Legislative Update

Just ten more days of this year’s legislative session remain. All policy bills had to pass off the floor of the opposite house by April 12. Once again, there were some very late nights and some bills that didn’t make it past this deadline. Over the next few days of the session, legislators will pass bills necessary to implement the budget, continue work to concur on different versions of bills that have passed, and come to an agreement over a final budget. And all of this should end by Sunday, April 23.

We are in the final few weeks of this year’s legislative session, which should end on time on April 23. This week the April 4 cutoff date passed for bills to move out of budget committees. Now the House and Senate are focusing their efforts on meeting the next cutoff date of April 12, when bills (except those necessary to implement the budget) need to pass off the floor of the opposite house. Between now and the end of the session, the action will be both on the floor and behind the scenes as budget negotiations occur.

As Sine Die approaches, action on bills received from the opposite house continues at a brisk pace. And bills (balls) continue bouncing. As mentioned earlier, some bills passed in the form they were received will go to the Governor; some will not move at all, and others will be amended and then sent back. If there is no agreement, they are then sent back again. And on and on.

What an amazing week of advocacy here in our Washington and in the “other” Washington, our nation’s capital. Our 12 principals arrived just in time for peak cherry blossom viewing. What a treat! The National School Leaders Advocacy Conference is organized each March by NAESP and NASSP. We spent the first two days learning from expert panels, congressional staff, principals from around the country, and Cindy Marten, Deputy Secretary of the Department of Education, about various pieces of federal legislation and effective advocacy strategies. On Wednesday, over 400 principals headed to the Capitol to meet with their members of Congress to talk about educator shortages, improving school mental health, wellness, and safety resources, and various budget priorities. Our group shared poignant stories about students and staff in their buildings related to each area, and we built relationships with decision-makers and principals from other states.

As important deadlines are past and/or upcoming, negotiations between leadership, caucus members, and legislators of the opposite party are occurring behind closed doors. Those outside must wait to see what emerges. The assumed to be conference budget is a key piece yet to come. But other bill proposals also await action. So, it remains critical to continue to push/advocate with individual legislators while we learn to dance.