Good morning, it’s Friday, May 8, 2026. In today’s edition, Hochul agrees to second home tax; Tennessee, South Carolina take redistricting steps; new poll in tight South Carolina governor’s race:
Top Stories
TAXES: New York Gov. Kathy Hochul (D) and legislative leaders have agreed to allow New York City to raise taxes on second homes worth more than $5 million, a surcharge Hochul is calling the “pied-à-terre” tax. A budget agreement being finalized in Albany would include $1 billion in rebates to utility customers and expanded access to preschool and childcare. (Pluribus News)
REDISTRICTING: The Tennessee legislature approved new congressional district map lines that eliminate the state’s lone Democratic-controlled seat in the Memphis area. The NAACP filed an emergency petition with the Nashville Chancery Court to have the new law blocked. (State Affairs)
Democrats protested loudly. One senator stood on her desk, while a representative burned a printed image of the Confederate flag.
MORE: The South Carolina House voted along party lines to add redistricting to a resolution outlining the agenda for a future special session. House GOP leadership said they would kick off redistricting plans, though the state Senate still needs to authorize the plan to take up redistricting. (SC Daily Gazette)
CRIMINAL JUSTICE: A South Carolina Senate committee unanimously advanced legislation to punish someone caught flying drones over state prisons and military bases. The bill would ban drones within 1,500 feet of a prison, military base or airport, punishable by a fine of up to $1,000 and 30 days in jail. (SC Daily Gazette)
ENERGY: Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) has signed legislation directing the Public Service Commission to set requirements to ensure data centers cover the full cost of electricity services. The bill also requires local water management districts to withhold permits for data centers that put too much strain on water supplies. (State Affairs)
MORE: Colorado Gov. Jared Polis (D) has signed legislation making his the third state to allow plug-in solar systems, also known as balcony solar. Plug-in solar tends to cost much less than rooftop panels. The bill limits utility approval fees and directs utilities to create an approval process. (Colorado Public Radio)
ECONOMY: Connecticut legislators gave final approval to a bill creating a new Class B misdemeanor for fraudulent bottle redemptions. Connecticut offers a dime for returned bottles. Anyone returning more than 5,000 out-of-state bottles would face a misdemeanor charge, while those who redeem more than 40,000 bottles in a year could face up to five years in prison. (Hartford Courant)
FRAUD: The Minnesota House approved a proposal to create an independent watchdog office to hunt for fraud and mismanagement in state government. The Senate approved a similar bill last year. Both measures passed on broad bipartisan votes. Cases would be referred to the Bureau of Criminal Apprehension for additional investigation. (MPR News)
In Politics & Business
SOUTH CAROLINA: A new Trafalgar Group survey of Palmetto Republicans shows Lt. Gov. Pamela Evette (R) statistically tied with Attorney General Alan Wilson (R), 25% to 23%, followed by U.S. Rep. Ralph Norman (R) at 20%, U.S. Rep. Nancy Mace (R) at 15% and businessman Rom Reddy (R) at 10%. (Trafalgar)
The last Trafalgar poll, from January, also had Evette and Wilson ahead of the field, though with Mace leading Norman.
MICHIGAN: Letters to the Michigan Bureau of Elections allege two leading Republican candidates for governor, U.S. Rep. John James (R) and businessman Perry Johnson (R), submitted numerous invalid signatures to get on the August primary ballot. Candidates must submit 15,000 valid signatures to qualify for the ballot. (Detroit News)
An uncomfortable flashback to 2022, when Johnson and former Detroit Police Chief James Craig (R) were booted from the ballot because of fraudulent signatures blamed on a contractor.
RHODE ISLAND: House Speaker Joseph Shekarchi (D) formally stepped down from his role as he applies for a seat on the state Supreme Court. He will be replaced by Rep. Chris Blazejewski (D), who won the votes of his colleagues on Thursday. Rep. Katherine Kazarian (D) will serve as majority leader. (Providence Journal, Providence Journal)
OHIO: Attorney General Dave Yost (R) will resign his office effective June 7 to join a legal nonprofit, he said Thursday. Gov. Mike DeWine (R) will get to appoint someone to take over the office for the eight months remaining in Yost’s term. (State Affairs)
By The Numbers
70%: The share of hotel room blocks reserved by FIFA for the upcoming World Cup that have been canceled, according to the American Hotel & Lodging Association. High ticket prices and trouble getting visas are to blame for lower-than-expected demand. (Texas Tribune)
$11 billion: The amount of debt Connecticut has canceled since 2020, thanks to budget surpluses. The state will spend another $1.1 billion this year to reduce pension debt inherited from previous administrations. (CT Mirror)
4: The number of states — West Virginia, Mississippi, New Hampshire and Illinois — that have seen public school enrollments drop by at least ten percentage points since 2014. Only the District of Columbia and North Dakota have seen enrollment increases of more than ten percent. (New York Times)
Off The Wall
The Alabama State House flooded this week after a thunderstorm pounded Montgomery. The flooding forced a building-wide evacuation that interrupted the Senate’s work on redistricting legislation. Four feet of standing water covered the building’s first floor. The State House last flooded in 2009, forcing lawmakers into the state Capitol building to finish their session. (Yellowhammer News)
A Florida woman who thought she heard an intruder on her front porch was surprised to find two alligators fighting instead. A trapper came to collect the bitter foes, hauling them away to a safer location. (UPI)
Quote of the Day
“If the future is one in which every state that is not a swing state is going to be monochromatic in its congressional delegation, then we should think about how we want to show up.”
— Washington Senate Majority Leader Jamie Pedersen (D), on the chance that his state will join the national redistricting wars after this year’s elections. (Washington State Standard)