PLI Bulletin

Election Recounts, School Vouchers, Juvenile Justice and More

Posted on December 8, 2016

Juvenile Justice Stop Solitary Act: Earlier this year, the Obama Administration banned solitary confinement for juveniles in federal prisons. But the vast majority of prisoners are in state and local facilities—and that’s where we need a solution. A model Juvenile Justice Stop Solitary Act, by the ACLU, provides arguments, strategies and legislative options for state and local lawmakers and advocates to fight for this important policy.

Get ready to fight school vouchers: The issue of school vouchers has seemed dead—or at least asleep—for the past several years. But this vampire is waking up! Secretary of Education nominee Betsy DeVos has been a major advocate for the expansion of voucher programs. Read more about school vouchers on IdeaLog, our blog intended to raise eyebrows and engage minds.

2016 election recounts—How they’re done and what has happened: Wednesday, December 14 @3pm Eastern, 2pm Central, 1pm Mountain, Noon Pacific. Election recounts are ongoing or about to start in Wisconsin, Michigan and Pennsylvania. How does this process work and how’s it going? We’ll get the latest from experts in the states. Register here.

You’re probably losing tax dollars to lottery scammers: An investigation in North Carolina found that, through a secondary market for winning lottery tickets, lottery winners are selling their tickets to avoid paying back taxes and delinquent child support. Perhaps you should consider making such sales illegal.

Our Story—a great new source for message narratives: A number of progressive groups, including PLI, have worked together to help launch a new online resource for messaging, called Our Story. The site includes narratives on the economy, climate, health care, democracy, immigration, education, criminal justice and more. Try it, you’ll like it!

Model bills to promote abortion rights: Thinking about legislation for 2017? There are 36 different proactive abortion rights bills on the PLI website here. Based on the 2016 election results, perhaps you should consider codifying Roe v. Wade, or protecting women who suffer pregnancy loss from prosecution, or guaranteeing information about emergency contraception to survivors of sexual assault.