Govs On Deck – August 19, 2019

Good Monday morning! Welcome to this week’s edition of “Govs on Deck” – the weekly tip sheet dedicated to keeping you informed about what is happening in Democratic governors’ offices around the country.
Questions or suggestions? Send me a note at amestoy@dga.net. You can find us all on Twitter too – @A_Tall_Turner, @CEAmestoy, and @MichBeyer.
Coming up this week:

• Today, MICHIGAN Gov. Gretchen WHITMER will host an agriculture roundtable in Bay City where she will discuss her FY2020 budget recommendations with agriculture stakeholders and highlight why good infrastructure matters to Michigan’s farmers.
• CALIFORNIA Gov. Gavin NEWSOM will sign a bill today modernizing the standards for use of deadly force by officers.
• Today, at 2PM ET, ILLINOIS Gov. JB PRITZKER and others will speak on a Planned Parenthood press conference call about the Title X gag rule. Today is the deadline for all Title X grantees to provide an action plan to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services detailing how they plan on complying with the Trump administration’s gag rule.
• On Thursday, COLORADO Gov. Jared POLIS will speak at the 8th Annual Energy Services Coalition Market Transformation Conference. The coalition is a public-private partnership promoting the benefits of, providing education on and serving as an advocate for the widespread use of energy performance contracting in public and private facilities.

How ‘bout Dem govs: Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Wolf
Dem govs get it done.
The Almanac of American Politics profiled PENNSYLVANIA Gov. Tom WOLF earlier this month. The profiled details Gov. WOLF’s commitment to transparency, his ability to work across the aisle with Republican legislators, and his legislative wins since his election in 2014.
You can read the full profile here.
Some news from this past week:

• Gun safety
  • NORTH CAROLINA Gov. Roy COOPER signed an executive directive to strengthen firearm purchase background checks.
  • PENNSYLVANIA Gov. Tom WOLF signed a sweeping executive order aimed at combatting gun violence through both public safety and public health angles.
  • WISCONSIN Gov. Tony EVERS and Democratic legislators unveiled a universal background check bill.
• Renewable energy
  • COLORADO air commission adopted Gov. Jared POLIS’ zero-emission standard requiring that at least five percent of automakers’ vehicles available for sale by 2023 be electric. 
  • WISCONSIN Gov. Tony EVERS signed an executive order calling for the state’s utilities to be carbon-free by 2050.
• Criminal justice reform
  • DELAWARE Gov. John CARNEY signed a series of bills aimed at breaking down barriers to employment for ex-convicts.
• Health care
  • MONTANA Gov. Steve BULLOCK announced that the state has received approval from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services to set up a reinsurance program for its Affordable Care Act (ACA) exchange.

Name that governor:
This governor will celebrate 47 years of marriage next week with his or her high school sweetheart…
Think you know? Shoot me your answer at amestoy@dga.net.
Meanwhile, last week….
KANSAS Gov. Laura KELLY was the answer to this question: This governor credits his or her pet cat as being a great conversation starter when legislators stop by the governor’s mansion for meetings…
You can follow Frances, the First Cat of Kansas on Twitter.
Birthdays!
Happy birthday to MICHIGAN Gov. Gretchen WHITMER (August 23rd)!
Have a great week!