March 2, 2023 Last Edit: May 8, 2025
Major Trends Sweep Across State Legislatures in 2023
Higher Minimum Wage, More Paid Leave, Lower Taxes: Key Issues in State Legislatures Across the Country
- Predictive Scheduling: Lawmakers in several states have introduced proposals requiring retail and food service establishments to provide advance notice of work schedules and compensate employees if changes occur without adequate notice. Predictive scheduling proposals (also called predictability pay or Fair Workweek) have been primarily passed on the local levels in several major cities, including San Francisco, New York City, Philadelphia, Chicago, and Seattle. Oregon is the only state to have passed a statewide predictive scheduling law. Four states, Iowa, Arkansas, Tennessee, and Georgia, have laws in place prohibiting local governments from enacting predictability pay proposals.
- Unemployment Insurance Benefits: Several states are considering reductions of unemployment benefits. West Virginia’s Senate has passed a bill to index unemployment benefits to the state’s unemployment rate, including reductions to the period of benefits if the unemployment rate is below certain thresholds. Wyoming lawmakers are considering a similar bill as well as an absolute reduction to maximum unemployment benefits, and Tennessee is tightening requirements for those receiving unemployment benefits to find a new job.
- Clean Energy Initiatives: One of largest trends as of late are proposals establishing all-electric buildings to curb greenhouse emissions and fight climate change. California and Washington have such laws statewide, while Colorado, Oregon, and New York have them on the local level. Massachusetts, Oregon and New York are considering statewide laws, and twenty other states have preemption laws prohibiting municipalities from enacting all-electric building laws.
- The other major trend is new clean car standards, banning or reducing the sale of gas-powered vehicles in states. Last year, California Air Resources Board voted to ban the sale of new gas-powered vehicles and light trucks by 2035. Several states that follow California’s emission standards are expected to implement similar regulations. The states of Oregon and Washington have taken steps to implement California’s revised standard. Other states, such as New York, New Jersey and Massachusetts, are expected to follow suit.
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