The Thicket at State Legislatures

Individual Development Accounts: The Basics

By Qiana Torres Flores

Almost half of all Americans are not confident that they could get $2,000 within a month to cover an emergency.  This lack of savings can result in financial hardship for families that face sudden crises such as a job loss, illness or injury.

Thirty-five states have laws to create individual development account (IDA) programs to encourage people to save.  IDAs are matched savings accounts that are most often used for long-term investments like buying a home, getting more education or starting a small business.

In this edition of the Buzz at State Legislatures (4:27), Qiana Torres Flores of the National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL) Working Families Project talks about how IDAs work and how states have creatively used this strategy to help people save.

IDA Podcast

 

Balancing Food Safety With Entrepreneurs

by Meagan Dorsch

Summertime unofficially marks the beginning of the farmer’s market season in states across the country.

Over the past few years, state lawmakers have been increasingly supportive of the “cottage food” movement, which offers exemptions from state health and food safety rules to local producers.

Cottage food laws have also made farmer’s markets, church suppers or school concession stands exempt from some food safety laws. Policymakers see this as a way to encourage entrepreneurs and promote economic development. According to the National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL), Arkansas, Arizona, Indiana, Maryland, Missouri, Minnesota, Montana, Texas, Virginia, Washington, Wisconsin and Wyoming have adopted cottage food laws.

In this edition of The Buzz (3:00), we sit down with Doug Farquhar, who tracks food safety issues for NCSL. Farquhar explains that while state lawmakers are well aware of the dangers of foodborne illnesses, they are interested in introducing more flexible rules to allow for the growth of local food producers. Farquhar also discusses the role of state legislatures in managing food safety.

 

Listen to this edition of The Buzz and read Doug Farquhar’s article in the May edition of State Legislatures Magazine.

Congress Kicks Can on Transportation, Another 3 Month Extension

What it Means for States

By Jon Kuhl

On Thursday, March 29, the House and Senate agreed to kick the can down the road and give themselves a three-month extension before agreeing on a longer-term transportation bill. This latest deal marks the ninth such extension since the previous transportation law expired in 2009.

 

In a short video interview, NCSL Committee Director Ben Husch discusses what this means for states, and how likely a more permanent solution may be in the midst of an election year.

 

 

Getting the Word Out: Earned Income Tax Credits

By Meagan Dorsch and Qiana Flores

The federal earned income tax credit is designed to help low-to moderate-income, working people get ahead. These tax credits may provide incentives to work and the tools to build their financial assets and savings.

Twenty-five states and the District of Columbia have their own EITC laws to offer additional benefits. The average credit was $2,240 in 2010, yet around 20 percent of eligible people do not claim their credit during tax season.

 

EITC

In this edition of the Buzz at State Legislature (5:34), Qiana Flores of the National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL) Working Families Partnership talks about public and private initiatives to educate people about the availability of EITCs. Some initiatives offer information hotlines or informing employees, sponsor media outreach efforts or organize free tax preparation sites. Qiana discusses ways legislators can get the word out to their constituents. This podcast is made possible by support from the Annie E. Casey Foundation.

 

Supreme Court Takes on Federalism Cases: Big Impact on States

By Jon Kuhl

The U.S. Supreme Court will be hearing three major cases that deal with federalism this term, cases that are expected to draw bright lines on where state and federal powers begin and end. Below are brief descriptions of the three cases and an interview with NCSL’s Senior Federal Affairs Counsel Susan Frederick, who explains what the court will be deciding.

Affordable Care Act
Of particular interest for states is whether the federal government can force states to expand their share of Medicaid costs and administration with the risk of losing that money if they refuse. Twenty-six states, led by Florida, brought the case. Oral arguments are expected in late February or early March, with a ruling sometime in June.

Immigration: Arizona’s S.B. 1070 Law
With partisan gridlock in Washington, Arizona, like many states, dealt with the issue of immigration on its own. In petitioning the court to hear the case, Arizona asserts, “It is the gateway for nearly half of the nation’s illegal border crossings. … Arizona has repeatedly asked the federal government for more vigorous enforcement of the federal immigration laws, but to no avail.” The federal government, on the other hand, asserts Arizona’s law is taking on authority it does not have, authority that rests instead with the federal government. A ruling on this case is expected in June.

Texas Redistricting
An expedited hearing will take place to decide the fate of Texas’ redistricting map, which had been called into question by a lower federal court for undermining the voting rights of Latinos and African Americans. At issue for the court is whether to defer to the state legislature in drawing congressional districts. Oral arguments will begin on Jan. 9, and an opinion is expected early this spring.

 
Susan Frederick has worked in NCSL’s Washington, DC State-Federal Relations office for the past 11 years and holds a J.D. from American University.

What the Deficit Reduction Means for States

Disappointed by the congressional super committee's failure to reach a deficit reduction agreement, state legislators are working to understand what the automatic budget cuts mean for their states, and how best to prepare for the cuts.

Of particular concern for lawmakers are the federal funding cuts in education, energy, the environment and criminal justice. And with large cuts to defense spending as well, states with military bases, homeland security operations and defense contractor employers are rightly concerned about a double economic hit.

NCSL policy analyst Jeff Hurley discusses what states can expect from sequestration.

 

   

 

State Pension Reform

Over the past two years, 40 legislatures have revised at least one state retirement plan. The changes range from increasing employee contribution requirements and age and service requirements for retirement to revising cost-of-living adjustments.

The Thursday general session at NCSL's 2011 Fall Forum tackled the issues of state pensions that focused on "hybrid" pensions that several states are considering. This model provides employees with both a traditional pension plan and a 401 (k)-type plan. It has been adopted in Utah and was recently signed into law in Rhode Island. It can provide safer employee benefits than moving entirely to a 401 (k)-type plan, and can be less expensive for governments than a traditional plan. 

NCSL sat down with Utah Senator Daniel Liljenquist to discuss Utah's move to this type of pension plan and what it means for the state. Senator Liljenquist was one of four panelists on the pension reform session at NCSL's Fall Forum. We will have video of the entire panel discussion in the days to come. 

 

 

Policies to Encourage Savings

By Meagan Dorsch

Saving money for future emergencies can be difficult. Research shows that 25 percent of Americans have no savings.  One way people can save is to commit part of their federal tax refund to a savings account or U.S. savings bond. Many taxpayers, however, are unaware of these options.

In this edition of The Buzz at State Legislatures Qiana Flores of the NCSL Working Families Partnership talks about split refunds and the purchase of US Savings bonds at tax time as low-cost policies to encourage savings. The option to deposit federal tax refunds directly into as many as three different accounts was introduced by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) in tax season 2007. In 2010, the IRS allowed taxpayers to buy inflation-protected U.S. savings bonds with their federal tax refunds.

MixSavings

*Please click here if you are having trouble with the MP3 player.

When these policies were piloted by the Doorways to Dreams Fund results showed that people, including those who were not in the habit of setting money aside, chose to save.   Qiana talks about the three states that have enacted legislation allowing state tax refunds to be directly deposited into several accounts, as well and provides resources for how legislators can get the word out about the federal split refund and U.S. savings bond option.

This podcast is made possible by the support from the Charles Stuart Mott Foundation. 

 

Supreme Court to Hear State Challenges to Federal Health-Care Overhaul

By NCSL staff

On Monday, November 14th the United States Supreme Court agreed to hear arguments regarding the constitutionality of certain provisions of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA). One of the more controversial provisions of the Act and one of the central issues to the constitutional challenge is the provision that requires most Americans to obtain health care coverage or to pay a penalty that would be levied by the Internal Revenue Service. This is commonly referred to as the “individual mandate.” The legal question here is whether the Congress’ overstepped its authority under the Commerce Clause of the Constitution when it imposed the mandate.

Another controversial provision of the Act requires states to provide health insurance coverage to more people through the Medicaid program. While the Act provides for increased federal matching payments for some of the new enrollees, states believe the expansion will require substantial new state financial resources. The lower courts have ruled that the state’s argument regarding the Medicaid program were not persuasive because Medicaid is a voluntary program and the federal government has provided additional financial assistance to help states provide for the expanded Medicaid population. The Courts decision on the Medicaid coercion issue will be significant for all states.

States Continue to Grapple with Immigration

By Ann Morse and Meagan Dorsch

For several years, state legislators have adopted a variety of approaches to fill gaps in federal responsibility for immigration policy and delays in immigration reforms.

According to a new immigration report from the National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL), the 50 states and Puerto Rico have introduced a record 1,538 bills and resolutions relating to immigrants and refugees in the first quarter of 2011. This number surpasses the first quarter of 2010 by 358 bills.

In this edition of The Buzz at State Legislatures, we talk with several state legislators regarding immigration legislation. In April, 2010, Arizona made national news with its enactment of SB1070, which added new state penalties related to immigration enforcement.

Representative John Kavanagh of Arizona explained to The Buzz that the state was frustrated with federal inaction and the increasing crime, drug smuggling and human smuggling. Download ImmigrationCavanaugh *

Utah is trying a compromise on immigration that could end up being a model for other policymakers, or yet another law tangled up in court. Utah Senator Curtis Bramble spoke with The Buzz at State Legislatures magazine and told us why Utah is taking an approach that addresses both enforcement and the need for workers. Download ImmigrationBramble *