PLI Bulletin

Amendment Strategy, Six Steps, Federal Threats and More

Posted on May 10, 2017

Continuity of Family Planning Services Act: Maryland recently became the first state to guarantee if the federal government cuts off Title X family planning funding to clinics that provide or refer for abortion services, that the state will step in and fund the difference. The Continuity of Family Planning Services Act is modeled from the new Maryland law; other states should adopt it.

How and why to prepare an amendment strategy: In many jurisdictions, progressives don’t have the votes to enact important legislation. In those places, it is crucial to create the conditions for popular progressive policies to become election issues. After you introduce a high-impact, highly-popular bill and it goes nowhere, follow up by offering similar legislation as a floor or budget amendment. To understand why, read the latest IdeaLog, our blog intended to raise eyebrows and engage minds.

Six Steps to Win Legislative Battles: Wednesday, May 17 at 3pm Eastern, 2pm Central, 1pm Mountain, Noon Pacific. There is a multi-year system for enacting major progressive legislation which has worked repeatedly but is unknown to most progressives. It was chronicled in Michael Pertschuk’s book The DeMarco Factor: Transforming Public Will Into Political Power. Come hear Vinny DeMarco explain the six steps of his program. To register, click here.

Trump Energy Secretary threatens to preempt state renewable energy policies: Secretary of Energy Rick Perry gave an interview where he made the astounding suggestion that he may employ federal preemption to force states to weaken renewable portfolio standards (RPS) to allow the use of more coal and nuclear energy.

Every state and locality would likely be affected by the TrumpCare legislation: A late amendment to the GOP bill allows employers to choose benefit packages from any state—effectively sweeping away both federal and state requirements for “essential” health care services. This means everyone’s health insurance could be devastated. Pew discusses it here.

Repro Rights Report: So far in 2017, 118 proactive abortion-out-loud bills have been introduced in 33 states and four localities, including the District of Columbia. Check out all the details in our latest Repro Rights Report.