(The Center Square) − A proposed constitutional amendment would give Louisiana lawmakers new authority to remove jobs from the state’s protected civil service system, while also shortening terms and tightening limits for members of the State Civil Service Commission.

Under the current system, most rank-and-file state employees — like social workers at the Department of Children and Family Services or accountants at the Department of Transportation — are considered as part of the classified civil service.

These employees are hired based on merit, often through competitive exams, and enjoy job protections that shield them from political interference or arbitrary firing.

Others, such as agency heads, the governor’s staff or university presidents, are considered unclassified — appointed positions that serve at the pleasure of elected officials.

Currently, the state employs 37,000 full time classified employees and nearly 25,000 full time unclassified employees. State Civil Service has governing authority over classified employees only.

State agencies are required to submit annual performance evaluations to the Director of State Civil Service. From 2019 to 2024, the number of employees classified as unsuccessful grew from 1.09% to 1.26%. At the same time, employees deemed exceptional also grew from 13.65% to 14.78%, according to the State Civil Service’s annual report.

“Today, we need a system based more on merit,”  Sen. Jay Morris, R-Grant, told the Senate & Governmental Affairs committee, adding that law currently “prioritizes seniority over performance, endless appeals and often court actions.” 

A similar sentiment is shared at the federal level. Just last week, the Office of Personnel Management proposed a rule to strengthen employee accountability, while addressing long-standing performance management issues in the federal workforce.

That proposed rule cites chapter 43 and 75 of U.S. civil service law, which govern how agencies handle poor performance and misconduct, are described as cumbersome and slow-moving — often ending in lengthy appeals with uncertain outcomes. 

According to the rule, surveys suggest many supervisors lack confidence in their ability to remove employees for serious infractions, a dynamic critics say erodes the federal merit system’s commitment to high performance and accountability.

Morris’ amendment would allow the Legislature to remove positions from the classified service by law, potentially instituting a shorter leash for those employees.

The measure would also shorten the term of Civil Service Commission members — from staggered six-year terms to four years — and limit service to two full terms, eliminating an exception that allowed long-serving members to stay on. 

The bill was not without opposition.

Though Berry Erwin, President and CEO of Council for a Better Louisiana, supports a more efficient civil service, “we’re also mindful of Louisiana’s history with political patronage — it’s been part of our past, part of our DNA. We recognize we’re no longer in that era, and times have certainly changed. But when we talk about reforming civil service, we think it’s important to strike a balance.”

Dr. Douglas Bordelon, an employee at the Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality, argued the bill threatens to replace objective public service with politically influenced employment practices, and he dismissed claims that converting jobs to unclassified status would lead to better pay. 

“The solution to addressing this disparity is to ensure adequate funding of our positions, rather than converting us to unclassified civil servants,” Bordelon said.

Bordelon cautioned that the sweeping changes proposed in the bill could harm morale and make it harder for the state to attract and retain qualified employees.

(The Center Square) – Wisconsin’s Assembly Republican leadership is asking Gov. Tony Evers to rescind a memo from the Department of Administration asking state employees not to answer questions from a federal agent, give access to systems or information and to call the state Office of Legal Counsel.

“Today, we ask that you rescind this guidance to avoid future conflicts between state and federal authorities, to assist our brave men and women in law enforcement, and to ensure the Trump administration’s goal of deporting violent illegal immigrants is given the full assistance of the state of Wisconsin,” the Republican letter said.

It was signed by Assembly Speaker Robin Vos, Majority Leader Tyler August and, in total, 41 Republicans from the Assembly.

The letter cites the arrest of Milwaukee County Judge Hannah Dugan for allegedly assisting Eduardo Flores-Ruiz to avoid being arrested by Immigration and Customs Enforcement outside of a Milwaukee County courtroom.

“It’s our understanding that your administration has issued guidance to state officials to impede the work of federal authorities,” the Republican letter said. “The guidance directs state officials to, among other things, not answer questions, not give access to files, and not give consent to enter non-public areas, even when presented with a lawful warrant.”

Earlier this week, Vos called the memo a scare tactic from Democrats aimed at scaring state employees about ICE agents.

“As the Trump administration continues its efforts to deport thousands of non-citizens who entered our country illegally during the Biden administration, our caucus believes it is imperative that our laws reflect the need for local law enforcement to comply with these efforts,” the letter said.

(The Center Square) – North Carolina needs a statewide policy regulating the use of student cellphones in public schools, a top state educator said Tuesday.

Two bills are pending in the Legislature. Cell Phone-Free Education, known also as House Bill 87, requires school boards to “adopt a cellphone-free education policy to eliminate or severely restrict student access to cellphones during instructional time.”

It allows exceptions if a teacher authorizes the use for educational purposes, if a cell phone is required for a students’ individualized education program or for the student’s health care.

Student Use of Wireless Communication Devices, known also as Senate Bill 55, contains similar language.

In North Carolina and nationally, there is a “wide disparity” in how school districts handle cellphone use in the classroom, Michael Maher, chief accountability of the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction, told The Center Square.

“There is emerging evidence on the negative impact of not only on instruction but on student long-term outcomes on mental health,” Maher said.

Social media in particular is “highly addictive,” Maher said.

“If there is a way for us to help remove that, it would absolutely help instructional practice,” said Maher, a former high school teacher. “Student performance is actually tied to student attention. Phones are attention grabbing. You have this device that is drawing their attention.”

A classroom ban would likely require teachers to collect cellphones in the morning as class begins and return them at the end of the school day, said Maher.

“There are pouches and other types of solutions to store student devices,” he said. “The teacher would just make that part of their daily routine.”

Collecting student cellphones early in the day before instruction begins might be easier for teachers than having to constantly be on the lookout for students secretly using them throughout the day in the classrooms, Maher said.

“We already ask teachers to do too much,” he said. “I don’t think it’s fair to them.”

It is important to provide adequate funding for school districts to pay for storage devices, Maher added.

The North Carolina School Board Association has not taken a position on the two pending bills, spokesman Ben Christoph told The Center Square.

Cell Phone-Free Education passed 114-3 in the House of Representatives and is in the Rules Committee of the Senate. Student Use of Wireless Communication Devices passed 41-1 in the Senate and is in the Rules Committee of the House.