From ajc.com:

Teachers could no longer rely on seniority as a safe harbor when school districts lay off workers, under legislation before the Georgia House Monday.

Senate Bill 184 would require local school systems to use teacher performance as the primary factor when deciding layoffs. Supporters argue that policy change will give job security to the best educators and give middling teachers incentive to improve.

“If we want the best students and to improve our education system, we have got to have the best teachers,” said Senate President Pro Tem Tommie Williams, R-Lyons, the measure’s sponsor. “Anything else is contrary to keeping the best employees.”

Opponents say the legislation isn’t necessary because job performance has been included as a factor in decisions on layoffs for years. They worry the issue draws focus away from school funding cuts the state has made for years.

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From LaCrosseTribune.com:

With better than 40 percent voter turnout in La Crosse County – and upwards of 70 percent in some towns and precincts – Tuesday’s election showed that area voters are engaged in a way rarely seen in spring elections, usually reserved for sleepy nonpartisan races.

And with a special Assembly race and possible Senate recall election looming, the Coulee Region will likely remain in the crosshairs of both parties for months to come.

University of Wisconsin-La Crosse political scientist Joe Heim attributes the turnout in part to happenings in Madison – where tens of thousands of people spent February and March protesting a Republican move to curtail collective bargaining rights for public employees.

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From Madison.com:

A Republican lawmaker on Thursday called on a state Justice Department lawyer to resign for sending an email offering legal advice to Democratic state senators after they fled the state in February.

Rep. Steve Nass sent Republican Attorney General J.B. Van Hollen a letter asking for an investigation into Assistant Attorney General Thomas Bellavia for emailing the Democrats on Feb. 27 and telling them he supported their efforts to block the Republican-backed bill that would strip most public workers of collective bargaining rights.

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From the Olympian:

House Republicans Wednesday released their alternative to the Democratic majority’s budget proposal.

The Republican plan would slash $4.7 billion in spending over the next two years, in part by eliminating state contributions to Washington’s health care program for the poor and most of a program that aids disabled adults.

GOP leaders say their proposal is both more sustainable and responsible than the budget unveiled Monday by House Democrats. The Republicans say their plan protects three priority areas: K-12 education, public safety and vulnerable populations – such as the developmentally disabled.

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