The legislative session has ended and as expected, the Legislature failed to pass any of the progressive reforms we had advocated for. We weren’t the only group scorned by the Assembly and Senate; very few issues were able to be resolved before the two-houses gaveled out on June 20th.
Election law reforms, single payer health care, the Reproductive Health Act, the Contraceptive Coverage Act, and closure of the LLC loophole all passed in the Assembly but were not taken up by the Senate. Our two priority anti-corruption bills, the Database of Deals and Procurement Integrity Act, were passed by the Senate but not the Assembly.
The legislature did manage to pass an opioid take back program, implementation of a Prosecutorial accountability office, a mandate for feminine hygiene products to be available for all female inmates, and tougher laws on ticket scalpers.
It was a difficult year for all advocates. Between the Senate stalemate and the fear of looming state primaries for nearly all sitting members, it seemed the Legislature was afraid to vote on any meaningful reforms that could hurt their reelection bid.
