Welcome to the Friday, May 22, Brew. I hope you have a great Memorial Day weekend, despite these times. Look for our next Brew issue bright and early Tuesday morning in your inbox.

But before then, here’s what’s in store for you as you start your day:

1. Voters in Colorado, Maine, New Mexico, and New York to decide a combined $5.16 billion in bond issues in 2020
2. Looking at the states reopening
3.    Arizona court clerk voted out of office in recall election

Updates on stories related to the coronavirus outbreak are current through Thursday afternoon. Click here for the latest news.

Voters in Colorado, Maine, New Mexico, and New York to decide a combined $5.16 billion in bond issues in 2020

With the coronavirus pandemic affecting state and local budgets, I’m especially interested this year to see if voting patterns change regarding bond measures. Here’s a look at the bond issues coming up on ballots in the 2020 election cycle.

A bond issue is a measure placed on the ballot by the state or local government that asks voters to approve the issuance of bonds. A bond is a debt in which the issuer (usually a government entity) owes the holders a debt and is obligated to repay the principal and interest at a later date.

Seven bond issues (totaling $5.16 billion combined) are on the ballot for voters in Maine on July 14, and Colorado, New Mexico, and New York on November 3. All were placed on the ballot by legislative referral, meaning they will appear due to a vote by the state legislature.

Two bond issues are on the July 14 ballot in Maine:

• Question 1 would authorize $15 million in bonds for the ConnectME Authority to provide funding for high-speed internet infrastructure in unserved and underserved areas. 
• Question 2 would authorize $105 million in bonds for transportation infrastructure projects.

Three bond issues are on the November ballot in New Mexico as a bond package. The package includes:

• $156.3 million in bonds for public higher education institutions, special public schools, and native tribal schools; 
• $9.7 million in bonds for public libraries; and 
• $33.29 million in bonds for senior citizens' facilities. 
• The total amount of the bonds is $199.29 million.

A bond issue in New York is on the November ballot that would issue $3 billion in bonds for projects related to the environment, natural resources, water infrastructure, and climate change mitigation.

A bond issue is on the November ballot in Colorado that would authorize $1.837 billion in bonds to fund statewide transportation projects.

In California, voters rejected Proposition 13 on March 3. It would have authorized $15 billion in bonds for school and college facilities. Prop. 13 was defeated 53% to 47%, becoming the first statewide education-related bond issue that California voters rejected since 1994.

From 2008 to 2019, 113 bond measures (totaling $77.1 billion) were on the ballot. Voters approved 105 of the measures ($53 billion) and rejected eight of the measures ($24 billion). The year with the highest dollar amount of total bonds on the ballot was 2018, where voters across six states voted on 18 bond measures totaling $29.1 billion. Voters approved 15 of the measures ($20.2 billion). Of the 113 bond issues, 95 were on even-year ballots, and 18 were on odd-year ballots.

In even years from 2008 to 2018, 95 bond issues totaling $76 billion were on the ballot in 16 states. Of the 95 measures, 87 were approved ($51.94 billion), and eight ($24.06 billion) were defeated. In odd years from 2009 to 2019, 18 bond issues totaling $1.1 billion were on the ballot. All were approved.

The states with the most bond issues on the ballot from 2008 to 2019 were Maine (34), Rhode Island (22), New Mexico (22), and California (11).

Learn more

       

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Tracking the status of gyms reopening

Below is a selection tracking the status of gyms reopening. A more complete listing can be found in Thursday’s edition of our Documenting America’s Path to Recovery newsletter, or you can click here to check out our page on state reopening plans. Want to receive a daily summary tracking and analyzing state and local plans for recovery? Click here to subscribe to our daily Documenting America's Path to Recovery newsletter.

Gyms may open in 25 states. They may not open in 25 states. The map below indicates which states permit gyms to open in some form, even with restrictions (like capacity) or only in certain regions.

In at least nine states, gyms may open but are subject to capacity restrictions.

Today, May 22, Indiana is becoming the latest state to reopen gyms, among other businesses. Eighty-nine of Indiana's 92 counties are advancing to the third phase of reopening, two days earlier than the original target date of May 24. The following businesses are allowed to reopen or expand their operations: gyms and fitness centers; retail stores (at 75% capacity); mall common areas (at 50% capacity); playgrounds and other outdoor recreation facilities; community pools; campgrounds; and movie theaters (at 50% capacity). Social gatherings of up to 100 people are permitted. Cass, Lake, and Marion counties will be eligible to move into the third phase on June 1.

Here are some other notable coronavirus-related updates since Thursday's Brew:

• Texas Supreme Court Justice Debra Lehrmann announced on May 21 that she tested positive for COVID-19. She became the 31st state-level official Ballotpedia has identified as being diagnosed with the illness. 
• North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper (R) announced on May 20 that his stay-at-home order will end at 5:00 p.m. on May 22. Replacing it is a safer-at-home order that will remain in effect through at least June 26. Under the order, limits on gatherings are increased to 10 people indoors and 25 people outdoors, and a number of businesses can reopen as part of Phase 2 of the state’s reopening plan. 
• On May 20, Gov. Mike DeWine (R) announced that Ohio Department of Health Director Dr. Amy Action signed three new health orders. One order partially rescinded the state’s stay-at-home order, “Stay Safe Ohio,” and another issued a series of health advisories, including urging, but not requiring, high-risk individuals to remain in their homes. A third order, “Camp Safe Ohio”, specifies how campgrounds can reopen safely. Campgrounds were permitted to open on May 21. 
• The United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit temporarily stayed a federal district court ruling requiring that all eligible Texas voters be allowed to cast absentee ballots in order to avoid transmission of COVID-19.
• Texas Gov. Greg Abbott (R) announced he was ending the 14-day quarantine requirement for out-of-state travelers from New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, California, Washington, Atlanta, Chicago, Detroit, and Miami. In late April, Abbott lifted the quarantine requirement for travelers from Louisiana. 
• In Massachusetts, Plymouth County and Norfolk county jails have reduced their inmate populations by 20 percent. The reduction follows an April 5 order from the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court, which authorized the release of people being held in county jails pretrial for nonviolent offenses, and technical and parole violations.

Arizona court clerk voted out of office in recall election

Graham County Superior Court Clerk Cindy Woodman (R) was removed from office in a recall election May 19. Heidi Torrio (R) and Marianne Clonts (R) filed to run against Woodman in the election. Torrio received the most votes with 67%, according to unofficial election night results. Clonts received 27%, and Woodman received 5%.

The recall effort started in September 2019. Recall organizers cited high turnover and lack of institutional knowledge as reasons to circulate petitions. They also cited a court ruling that found Woodman was derelict in her duties. Arizona Supreme Court Chief Justice Robert Brutinel signed an order on October 11, 2019, that placed the Graham County Clerk of the Court's Office under the direct supervision of Judge Michael Peterson. Woodman was prohibited from conducting clerk's duties but continued to receive her full salary.

Woodman declined to comment on the recall effort, but Graham County Republican Party Chairman John Duane Rhodes spoke in support of her. Rhodes said that Woodman inherited a hostile work environment from her predecessor. He also said he believed Woodman had done a good job despite the lack of training provided to her from the county.

To get the recall on the ballot, recall organizers had to collect signatures from at least 2,697 registered voters. They submitted 3,147 signatures on November 18, 2019, and enough signatures were deemed valid to schedule a recall election.

To date, Ballotpedia is tracking 57 recall efforts targeting 80 officials this year in 18 states. Eleven recalls have been scheduled, eight have been approved, and eight have been defeated.

In 2019, Ballotpedia covered 151 recall efforts against 230 elected officials. Of the 66 officials whose recalls made it to the ballot, 34 recalls were successful for a rate of 52%. That was lower than the 63% rate and 57% rate for 2018 and 2017 recalls, respectively.

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