The Supreme Court heard oral argument in Arizona v. United States where the Court must decide whether federal law preempts four provisions of Arizona’s immigration law. 

Supreme Court reporters and watchers seem to agree the Supreme Court will uphold the portion of Arizona’s law requiring police to check the immigration status of anyone stopped or arrested when there is “reasonable suspicion” the person is here unlawfully.  As Justice Roberts pointed out, if the federal government does not want to pursue deporting someone, it does not have to.   But a number of Justices seemed concerned about the amount of time it would take to confirm someone’s immigration status.

Yesterday the U.S. Supreme Court ruled unanimously in Filarsky v. Delia that law firm attorneys temporarily hired by the government may receive immunity from a lawsuit for violating someone’s constitutional rights. The State and Local Legal Center’s amicus brief in this case argued that local governments frequently hire outside counsel, and outside attorneys are likely to raise their rates or even refuse to represent government altogether if they can never receive qualified immunity. The Supreme Court concluded that outside attorneys may receive qualified immunity because under common law part-time public servants were common and qualified immunity was granted to them. The Court also discussed a number of policy reasons for why qualified immunity should be granted to private individuals performing occasional services for the government.  Some of these reasons include the fact that the “most talented candidates” may decline public assignments if they don’t receive the qualified immunity, the “distractions that accompany even routine lawsuits,” and the difficulty of determining whom is working for the government full-time and permanently.  While this case involved an outside attorney working for a city, qualified immunity applies to state employees as well.  So, an outside attorney hired by a state also will be eligible for qualified immunity under Filarsky.

Many elected leaders are drawn to public service at an early age after watching family members serve or after being captivated by a role model. Others work on a campaign at a young age, volunteering and finding themselves hooked.  Alabama Secretary of State Beth Chapman came to the profession under both circumstances, but her story isn’t as conventional as it first appears.

While Ed Charbonneau did not set out after college with his eye on a career in public service, the Indiana senator’s long record of leadership and ability to effect change have made him one of his state’s leading legislators.

The Florida Senate recently approved HB 1205, which would allow state agency heads to randomly drug test state employees. The bill is the nation’s first and only law that allows random drug testing of state employees without a specific suspicion in individual cases or when an employee’s position is “safety sensitive” – like someone who handles heavy machinery.

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, state government public-sector workers were 4.5 times more likely to be a member of a union that those in the private sector in 2011. In 2011, the overall union membership rate [1] was 11.8 percent and the membership rate for private-sector workers was 6.9 percent. The union membership rate for total public-sector workers (federal, state and local) was 37 percent in 2011, while the rate for state government public-sector workers was slightly lower at 32 percent.

Many state governments have wanted to participate in social media, but the Terms of Service agreements for these websites prevented them from joining the conversation.  The National Association of State Chief Information Officers has worked to negotiate modified agreements with Facebook and YouTube that address key legal concerns. 
 

Colorado Rep. Beth McCann has wasted no time getting actively involved in some of the biggest public policy issues facing her state, such as the creation and implementation of health exchanges. Colorado has been at the forefront of the health exchange issue and has received federal grants to support the state’s efforts. As a member of the bipartisan legislative oversight committee tasked with monitoring the state’s new Exchange Board, McCann is actively involved in the endeavor.