By Laura Walling, Senior Director of Government Affairs, Advocacy & Legislative Affairs, Goodwill Industries International
The National Governor’s Association held their winter meeting, the largest bipartisan convening of the nation’s governors, earlier this month in Washington, DC. The annual meetings provide a forum for governor and other state leaders to lead and participate in discussions on topics such as criminal justice reform, education, workforce development and more. Nearly two-thirds of the nation’s governors have provided their state of the state addresses to their constituents and many touched on these topics.
Five states face budget shortfalls during the 2020 legislative session including: Alaska, Kentucky, New York, Pennsylvania and Rhode Island. The governors of Alaska and Kentucky called out their states fiscal situations. Unlike in prior years, none of these states is expected to pursue broad-based tax changes to resolve their deficits.
Infrastructure continues to be a common issue raised amongst the governors and this year broadband access, particularly in rural communities is described as a critical component in infrastructure conversations. Governors are prioritizing it as such when commenting on not just physical infrastructure, but education, jobs and health care – and it is not a partisan issue.
Many governors touched on the importance of criminal just reforms. Of note, Governor Ducey of Arizona is renaming the Department of Corrections to the “Department of Corrections, Rehabilitation, and Reentry” to more accurately reflect the mission of the agency. The governor of Kansas also touched on policies to reduce recidivism and the need to provide more workforce training. Indiana’s governor told his Department of Correction to graduate 1,000 inmates annually in certified programs that lead to good jobs and said, “by 2022, I want 500 returning citizens annually to have validated job opportunities waiting for them before they walk out of prison, and 3,000 more formerly incarcerated individuals in jobs within five months of their release.”
Among policies popular to workers, Governor Polis of Colorado noted the need to expand paid family leave, while the governor of Hawaii touched on the need to increase the minimum wage so everyone in the state is making a living wage. Many governors also expressed the need to make child care more accessible to working parents.
Solving the homeless crisis was noted as a top priority for Governor Ige of Hawaii, who also noted the high cost of housing in the state. Washington Governor Inslee declared a goal to reduce by half the number of people living outdoors in the next two years.
The need for occupational licensing reform was discussed by governors of Florida and Iowa. Governor DeSantis hopes that his bill that failed in the Florida legislature regarding this issue will make it past the finish line this year, noting “Our citizens shouldn’t need a permission slip from the government in order to earn a living.” Governor Reynolds acknowledged several steps that need to take place, among them adopting a universal licensing recognition; waiver of license fees for low-income individuals; and reducing barriers for those with a criminal conviction seeking licensure.
While veterans and youth received a lot of deserved attention, among the other populations served by Goodwill, unfortunately people with disabilities and older workers were the two mentioned least collectively in the speeches. However, a number of governors discussed opioid addition and the importance of mental health services.
Under education-related issue, career and technical education and post-secondary workforce alignment garnered the most mentions while surprisingly adult education and online or digital/blended learning were rarely mentioned. Many of the governors places a focus on the need to invest more in apprenticeship programs in order to prepare people for the jobs of the future.
While some of the political rhetoric made it very clear if the Governor was speaking in a “blue” state or a “red” state, bipartisan approaches, and collaboration across all stakeholders are essential to making any of these initiatives a success. You are a stakeholder within your state and should look for opportunities to engage around the issues of importance to you and your community, your local Goodwill agency, and the individuals served.
