/ covid-19/distance-learning.

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MAKING PLANS FOR K-12 LEARNING

Students with disabilities receive protections and services under several federal laws. Most broadly, the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) prohibits discrimination on the basis of disability in all services, programs and activities provided to the public by state and local governments. The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) guarantees students with disabilities access to a “free appropriate public education” in the least restrictive environment. Students with disabilities receive individualized education programs under IDEA, while other students who need additional support, but do not meet the IDEA definition of a disability, receive services under Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act via a 504 plan.

the vaccine, some schools require students to submit a negative COVID19 test before moving to campus, he said. These are all measures to attempt to keep young people healthy and learning in person. “It’s critical for our kids to continue their education,” Brass said. “We have got to come together outside of being a Democrat or a Republican. This is a people’s issue that we need to come together and continue to promote the vaccination, and ultimately that is going to help us get to a better state.” In California, the Los Angeles Unified School District has implemented one of the nation’s most aggressive testing requirements. Every teacher, student and administrator, regardless of vaccination status, will be required to take a weekly COVID-19 test, according to The Washington Post. Those who test positive will be required to stay home for a minimum of 10 days.

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While there are provisions related to remote instruction that are currently pending in legislation for the 2021-22 school year, there have been no requirements for the method of instruction for the current school year, Torbett said. “Masks are strongly encouraged, but are not required,” he said, “and school boards are making determinations as to whether to require or make masks optional.” While mitigating the pandemic has been hard on teachers, California Assemblywoman Sharon Quirk-Silva, who also serves on the state Education Committee and is a long-time educator, said she knows it’s best for students to be in the classroom.

The district has approximately 450,000 K-12 students and about 1,000 schools and anticipates administering 500,000 tests each week with the help of two contracted medical companies. The testing requirement is additional to other measures, such as required masking for all students, teachers and staff and required vaccination for teachers and staff.

“The pandemic had severe impacts for our students,” Quirk-Silva said. “We know that many, many of our California students did not return to in-person learning at all last year. Some had very different models with in-class and online and teachers doing both at the same time. That is extremely difficult.

While many lawmakers across the U.S. hope to keep students in the classroom, states are planning for remote options should they be needed. Many are noting successes and failures from the quick move to remote learning in 2020 to improve options for the 2021-22 school year.

“The evidence, and my belief as an educator for 30 years, shows that in-person learning, face-to-face, has many benefits. That should be the goal.”

“The [North Carolina] General Assembly required schools to have a remote learning option that could be used if needed,” said North Carolina state Rep. John Torbett, who is co-chair of the K-12 Education Commit-

tee. “The 2020-21 Toolkit required schools to have a Plan A for in-person, Plan B for hybrid and Plan C for remote options. Initially in the fall of 2020, schools opened in either Plan B or Plan C. By spring 2021, the General Assembly required all schools to offer an in-person (Plan A) option.”

The Council of State Governments continues to monitor executive orders from states as they navigate COVID-19. That information can be found at web.csg.org/covid19/executive-orders.

the eight ivy league universities

are all requiring students to

be fully vaccinated

against COVID-19

COLLEGES REQUIRING A COVID-19 VACCINE

30 of

107

Historically

Black Colleges

and Universities,

are requiring students

to be vaccinated

0–5

16–30

6–15

30 or more

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Source: What Colleges Require the COVID-19 Vaccine? | BestColleges

View from the Brookdale Covered Bridge | Stowe, Vermont

Bahia Honda State Park | Florida Keys

ON THE ROAD AGAIN With help from the American Rescue Plan, the tourism industry shows promising signs by Mary Elizabeth Lonergan

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ith the passage of the American Rescue Plan, states have clamored for a chance to utilize funds in economic sectors most impacted by COVID-19. For many states, that means tourism. Some states saw a pause in tourism due to national shutdowns of hospitality industries. Since then, some states have swiftly recovered, while others are slow to see tourists come back. One common thread: growing tourism numbers and the American Rescue Plan have been keys to recovery.

Arizona and Florida had both been poised for record tourism years before the pandemic. In 2019 — the fourth year in a row — Arizona saw best-ever numbers for overnight visitors, spending, tourism jobs and tax revenue collected, according to Arizona Tourism Communications Director Josh Coddington. Dana Young, president and CEO of VISIT FLORIDA, said her state had also expected a record-breaking year for tourism, but by the end of March 2020, the number of visitors had declined by more than 14% from the previous year. This summer, however, Florida and Arizona saw improving numbers, thanks in part to American Rescue Plan funding and an onslaught of visitors. “Currently, Florida is outperforming the national average in all key performance indicators, including hotel demand, traveler spending,

and domestic air capacity,”Young said. “According to a recent report from Florida’s Office of Economic and Demographic Research, Florida’s monthly revenues topped expectations for the 10th consecutive month at $3.6 billion in May, aided by an increase in tourism industry tax collections.” Young said a full recovery isn’t expected until 2024, but this summer’s numbers give her hope that recovery will come sooner. And speaking of records numbers, a biggest-ever tourism budget isn’t going to hurt. “For fiscal year 2021-22, VISIT FLORIDA received a budget of $75 million from the Florida legislature, representing a $25 million increase from the previous year,” Young said. “Combined with a $5 million CARES Act Recovery Assistance grant from the Economic Development Administration, our total budget is $80 million, the highest we have ever had. This is great news as we remain 100% focused on tourism’s recovery, and I assure you this money will go a long way.” Coddington said the tourism surge in Arizona is inseparable from employment issues. “In 2021, demand for tourism is absolutely coming back in a huge way,” he said. “So much so, in fact, that if you’re writing a story about tourism in

Picacho Peak State Park | Sonoran Desert, Arizona

resources at a time when our downtowns and villages are ready and eager to rebuild,” she said.

Some states are taking legislative action to help expedite the return of visitors. Vermont state Rep. Sara Coffey is the lead sponsor of House Bill 159, which would create the Better Places Program “to support projects that create, activate, or revitalize communities and public spaces.” Coffey said she sponsored the bill to mitigate the impacts of COVID-19 on business closures, job losses and social distancing requirements, all of which negatively affected the community life that makes Vermont unique.

Rep. Charlie Kimbell, who co-sponsored the bill, echoed similar thoughts.

“Vermont’s downtowns and villages increasingly depend on inviting public spaces that are robustly programmed to restore our distinct sense of place, strengthen community pride and identity, attract businesses, jobs and talent,” Coffey said. “Investing in placemaking activity would provide tools and resources to revitalize and re-engage our communities as we emerge from this health and economic crisis.” Coffey said the bill would help jumpstart these businesses. “With an appropriation of $1.5 million to support placemaking projects in Vermont, the Better Places program will make smart use of our state’s

“The long-term impact of 2020 on the tourism industry in Vermont is not yet known,” Kimball said. “The travel restrictions and ‘Stay home, stay safe’ executive order by the governor did immediately close up shop for all tourism business in March of 2020, and only gradually were the restrictions eased. Some businesses, like wedding venues, lost most all of their 2020 business. [Bed-and-Breakfasts] who were barely hanging on shut their doors, some selling their properties as residences. They may be permanently removed from the available rooms for tourists, but it is still too early to know. The abundance of financial aid through PPP loans, EIDL Advances, Emergency Recovery Grants and other sources propped up many businesses, but it is not clear yet how many of them have made it through and how many have closed.” Kimbell said Vermont faces a predicament similar to Arizona’s. As tourism numbers recover, open businesses are seeing the benefit — they just need staff.

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2021 versus 2020, you can’t really tell the story without including the fact that the hospitality and tourism industry is facing an employee shortage.”

“The challenge for them now is to find people to work,” Kimbell said. “Many restaurants facing staffing shortages who used to be open seven days per week are now closed two days a week, primarily because of staffing.” Charlene Williams is president of Marshall Communications, the media company that supports Maine’s Office of Tourism. Williams said that the state enjoyed a solid summer season and expects tourism to bounce back at a record pace. “Maine’s traditional tourism season started earlier than in years past with some lodging properties reporting their best June ever,” she said. “Acadia National Park is showing the number of recreational visitors nearly doubled in April 2021 over the same month in 2020.” Western states are seeing a rise in tourism as well. “California, Arizona and Texas are dependent on a cross-border tourism,” said Edgar Ruiz, director of The Council of State Governments West. “States that have loosened COVID restrictions have seen a higher number of tourists.” Ruiz said some areas with particular tourist attractions have seen an increase as well. The $1 trillion infrastructure bill sitting in the U.S. House of Representatives currently allots funding for national travel and tourism and establishes a chief travel and tourism officer position within the Department of Transportation.

SNAPSHOT: TOURISM IN MAINE

In 2020, tourists spent nearly

$4.8 BILLION IN MAINE Tourism supports more than

90,600 JOBS

about 14% of employment in the state, or roughly

one out of every seven jobs

I f traveler spending in Maine dropped by 15%, the average Maine household would have to pay

$199 MORE IN TAXES to maintain government services at current level

https://www.naspo.org

https://naspovaluepoint.org

When the pandemic was declared, state procurement responded. With a relentless commitment to excellence, their work saved lives.

The Changing Face of America T H U R S D A Y , O C T . 1 4 — 3 - 4 : 3 0 P. M . E T

The latest data released by the U.S. Census Bureau from the 2020 Census shows changes to the demographic makeup of the country over the past decade. The results are a snapshot of everyone living in the U.S. on April 1, 2020, and states will now use this data to decide congressional redistricting procedures. However, while this data provides population counts, living quarters and ethnicity, race and voting age across the country down to the local level, the disruption of the coronavirus pandemic could mean that thousands of Black and Hispanic Americans were undercounted in the census. In addition to showing us how the demographics of the country have changed in the last ten years, this data also shapes the new congressional districts with some states gaining seats and others losing seats in the House of Representatives. With delays in census data and other potential issues brought about by quarantine and data collection, many states may have legal battles on the horizon.

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Join The Council of State Governments and a panel of experts for a discussion about what the census data means, how states will redistrict, what potential issues states will face with this very politicized issue and which states have come up with innovative solutions to this changing face of America.

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COVID-19 DRIVES INNOVATION IN DIGITAL GOVERNMENT

by Joel Sams

State courts faced a dilemma with the onset of COVID-19 — how to follow health protocols while continuing to serve the public. In the early days of the pandemic, 36 states suspended in-person court proceedings at the state level, according to Ballotpedia, and 16 suspended proceedings at the local level. According to the legal website Justia, many state courts "initially limited proceedings to only the most essential and urgent matters, such as arraignments and restraining order hearings." That dilemma, however, led to innovation as states pivoted to remote proceedings. States began responding to the pandemic by encouraging or requiring remote hearings, according to the National Center for State Courts (NCSC), and for some states, lessons learned during that process may lead to permanent change. Officials from Texas and Michigan, two early adopters of remote proceedings, say that new ways to connect have not only kept the courts open — they have increased participation rates, boosted public engagement and increased diversity. “At least in our state, and I think most other states, courts never really closed,” said David Slayton, who served as administrative director at the Texas Office of Court Administration through Sept. 1. Slayton now serves as NCSC vice president for court consulting services. “Maybe the physical doors to the actual courtrooms and courthouses closed, but courts transitioned very quickly in March 2020 to allow people to appear remotely in ways that had never done before.” At the beginning of the COVID-19 public health emergency, the Texas Supreme Court authorized courts to hear cases remotely without consent of the parties, meaning that every hearing and every type of case, except for jury trials, could be conducted remotely. “That has been one of the key innovations,” Slayton said. “Along with that has been the ability for the public to view those proceedings. Most courts are streaming to YouTube or some other streaming service so the public could gain access to them.” Jury trials remained a significant issue, however. Slayton said 98% of all United States litigation is done in the state court system, and in Texas, 1% of the population, or 300,000 people, enter a courthouse each day. Jury trials presented a special challenge due to their size and the physical layout of courtrooms and courthouses. “It’s not atypical for a criminal case, for instance, to have 100 people initially summoned to be on the jury,” Slayton said. ISSUE 4 2021 | CSG CAPITOL IDEAS

For a time, jury trials were postponed entirely because of physical spacing issues. Slayton said the jury box is just big enough for 12 or six people, depending on the size of the jury called for, and the jury room is intentionally small as well — neither are conducive to six feet of social distancing. Texas courts considered moving juries to the public seating area, but that would have meant juries couldn’t see the faces of defendants or plaintiffs.

Four Ways COVID-19 Has Changed Criminal Justice by Amelia Vorpahl, CSG Justice Center The COVID-19 pandemic has disproportionately impacted people in the criminal justice system, who experience higher rates of infection, less access to behavioral health services and greater rates of homelessness and unemployment than the general public. For the system as a whole, changes necessitated by COVID-19 range from logistical adjustments and limitations to opportunities that could result in longstanding reforms. Here are four changes observed in the criminal justice system since March 2020:

Disruption of typical system processing

The pandemic upended many standard practices for corrections and parole agencies. Measures like frequent hand washing and social distancing were challenging to implement inside confined settings, making incarcerated individuals particularly exposed to the spread of the virus. Therefore, many states limited or stopped prison admissions for health and safety reasons, while some also accelerated and expanded the criteria for releasing people.

Increased use of telecommunication

With the suspension of in-person visits and meetings, corrections and parole agencies also had to adapt to virtual communication methods. Corrections departments built virtual infrastructure, such as broadband internet access, for visits with family members and loved ones. Many parole agencies also started conducting hearings and training sessions through videoconferencing technology.

Limited reentry services

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The CSG Justice Center surveyed reentry service providers who reported having to suspend services that help people leaving prison or jail reenter their communities successfully — even as they saw requests for service increase. The Justice Center will be releasing updated survey results soon, shining additional light on reentry in the wake of COVID-19.

New opportunities through the American Rescue Plan

One bright spot for many states and local jurisdictions, however, is funding opportunities in the American Rescue Plan, including $350 billion in flexible State and Local Fiscal Recovery Funds. Many states and communities are using ARP resources to advance key public health and justice-related goals, including over $50 billion for virus mitigation measures. The American Rescue Plan offers an unprecedented chance to invest in strategies to reduce justice system involvement, connect people to community-based services and put people on a pathway to success.

There’s absolutely no way we would have been able to learn everything we’ve learned in the last 16 months and be able to, now, think carefully about what kinds of court proceedings make more sense on remote platforms, and therefore, what kinds of court proceedings make more sense in courtrooms.” — Michigan Chief Justice Bridget McCormack on making the transition to remote hearings

“All of those things were challenges that courts really had to work out,” Slayton said. “What we’ve seen, and probably the biggest challenge of the pandemic, has been the ability to hold jury trial. Even where courts have found space to allow the proper social distancing, there’s generally not the same amount of space they would have normally in a courtroom.” A breakthrough came in October 2020, when the Texas Supreme Court allowed judges to order trials to be conducted fully virtually without the consent of the party. This applied to all cases except jailable criminal cases. Jailable cases do require consent of the party, and at time of writing, none have been tried virtually. Since October, there have been more than 60 fully virtual jury trials in which every person involved has participated remotely, including jurors. As part of the summoning process, jurors were asked if they had the equipment and internet connection necessary to connect remotely. Those who said no were provided with internet-connected iPads. “Whether it’s been in a rural area, very remote parts of the state, all the way to the most urban parts of the state, we’ve been able to have jurors connect remotely to the trial,” Slayton said. Going virtual didn’t just make court operations possible — it also increased participation and diversity, both for juries and defendant and plaintiff appearances. For eviction dockets, traffic court, child support enforcement and criminal dockets, Slayton said high no-show and default rates have suddenly reversed. “Those folks are showing up for court when allowed to do so remotely,” Slayton said. “Maybe this points us to the fact that maybe there were barriers to participating in courts that we maybe were not even aware of.” The same trend held true for jurors. Slayton said the typical appearance rate for jurors in Texas can range between 20-40%, depending on the county, and that 40% is the “high water mark” for the U.S. With virtual juries, however, the appearance rate has averaged between 60-90%, with at least one virtual jury trial in which 100% of summoned jurors appeared. Increased diversity has come with participation. “Those jurors look more representative of the community than in-person jurors do,” Slayton said. “The participation rate has driven up more a representative jury as well.”

The State and Local Legal Center The State and Local Legal Center files amicus curiae briefs in support of states and local governments in the U.S. Supreme Court, conducts moot courts for attorneys arguing before the Supreme Court and is a resource to states and local governments on the Supreme Court. To learn more about this great resource for states, visit statelocallc.org.

Slayton’s key takeaway from the pandemic pivot is simple: stop trying to do things the way they’ve always been done and adopt a user-centric model.

otherwise smooth transition. The transition itself, McCormack says, was something of a silver lining in the otherwise grim pandemic landscape.

“We’ve really got to redesign our system in a way that meets the needs of the users,” he said. “One thing we have learned during the pandemic is that those users are willing and needing the court system, and they will participate [if they are] given a current way of doing so.”

“There’s absolutely no way we would have been able to learn everything we’ve learned in the last 16 months and be able to, now, think carefully about what kinds of court proceedings make more sense on remote platforms, and therefore, what kinds of court proceedings make more sense in courtrooms,” she said.

Slayton encouraged state leaders from the executive and legislative branches to assist the courts by removing legislative barriers to a remotefirst, user-centric approach, or to funnel resources to projects that meet those goals. “Maybe it’s increased broadband, or maybe it’s funding kiosks in community centers or public libraries so people can participate,” he said. “Things like that, where we can encourage and provide greater access for people to the courts, are some of the most important things.” Slayton was part of a Rapid Response Team organized by the National Center for State Courts that has offered resources, idea sharing and expertise for state courts throughout the pandemic. As co-chair of a technology working group, he served alongside Michigan Chief Justice Bridget McCormack, who has also led innovation efforts in her state.

EARLY TECHNOLOGY DISTRIBUTION IN MICHIGAN

When it came to videoconferencing capabilities, Michigan courts were already a step ahead of most of the country. “The Michigan Supreme Court had supplied every trial judge in the state with a Zoom license about nine months before the shutdown,” McCormack said. “And we did it, not because we were prescient in any way — we never thought about a pandemic before February of 2020 — but we believed that remote platforms would provide efficiencies and access and transparency that was worth exploring.” Before COVID-19, the technology was used infrequently, and McCormack says training was still needed while courts pivoted to remote hearings, but having licenses and hardware in place prepared the courts for an

“Every judge who oversees certain kinds of dockets said participation rates on remote platforms have skyrocketed,” she said. “People who have, for example, post-conviction obligations in criminal cases, they have to show up for a probation review or to make a payment on fines and fees — they are far more likely to show up on remote platforms than in physical courtrooms. They can tune in for 10 minutes. We see people doing it on a break from work. They can be driving a truck and pull over and make an appearance.” The same holds true for civil cases like landlord/tenant cases, in which people typically don’t have lawyers. McCormack said default rates have reversed in eviction cases, for instance. It used to be that most people didn’t show up for court when they were served with an eviction notice. But now, most people do. “Even though we all worried a little about whether the technology itself would be a barrier, because people didn’t have smartphones or computers or because it was complicated to use, it turns out physical courthouses present significant barriers for lots of people in lots of cases,” she said. The pandemic has shown that the public is willing to show up for court — people just face barriers like child care, transportation and time off from work. And while the barriers might have been less visible before the pandemic, remote tools have pushed them into the light, and McCormack said there’s no excuse for failing to address them. “We learned that we have potential solutions to a crushing access to justice problem, and with some innovation and leadership, we can really update the way regular people in our communities experience legal problems,” McCormack said. “I think it’s going to take collaboration across branches — any system-wide change does — and I think now is the moment. It’s a real, solid deliverable for constituents everywhere, that we could give them real access and information and transparency in our justice system.”

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Another early adopter of remote hearings, Michigan released a task force report on best practices for remote hearings on April 7, 2020. Most court activities in Michigan went virtual, except for jury trials and any cases in which litigants have a right to in-person proceedings. In the interest of social distancing, however, some judges did summon the initial jury pool using Zoom.

Michigan didn’t authorize remote jury trials, but McCormack said other data mirror the marked increase in engagement that Slayton described in Texas.

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HOW C OVID-19 C HANGE D THE BAL LOT BOX The enduring impact of pandemic-era policies on elections

by Rachel Wright The 2020 election cycle was one of adaptation and innovation. Election administrators were tasked with ensuring that people could vote without jeopardizing the well-being of administrators, staff or poll workers. To accomplish this, they had to use contingency protocols that would have seemed implausible before the pandemic. These contingency protocols have made public officials rethink the ways elections have traditionally been conducted — and some of them may be here to stay. Contingency protocols ranged from the expansion of vote by mail to the proliferation of secure ballot drop boxes, early voting and curbside or “drive-through” voting. Voter satisfaction with these procedures runs high. According to a 2020 survey conducted by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology Election Data and Science Lab, 60% of by-mail voters indicated that they were very likely to vote by mail in the future. Election administrators also utilized pandemic relief funding to facilitate remote observation of key election procedures. These procedures were intended to maintain transparency while also limiting staff and voters’ exposure to COVID-19. Although contingency protocols were authorized on a temporary basis, their positive perception among voters has served as the impetus for permanent change.

VERMONT — VOTE BY MAIL In late March 2020, Vermont Secretary of State Jim Condos announced a series of temporary measures to enable the state’s residents to vote safely during the COVID-19 pandemic. These measures included the mailing of ballots to every registered voter, an extended cutoff for clerks to receive voted ballots and the creation of secure ballot return sites, among others. According to Vermont state Rep. Mike McCarthy, such procedures enabled “three out of four Vermont voters to cast their ballot early or by mail in 2020 and the turnout was historically high.” Vermont Senate Bill 15 (S.15) was drafted with this success in mind. Passed on June 7, S.15 authorized the use of drive-thru/drive-up voting at polling places and the expansion of early voting periods in local elections. The bill also required the secretary of state’s office to mail a general election ballot to all active voters on the statewide voter checklist. This reform makes Vermont the sixth state to conduct all-mail general elections on a permanent basis.

ILLINOIS — SECURE BALLOT DROP BOXES AND CURBSIDE VOTING Illinois, home to one of the nation’s largest voting jurisdictions, experienced a drastic increase in the number of ballots cast by mail during the 2020 presidential election. Statewide, there were over 2.3 million requests for mail-in ballots by the end of October. In Chicago, the expansion of secure ballot drop boxes prompted approximately 50% of those voting by mail to return their ballot via these drop boxes. Furthermore, extended early voting periods in the city contributed to roughly eight out of every 11 ballots being returned before Election Day.

Vermont Secretary of State Jim Condos

Enacted on April 2, Illinois House Bill 1871 codified the temporary procedures that gave rise to these figures. The bill directed the use of remaining Help America Vote Act (HAVA) funds to be used to maintain secure ballot collection sites that were established during the COVID-19 pandemic. The bill also authorized curbside voting for individuals to cast a ballot during early voting or on election day in all elections moving forward. "With the passage of H.B. 1871, the state of Illinois will ensure that the protections put in place in response to the coronavirus pandemic will continue to enhance Illinoisans’ access to the ballot box for years to come,” said Lance Gough, former executive director of the Chicago Board of Election Commissioners.

ORANGE COUNTY, CALIFORNIA — REMOTE OBSERVATION In the late 1970s, California was one of the first states to transition to no-excuse absentee voting. As a result, California voters and election officials alike have long been accustomed to the by-mail voting procedures of the COVID-era. This allowed administrators to focus on refining internal processes to better handle the influx of mail ballots and ensure transparency in their operations. In Orange County, the focus of election officials turned to the observation process. Because COVID-19 safety measures disrupted traditional in-person election observation, Neal Kelley and his colleagues in Orange County developed protocols that allowed residents to observe central process remotely. Cameras and viewing monitors were placed throughout county facilities to enable a livestream for observers to monitor from their homes. Although these procedures were established to mitigate the limitations posed by COVID-19, the infrastructure put in place has allowed for remote observation to continue beyond the conclusion of the pandemic. “Enhanced public scrutiny of elections has challenged us (administrators) to devise new ways to ensure transparency and cultivate trust within our communities,” said Kelley, who serves as the Orange County registrar of voters. “The infrastructure put in place to facilitate remote observation in Orange County was crafted to meet this challenge. Voters will now be able to oversee and learn more about the county’s election processes from the comfort of their own homes.”

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In response to the bill’s passage, Condos issued the following statement, "While others are working to make it harder to vote, in Vermont we are working to remove barriers to the ballot box for all eligible voters, while strengthening the security and integrity of the voting process … I firmly believe that our democracy is stronger when we all vote. Your vote is your voice, and S.15 will make using that voice even more accessible for all Vermonters.”

“… In Vermont we are working to remove barriers to the ballot box for all eligible voters, while strengthening the security and integrity of the voting process … I firmly believe that our democracy is stronger when we all vote.”

years l at e r

Two decades after the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, leaders reflect on the horrific event that changed their lives

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by Mary Elizabeth Lonergan

On Sept. 11, 2001, terrorists associated with the militant group al-Qaida hijacked four airplanes and carried out attacks against targets in the U.S. Two of the planes were flown into the twin towers of the World Trade Center in New York City, bringing both structures crumbling down shortly after the impact. A third plane struck the Pentagon just outside of Washington, D.C., and the fourth plane crashed into a field in Shanksville, Pennsylvania. Nearly 3,000 people were killed in the 9/11 terrorist attacks. For three members of The Council of State Governments who lived through the horrific events of Sept. 11, 2001, the day was both an unforgettable tragedy and an inflection point,

professional lives and shaping their commitment to public service.

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transforming their personal and

UNDER ATTACK On Sept. 10, 2001, now New York state Sen. Joseph Griffo traveled to New York City on mayoral business. Serving then as the mayor of Rome, New York, he had to attend a bond sale. That evening, he planned to attend a Yankees vs. Red Sox baseball game, but it was rained out. The next morning, he was in his hotel in Midtown Manhattan near the Empire State Building preparing to head to an attorney’s office to complete the bond sale when he saw news that the first plane, American Airlines Flight 11, had struck the North Tower of the World Trade Center. “My recollection is the news was on, we saw the first plane and thought, ‘Wow, this is really wild that a plane has gone into the World Trade Center,’” Griffo recalled. “We thought it was very unfortunate and tragic.” But then, just 18 minutes later, Griffo watched as a second Boeing 767 — United Airlines Flight 175 — appeared in the sky, turned sharply toward the World Trade Center and struck the South Tower. That’s when Griffo realized it was probably not an accident. “We were on the street. That’s when it became not only shock, but disbelief and surreal at the same time. People were coming out from the subway because things had begun to stop; cabs were pulled over.” Griffo and his staffers tried to use their cell phones to call home to no avail. Network coverage was limited, due to infrastructure damage and an overwhelming surge in users following the attacks.

Phelps headed to the roof of his six-story walk up apartment, which had a great view of lower Manhattan.

We were on the street. That’s when it became not only shock, but disbelief and surreal at the same time. People were coming out from the subway because things had begun to stop; cabs were pulled over.

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Griffo and his team continued to their meeting at a law firm in a high rise building near their hotel. While everyone knew no work would be done that day, the office provided a vantage point. They could see the smoke from the collapse of the first tower and for the first time, he realized that the country really was under attack.

“There was a lot of commotion — street vendors had radios on, people were looking toward downtown where you could see smoke,” Griffo said. “As we got to Times Square, all the news was being flashed on the big screens. […] There was just this eerie sense.”

‘I NEEDED TO BE DOING SOMETHING’ In 2001, Andrew Phelps, director of the Oregon Office of Emergency Management, lived in New York City, working as an actor. He studied with Mike Nichols, Oscar-winning director of “The Graduate” and “The Birdcage,” and was living in the East Village about a mile from the twin towers. On Sept. 11, Phelps received a call from his girlfriend — now his wife — who had been listening to her Walkman while walking in Washington Square Park and heard there had been an explosion at the World Trade Center.

“I could see the flames and the smoke rising … It was a beautiful day, not a cloud in the sky. I was assuming it was a small plane … Then all the news helicopters and police helicopters started circling around the World Trade Center.” Phelps said he soon noticed something else in the sky, off in the distance, which he initially thought was another helicopter but soon realized was another airplane. “It kept getting closer and closer, coming right toward the World Trade Center from the south. It was a clear day … and I couldn’t figure out why this plane was so close or headed toward the World Trade Center.” Initially, he was confused. Maybe the plane was part of emergency efforts, he thought. He recalls the feeling of futility when he realized what was really happening. “You know when you go bowling and you roll the ball and you move your body to try to get the ball to do something? I remember leaning to the left, trying to get the plane to lean with me. But it disappeared behind the building and emerged as a fireball on the other side.” Phelps called into work and turned on the news. As the day went on, his apartment became a home base for several friends who couldn’t get home. Together, they watched from the roof as a continuous parade of fire trucks from Westchester County, Long Island, Connecticut and many other nearby locations. and many other nearby locations drove toward the wreckage. “That afternoon, everyone felt they wanted to do something … already, you started to see missing persons signs posted.” In the days that followed, Phelps would help unload boxes at the Salvation Army and sign up with the Red Cross to find some way to help. “I had this horrible feeling that I needed to be doing something.”

‘THE DEFINITION OF TERRORISM’ Texas state Sen. Brian Birdwell began his dream career as a U.S. Army officer on the same day he graduated from college in 1984. Through years of hard work, Birdwell was promoted to the rank of lieutenant colonel in 2000 and was stationed at the Pentagon. On Sept. 11 — a sunny day in Washington, D.C., as it was in New York City — Birdwell was serving as the military aide to the flag officer at the Pentagon. A coworker’s daughter, who was living in New York City, called to alert them to what happened at the World Trade Center. Immediately, Birdwell knew this wouldn’t be a normal day in the office. He knelt with his coworkers and prayed, then continued to watch events unfold on television. He remembers how mesmerized everyone seemed to be by the shock of what was happening. He remembers that no phones rang for a long time.

Not long after, Birdwell left his second-floor office in the Pentagon’s E-ring to head to the restroom. It was a change of location that ultimately saved his life. Birdwell was just 15 to 20 yards from the point where an 80-ton Boeing 767 — American Airlines Flight 77 — crashed into the building at 530 miles per hour. “By the Lord’s grace, I am the only survivor in the E-ring at the crash site,” he said. “You don’t survive that because you may be the toughest guy in the building. You survive it because the Lord has something else in mind.” The impact was immense, Birdwell recalled. As an artillery officer, he has been around a lot of loud things in his career — gunlines, big tanks — but nothing as loud as a large airplane crashing into a building. “I was set ablaze.” Birdwell endured burns on 60% of his body. Forty percent of those were third-degree burns.

and attended the John Jay College of Justice. Phelps was one of the founders of the first Community Emergency Response Team in New York City. During his second semester at John Jay College, Hurricane Katrina hit New Orleans. “That’s when the lightbulb went off,” he recalled. “Emergency management — this is something that’s policy and politics, it’s programs, it’s management, it’s planning. It is all of these things that I’m really excited about.” Phelps became a volunteer firefighter, finished his degree and began to work in emergency services across the U.S. Sen. Joseph Griffo finished his term as mayor and went on to serve as Oneida County Executive from 2003-2006 before his election to the state Senate in 2007. He said he walked away from the terrorist attacks with a renewed focus on the importance of public service. “Any commitment to public service, if done with full energy and effort, can be meaningful, and that was demonstrated on that day by local government officials, state government officials and federal officials because you needed everyone to take control and direct resources and to be supportive,” Griffo said.

“I was struggling to survive … the lights in the building had been destroyed and the only light was the glow of the fire,” he recalled of that day. “What really made this event the definition of terrorism [in my eyes] was knowing you’re facing a life-threatening event and you can’t escape the source of what is killing you.” Birdwell said he was prepared to die that day, but he got a miracle. The sprinkler system engaged — somehow it hadn’t been destroyed in the crash. The corridor was filing up with smoke and Birdwell knew he needed to get out of the wreckage, but he was in a lot of pain and his clothes had melted to his body, making it difficult to move. He was found by four individuals who — after some struggling — were able to hoist Birdwell on top of their interlocked arms and carry him into the A-ring where he received medical care from an Air Force doctor on site. Birdwell was met at Georgetown University Hospital by some of the most skilled burn specialists in the world, including Dr. Marion Jordan, who would become president of the American Burn Association in 2003. He received reconstructive surgeries and medical procedures to regain normal functions of his body until 2005. He knows it is a miracle he is alive.

A NEW WAY TO SERVE For Birdwell, Phelps and Griffo, the tragedy of 9/11 also provided an impetus to public service. Birdwell and his family moved to Texas, where he entered local politics. In 2010, he won a special election and became a Texas state senator.

His life had changed. He took exams for the New York Fire Department and the New York Police Department. He researched Community Emergency Response Teams. He went back to school

I was struggling to survive … the lights in the building had been destroyed and the only light was the glow of the fire.

“I can’t believe it’s been 20 years since 9/11,” Phelps said. “It just blows my mind. I still constantly think back to that feeling of helplessness. “In a lot of ways, we didn’t see the initial aftermath politicized the way we see things politicized today. Social media was nonexistent, and I think that gives a different kind of voice … it adds a layer of divisiveness to the public discourse. I wish, as a nation, we could understand that there is so much more that we have in common than what separates us.” Griffo agrees that while the events of Sept. 11, 2001, were devastating, it resulted in a feeling of pride, camaraderie and coming together that sometimes feels lost today. “Today, sometimes I shudder and sometimes I’m frustrated and discouraged to see the polarization that has happened to our nation,” Griffo said. “We’re seeing it with the pandemic when we need to provide accurate, complete and truthful information to the best of our ability.” In addition to the COVID-19 pandemic, current events in Afghanistan also bring back sometimes painful reminders for survivors. Twenty years after living through the terrorist attack on the Pentagon, Birdwell is reminded of his purpose as a survivor and the need for America to be stronger and more united than ever. “Right now, we are going through a period of national suffering watching what’s happening with our fellow citizens in Afghanistan,” Birdwell said. “You can imagine, that absolutely tears at my heart. I would simply ask for prayer for our president, our national leadership … and for the safety and security of our fellow Americans in a faraway place.”

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Oregon Emergency Management Director Andrew Phelps remembers being called to service on that day 20 years ago. He packed a backpack in his apartment full of tools and went searching for ways to help in the city. For days following the attacks, Phelps helped whenever and wherever he could, including passing buckets of dirt and dust to help remove it from the site.

REMINDERS TODAY

REBUILDING TOGETHER The offices of CSG East at 5 World Trade Center were destroyed in the 9/11 attacks. It took everyone — the states, the staff and the city — to rebuild. by Joel Sams Pamela Stanley had only been in the office for about 20 minutes on Sept. 11, 2001, when she felt a thud — the whole building shook. Stanley was office manager for CSG East, then located on the ninth floor of 5 World Trade Center in New York City. After feeling the impact, she ran to a co-worker’s office to look out the window. “He said, ‘There’s something really bad going on outside,’” she remembers. “We saw debris, we saw glass falling, but we still couldn’t tell what was going on.” Her co-worker left, as did then-director Alan Sokolow (see p. 44), but Stanley stayed until neighboring office tenants spread word that a plane had struck the Trade Center. Still in disbelief, Stanley continued to delay. Finally, she started down the stairs before pausing — she’d left her bag. Married to a New York City firefighter, she knew better than to re-enter a compromised building, but she needed her phone and her Metro card. When she finally reached the lobby, briefcase in hand, she had a clear view of the outside. “That’s when I realized something really bad had happened,’” said Stanley, who now serves as a pastor in New York. “It was mayhem.”

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While no CSG East staff died that day, 5 World Trade Center sustained major damage and was subsequently demolished. Twenty years after the

9/11 attacks, the events are still fresh for CSG East staff. Some were in the building; some saw the attack from a distance; most knew someone who died or who lost a loved one. But another story runs in parallel to the tragedy — a story of rebuilding, hope and support. Rennee Brackett, now executive assistant to senior management, finance, operations and administration for the CSG Justice Center, was on the street during the attack. She had just gotten off the subway and was on her way to make lunch reservations at Windows on the World, a restaurant located in the North Tower. Sokolow, who had just come out of the building, met her eye in the growing crowd. “As soon as Alan and I made eye contact with each other in the midst of all those people, we heard a roaring sound of the plane coming in, and it wasn’t a normal sound. It was too low,” she said. “That’s when you knew, okay, this was something major. It flew right over our heads and plunged into the building.” Michael Thompson, founding director of the CSG Justice Center, usually arrived early to the office. On Sept. 11, however, he had planned a rare late morning so that he and his wife could drop off their son for his first day of daycare. Located in Brooklyn Heights, the daycare location offered a clear view of the World Trade Center. After hearing word-of-mouth news about the attacks — and seeing the horror unfold from a vantage point on the Brooklyn Heights Promenade — Thompson rushed to get his family safely home, and then began to check on co-workers. Even after two decades, Thompson says, talking about 9/11 brings raw emotions to the surface. He remembers the shock, but also feelings of guilt when thinking about how much more others had suffered. He says it was the support of the states that re-focused the CSG East team on the importance of their work, even in the face of tragedy. “I’ll never forget a number of members being like, ‘Here is why your work is more important than it’s ever been, and why we need you here,’” Thompson said. Now serving as senior vice president for government performance at The Pew Charitable Trusts, Thompson says members backed up their verbal support with action. “One our leaders was an appropriations chair, and he said, ‘Look, everybody knows right now that the bottom floor of the economy is going to drop out, and we’re going to have to figure out what we’re going to spend money on, and what we’re not going to spend money on. We’re going to need you for help on that.’”

The resilience of the CSG East leadership played a key role in recovery. Brackett credits them with supporting staff and overcoming the logistical challenges of finding space to work — CSG East moved nine times before finding a long-term home. “Without the support of the leaders of CSG East — without Alan, Wendell, Pam Stanley and Mike Thompson — I don’t think we would be here today,” Brackett said. “They were the ones who provided us with sense of security and helped us with anything we needed as staff.” Wendell Hannaford, the former director of CSG East who served as deputy director at the time of the attacks, says the states provided crucial financial support as well. “I don’t believe 9/11 changed the way we operated as an office,” Hannaford said. “In fact, we remained committed to keeping the office in lower Manhattan to help the city recover. In addition, several of our states came to our aid in creating a 9/11 fund for ERC to help us with the relocation effort and other loss of equipment.” Whether by accident or sheer luck, one final key to recovery escaped destruction. It wasn’t until a few days after the attacks that Stanley emptied out the briefcase she had re-entered the building to retrieve. She had the backup tape — all of the CSG East work files, saved. Backing up files each week was Stanley’s longtime protocol. She says she would pop in a new tape on Monday when she came to work, take the old one out, put it in her briefcase and take it home.

I take enormous pride in how all of us locked arms and said, ‘We’re going to get through this; we’re going to help each other; we’re part of a family; we’re committed to New York.

“I used to tell my daughter and my husband, ‘This is CSG East’s backup tape — if anything ever happens to me, make sure they get that tape,’’’ she said. Thompson remembers the feeling of relief when he learned about the tape. “You feel silly asking, but at some point, you have to ask — has our work forever been lost?” he said. “Alan was like, ‘Pam has the backup drives through 6 p.m. on Monday.’ Oh my God, erect a statue in honor of that woman!” Persistence, determination, commitment — these are values that have characterized CSG East, not only in the aftermath of 9/11, but throughout the shifts of the last two decades and the ongoing challenges of COVID-19. David Biette, current director of CSG East, says the region’s resilience is driven by a commitment to serving the states. “We believe in what we do,” Biette said. “We do it because we really believe in the product, and we believe that state government is important. It’s closer to the people. It can effect change for the good of people. And everyone, to a person, believes that.”

“I take enormous pride in how all of us locked arms and said, ‘We’re going to get through this; we’re going to help each other; we’re part of a family; we’re committed to New York,” Thompson said. “You look back on those moments and take a lot of pride. But it’s also very emotional. For as much pride as you feel in all of that, there is just immense sadness, because whatever you lost pales in comparison to what other people lost.”

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Even now, Thompson says, perfect September weather — blue skies, cool air, fresh breeze — take him back that dark day. He’ll never forget watching the horror of despair unfold across the East River or witnessing the rain of debris and ash on Brooklyn. But he also remembers experiencing hope and goodness in the nationwide outpouring of support; the way the staff had each other’s backs. The goodness doesn’t diminish the evil; the hope doesn’t neutralize loss. It’s a paradox — things run in parallel.

CT / DE / MA / MD / ME / NH / NJ / NY / PA / RI / VT / NB / NS / ON / PE / PR / QC / VI

Maryland Nursing Home Residents Eligible for COVID Booster

CSG Mourns the Loss of Former CSG East Director Alan Sokolow Former director of The Council of State Governments Eastern Regional Conference, Alan V. Sokolow, passed away on July 23. Sokolow joined the CSG eastern office in 1967 as a field representative. In 1972, he was promoted to director where he served until his retirement in 2009. “Alan’s career at The Council of State Governments spanned four decades. His leadership guided state officials through many challenges and empowered them to govern better,” said CSG Executive Director/ CEO David Adkins. “While his expertise was substantial, it was his love of people and public service that helped him forge so many lasting and valued partnerships and friendships.

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“CSG, the states and our nation are all stronger because of Alan’s work. He lives on in his beloved family and in all the good he achieved. May his memory be a blessing.”

In 2008, a resolution was passed in the Rhode Island General Assembly honoring Sokolow and celebrating his retirement from CSG. The resolution stated, “Rhode Island and the states of the eastern region have been the beneficiaries of the wisdom, integrity and abiding dedication to excellence that Alan Sokolow has always brought to his work at CSG, and along the way, he has earned the unqualified admiration and respect of his fellow workers as well as state officials.” A dedicated Brooklyn Dodgers and Mets fan, Sokolow was involved in political campaigns and an active member of Temple Ner Tamid in Bloomfield, New Jersey. He is survived by his wife of 53 years, Margo, two daughters, Rachel and Elena, and two grandchildren, Max and Leo.

For more on CSG East, visit csg-erc.org 212.482.2320 • info@csg-erc.org

Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan announced that Maryland residents who are 65 years and older and living in nursing homes or other congregate care facilities are now eligible to receive a COVID-19 vaccine booster shot. Residents who are immunocompromised are also eligible to receive the shot. “For several weeks now, states have had to operate without clear guidance from the federal government regarding these booster shots,” Hogan said in a statement released by his office. “The limited guidance we have received has been confusing and contradictory, and it is still unclear when and how more people will become eligible. But all of the evidence makes it abundantly clear that we cannot afford to delay taking decisive action to protect our most vulnerable citizens.”

Maine to Implement Plans for Offshore Wind Energy Maine state Sen. Mark Eliot writes in the Bangor Daily News that the state “made historic progress on offshore wind energy development during its 2021 session.” Two bills introduced by Eliot were signed into law. L.D. 336 directs the Public Utilities Commission “to negotiate a long-term power contract to support the state’s floating offshore wind research array,” and L.D. 1619, which “prohibits development of offshore wind in state territorial waters,” protects state waters while allowing research projects to continue in federal waters beyond the three-mile boundary. “I am proud that, even in these difficult times, the Maine Legislature has taken unprecedented actions to protect the Gulf of Maine and the marine uses of the Gulf on which Mainers have relied for centuries, while also pursuing the economic and environmental benefits of offshore wind,” Eliot wrote. “With the right policies in place now, Maine is ready to responsibly develop and construct this renewable energy industry, reduce pollution and create sustaining, good-paying jobs.”

New York Sets 2035 ZeroEmission Goal New York Gov. Kathy Hochul signed a bill on Sept. 8 that sets a zero-emission goal for all new passenger cars and light duty trucks by 2035, Reuters reports. New York joined California in seeking to phase out

fossil fuels in new automobiles. (California’s bill, which required all new cars and trucks to be zero emission vehicles by 2035, was signed in September 2020). Reuters reports that in April, 12 states, including California and New York, asked President Joe Biden to “set standards to ensure that all new passenger cars and light duty trucks are zero-emission by 2035.”

New Jersey Legislators to Introduce Farmland Protection Bill New Jersey state Sen. Dawn Addiego and Senate President Steve Sweeney announced a plan to introduce legislation that would exclude farmland as a redevelopment or rehabilitation area under the “Local Redevelopment and Housing Law,” according to a press release. Addiego said the current law allows farmland to be redeveloped into warehouses, “threatening the future of the farming sector.” “In the last few years, we have taken great lengths to protect our state’s farmlands,” said Sweeney. “By taking these steps to exclude farmland from being classified as a redevelopment area or rehabilitation area, we are further ensuring the protection of these vital spaces and preventing further warehouse sprawl, which will help keep New Jersey green for decades to come.”

Sports Betting to Begin in Connecticut in October An agreement between the state of Connecticut and owners of two tribal casinos earned federal approval in September, clearing the way for expanded sports betting and online gambling to begin in October, according to the Hartford Courant. “This critical step in the process of modernizing our gaming landscape here in Connecticut ensures that our state will have a competitive, nation-leading marketplace for wagering both in-person and online,” Connecticut Gov. Ned Lamont said in a Tweet, announcing the decision by the Bureau of Indian Affairs. “Today’s announcement puts CT on the cusp of providing a modern, technologically advanced gaming experience competitive with our neighboring states.”

IA / IL / IN / KS / MI / MN / ND / NE / OH / SD / WI / AB / MB / ON / SK

Minimum Wage Hike Coming in Saskatchewan as Result of Index Based on Inflation, Average Salaries The hourly minimum wage for Saskatchewan workers will increase by 36 cents in October as a the result of the province’s annual review of changes in the cost of living and average wages. Those two factors are weighted equally under Saskatchewan’s indexing formula. The minimum wage will be raised to $11.81 per hour (Canadian dollars). Like Saskatchewan, three states in the Midwest — Minnesota, Ohio and South Dakota — do some kind of indexing to regularly adjust the minimum wage. None of these states accounts for changes in the average wage. They instead are adjusted based on the consumer price index.

Pair of Laws in Iowa Seek to Improve State’s Response to Sexual Assault, Help Victims

New Indiana Law Establishes Specialized Units to Help Prosecutors with High-Tech Crimes Indiana legislators are seeking to crack down on high-tech crimes, with plans to provide technical assistance and training to local prosecutors related to the collec-

Kansas Has New Laws to Improve Public Safety, Community Supervision Kansas Gov. Laura Kelly, CSG national president, signed into law in 2021 a package of bipartisan criminal justice bills that aims to increase public safety and improve community supervision. The policy changes are the result of the Kansas Justice Reinvestment Initiative, which the state embarked on in 2020 with intensive technical assistance from experts at the CSG Justice Center, as well as support from The Pew Charitable Trusts and the U.S. Department of Justice’s Bureau of Justice Assistance. With this year’s passage of HB 2026, more people charged with drug offenses will be diverted to treatment and supervision. The bill expands Kansas’ existing drug-treatment infrastructure to encourage more prosecutor diversions and to provide certified treatment to more people before they are convicted of crimes. Community supervision will be improved by strengthening evidencebased practices and reducing inefficiencies to focus efforts where they can be most effective. A second bill, HB 2077, will extend the Kansas Criminal Justice Reform Commission through the end of this year to help oversee implementation of the reforms.

In Wisconsin, State Grants Help Farmers Lead on Improving Water Quality South Dakota Senate Majority Leader Gary Cammack has chosen agriculture conservation as the focus of his Midwestern Legislative Conference Chair’s Initiative for 2021. More than 14 million acres of farmland stretch across Wisconsin’s 330 watersheds. And as much as the agricultural activity on all of this land is essential to the state’s way of life and prosperity (it accounts for close to 12% of the jobs in Wisconsin and contributes more than $100 billion annually to the economy), there can be consequences. Nonpoint source pollution, for instance, is a leading contributor to water quality problems in the state. A top-down, state-initiated response is the most common way of dealing with these issues, through new laws and regulations on agriculture producers and their practices. But what if the farmers themselves could actually help lead the way in finding solutions? That’s the idea behind a five-year-old initiative in Wisconsin, which has been in place for two gubernatorial administrations (one Republican, one Democrat) and received increasing levels of legislative appropriations. The Producer-Led Watershed Protection Program provides grants (a maximum of $40,000 per grantee) to groups of farmers who work together and lead local efforts to control nonpoint source pollution in a single watershed. Overseen by the Department of Agriculture, Trade & Consumer Protection, the program provided a total of $750,000 to 27 different farmer-led groups in 2020.

For more on CSG Midwest, visit csgmidwest.org. 630.925.1922 • csgm@csg.org

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In an effort to help victims of sexual assault, Iowa is creating a new unit within the state attorney general’s office that will train nurses on how to conduct exams, collect evidence and share information with survivors. States such as Illinois and Nebraska already have lead agencies that oversee training efforts and maintain a list of trained examiners, according to the Iowa attorney general’s office. This new sexual assault forensic examiner program was created with passage of HF 603. A second measure, SF 451, establishes an automated system for victims and local prosecutors to track sexual assault evidence kits. Money for this new system will come from Iowa’s Victim Compensation Fund, whose sources of revenue include criminal fines and penalties, victim restitution and federal funds.

tion of evidence and other investigatory needs. HB 1082, signed into law in April, defines a high-tech crime as a criminal act “committed with or assisted by digital evidence, network or communications technology.” It calls for the creation of high-tech crime units representing the north, south, east and west parts of Indiana. The Indiana Prosecuting Attorneys Council — a nonpartisan, independent state judicial branch agency composed of Indiana’s 91 prosecuting attorneys — is authorized to seek proposals from up to 10 counties to create these high-tech crime units. According to the FBI, the top three internet crimes reported by victims in 2020 were phishing scams, non-payment/non-delivery scams and extortion.

AL / AR / FL / GA / KY / LA / MO / MS / NC / OK / SC / TN / TX / VA / WV

Film Industry to Invest $409 Million in N.C. Projects

South Carolina Announces Special Education Workforce Development Greenville County Schools in South Carolina announced a new, unique partnership between its food and nutrition services and special education departments. Under the new program, special education students have the opportunity to earn their Culinary Employability Credential and School-Based Enterprise Training. The first group of students began training in August in the nine-week program. Greenville County hopes the partnership will serve as a national model for preparing students for success in the workplace. Although the program does not automatically lead to hiring, it gives special education students the chance to gain necessary workplace skills to acquire stable, living-wage jobs. The program will have six to nine students participating at a time at a state-of-the-art kitchen facility at Roper Mountain Science Center in Greenville.

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The nine-week program will help students partially satisfy the 360 work hours that are required to obtain the employability credential. At the end of the program, participants may have another job at Roper Mountain, at their schools, or another location with a community partner, if they wish to do so.

For more on CSG South, visit slcatlanta.org. 404.633.1866

North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper recently announced that film production companies are expected to invest a record $409 million in 2021. Combined, the projects will create more than 25,000 job opportunities within the film industry. Companies that film in the state are eligible for a 25% rebate through the North Carolina Film and Entertainment Grant, a bipartisan measure passed by the General Assembly in 2014. Under the grant, production companies must meet direct in-state spending requirements before qualifying for the rebate.

Alabama Law Enforcement Agency Adds SensoryInclusive Training The Alabama Law Enforcement Agency (ALEA) is the first state police department in the country to have all officers certified in sensory-inclusive practices, according to an announcement from Gov. Kay Ivey. The training, provided by KultureCity, a Birmingham-based nonprofit organization, prepares officers for situations involving someone with sensory needs or those with invisible disabilities. State troopers, special agents with the Alabama Bureau of Investigations, communication officers, and all personnel within the ALEA driver license division received the training. Certified officers will be equipped with special sensory aids, and a decal will be placed on ALEA vehicles to show that an officer has been trained and certified.

Kentucky Legislative Research Commission Recognized for Tech Upgrades The Kentucky Legislative Research Commission (LRC) was awarded the 2021 Legislative Staff Achievement Award from the National Association of Legislative Information Technology for a series of innovative tech upgrades that helped support the legislative branch, particularly during the height of the Covid-19 pandemic. The LRC installed HD screens in committee rooms, as well as cameras and equipment to improve videoconferencing and livestreaming. It also over-

hauled the voting system in the House of Representatives, allowing legislators to participate in chamber proceedings and cast votes from their offices, and oversaw the installation of new fiber optic cables in legislative areas.

Louisiana Mandates Kindergarten Enrollment Louisiana Gov. John Bel Edwards signed bipartisan legislation that will make kindergarten mandatory beginning during the 2022-23 school year. Under the law, children who turn 5 by Sept. 30 will be required to attend kindergarten. Parents of children who are 4 on the first day of school will have the option of holding their children back a year and enrolling them in kindergarten the following school year. Families also can comply with state law by home schooling their children in kindergarten.

Missouri to Spend $400 Million on Rural Broadband Missouri Gov. Mike Parson announced the state will spend $400 million to increase high-speed internet in rural communities. The funding will come from the state’s share of the American Rescue Plan Act that passed in March 2021. The $400 million allocation follows an application from the Missouri Department of Economic Development for an additional $56 million from the National Telecommunications and Information Administrative Broadband Infrastructure Program. According to the Federal Communications Commission, approximately 400,000 Missourians in rural areas do not currently have access to high-speed internet.

AK / AZ / CA / CO / HI / ID / MT / NM / NV / OR / UT / WA / WY / AB / AS / BC / CNMI / GU

$1 Trillion Infrastructure Bill Addresses Western Water Shortage The $1 trillion infrastructure bill passed by the U.S. Senate in August includes more than $8 billion to address water infrastructure in Western states, according to The New York Times. Of that amount, the Las Vegas Review-Journal reports, $3.2 billion would fund upgrades for aging infrastructure, approximately $3 billion would fund storing and moving water, rural water projects and water recycling efforts, and $1 billion would go toward desalination research, a dam safety program and aquatic ecosystem projects. An additional $300 million would be set aside to address drought in the Colorado River Basin, as well as $50 million for conservation. According to a White House fact sheet, the bill is “the largest investment in the resilience of physical and natural systems in American history.”

California’s Dixie Wildfire Nears Million-Mile Impact Northern California’s Dixie Wildfire may soon earn the grim distinction of gigafire — a term for wildfires that burn more than one million acres. At time of writing, CNN reported that the fire had destroyed 1,329 buildings, including commercial and residential structures. Last year’s August Complex fire, which also burned through Northern California, was the first gigafire on record. Experts say that weather and climate-related disasters are getting worse and happening more frequently. According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, emergency managers dealt with 22 separate disasters in 2020 that resulted in damages exceeding $1 billion, the most ever in a single year. In 2021, as of mid-July, there have been another eight.

Eighty-six water and sewer projects across the state of Montana will be funded with $127 million drawn from Montana’s share of the American Rescue Plan Act, reports the Montana Free Press. The awards followed an application process reviewed by the Department of Natural Resources and Conservation and an advisory committee. “Montana is leading

New Mexico to Implement $37 Million Teacher Recruitment Plan New Mexico will use American Rescue Plan Act funds to create a $37 million plant to recruit teachers, addressing a 2020 shortfall of about 600 unfilled positions, according to the Santa Fe New Mexican. The program will pay salaries for 500 teaching assistants, in addition to offering a $4,000 tuition subsidy and access to mentorship. The state has one of the nation’s oldest teaching workforces, in addition to a shortage of teachers. The new teaching fellowship is envisioned to create long-term change by retaining teaching assistants and preparing them for higher-paying jobs. Currently, teaching assistants earn about $25,000 per year, the Santa Fe New Mexican reports, a figure that is below minimum wage in some New Mexico towns.

Washington State’s Largest Labor Union Ratifies Vaccine Mandate By a margin of more than 80%, The Washington Federation of State Employees, Washington’s largest labor union, tentatively approved a deal with the state over Gov. Jay Inslee’s vaccine mandate, according to the Associated Press. The tentatively approved deal outlines medical and religious vaccine exemptions, approves rules for employees set to retire, allows employees to get the vaccine during work hours and offers employees an extra day off work in 2021 as an incentive to get the shot. The union, which represents more than 47,000 state employees, had previously sued to stop Inslee’s mandate — which applied to most state executive branch employees and on-site contractors and volunteers, along with public and private health care and long-term care workers — after failing to reach an agreement with the state over the exemption process.

CSG West Legislative Exchange Focused on Refugees’ Economic Empowerment CSG West and the International Rescue Committee (IRC) hosted the third in a series of Legislative Exchange programs focused on refugee resettlement. During the session, participants joined Erica Bouris, director of Economic Empowerment at IRC, to learn how IRC’s economic empowerment programming has expanded and how state investments in workforce development have evolved. Participants also learned how refugees with professional skills in specific industries are trying to recover their careers here in the U.S. and how states can support those efforts. In July, participants learned about the process of cultural orientation from the Cultural Orientation Resource Exchange (CORE), a technical assistance program funded by the Bureau of Population, Refugees, and Migration (PRM) in the U.S. Department of State, and administered by IRC. CORE’s work focuses on connecting and supporting refugee resettlement staff globally to deliver effective cultural orientation. In June, participants learned about the process of refugee resettlement and its impact at the state level. To view recordings and resources from all three sessions, visit: csgwest.org/programs/Legislative_Exchange.aspx.

For more on CSG West, visit csgwest.org. 916.553.4423 • csgw@csg.org

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Montana to Use ARP Funds for Water and Sewer Upgrades

the nation in making critical water and sewer infrastructure investments, with more than 80-percent of them supporting our rural communities,” Montana Gov. Greg Gianforte said in a statement. “With funds devoted toward constructing new systems and improving existing ones, more Montana communities will have access to reliable, sustainable water and wastewater systems.”

ALL RISE

THE MISSION OF THE

The Chief Justices of the supreme courts of the states gathered at the National Center for State Courts at its headquarters in Williamsburg, Virginia, in July to celebrate the organization’s 50th anniversary. In honor of this milestone, learn more about the important work and history of this judicial center.

NATIONAL CENTER FOR STATE COURTS is to promote the rule of law and improve the administration of justice in state courts.

NCSC provides many services to the courts including: RESEARCH, CONSULTING and continued assistance in the IMPROVEMENT OF INTERBRANCH RELATIONS.

THERE ARE APPROXIMATELY 30,000 STATE JUDGES COMPARED TO ONLY 1,700 FEDERAL JUDGES

The National Center for State Courts began operations in 1971 with a headquarters of the Federal Judicial Center in Washington, D.C. The permanent headquarters was established in Williamsburg in 1978.

At the First National Conference of the Judiciary in Williamsburg, Virginia, in 1971,

U.S. CHIEF JUSTICE WARREN BURGER called for the creation of a central resource for the state courts.

THE NCSC IS DIVIDED INTO THREE PRIMARY OFFICES IN THE U.S.

In addition to its headquarters, its office in Denver houses the Court Consulting Services Division and its office in Arlington, Virginia, houses the Government Relations and International Programs divisions.

The National Center for State Courts houses the largest library of materials on court administration in the world.

STAT E FEDERAL

MORE THAN 100 MILLION CASES

ARE FILED EACH YEAR IN STATE TRIAL COURTS, COMPARED TO ROUGHLY 400,000 CASES FILED IN FEDERAL TRIAL COURTS.

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Capitol Ideas | Issue 4 | 2021 | Shifts in American Life

Articles inside

The Move Toward Permanent Remote Work

Increasing Broadband

SHIFTS IN AMERICAN LIFE

UTILIZING AMERICAN RESCUE PLAN FUNDS

CSG SOUTH UPDATE

CSG EAST UPDATE

CSG MIDWEST UPDATE