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By Ryan Thornburg
Washingtonpost.com Staff
Friday, April 16, 1999

Former Georgia governor Zell Miller (D) may have left office in January, but his legacy of creative education funding lives on in neighboring Southern states. The Alabama Senate on Wednesday cleared the way for a statewide vote this fall on whether to copy Georgia and create a state lottery to raise money for schools. The final legislative approval is a victory for Alabama Gov. Don Siegelman (D), who was elected last year largely because of his support for the lottery.
• Senate Approves Lottery (The Birmingham News, April 16)

"They're going to put us in bad hotels and give us bad seating at the convention. If that's the best these sissy boys can do, I think we'll be having a primary on February 26th." – S.C. Democratic chairman Dick Harpootlian, on expected sanctions for holding his state's primary earlier than national Democratic rules allow. (The AP, April 15)

In South Carolina, where the lottery bug also helped propel a Democrat into the governorship, the plan is waiting approval by the state Senate. Efforts to regulate the state's $2.5-billion video poker industry are also stalled in the legislature.
• Time Short, Odds Long for Poker Plan (The State, Columbia, S.C., April 16)

Southern Republicans who oppose using lotteries to fund education are making their last stand in North Carolina. State Democrats had been slow to embrace the plan until the issue was credited with the unexpected Democratic gubernatorial wins in Alabama and South Carolina last year. North Carolina Gov. James B. Hunt (D) is term-limited from seeking reelection next year.
• GOP Ads Criticize Lottery Bills (The News & Observer, Raleigh, N.C., April 16)

Another Deadline Passes for N.H. Schools
As the state's school districts began running out of money to pay off existing loans on Thursday, New Hampshire lawmakers still couldn't agree on a new plan to fund education. Gov. Jeanne Shaheen (D) vows to veto a plan to raise money through the state's first income tax, and Democratic leaders in the Senate oppose an alternate plan to raise the money through expanded state gambling. When the state Supreme Court ruled that it was unconstitutional to fund education through local property taxes, it gave lawmakers an April 1 deadline to come up with a new plan.
• School Fund Crisis Called 'Stalemate' (The Union Leader, Manchester, N.H., April 16)

In Tennessee, Gov. Don Sundquist (R) is expected today to soften his opposition to creating the state's first income tax
• Sundquist May Allow Income Tax (The Tennessean, Nashville, April 16)

Fundraising 2000: Bradley Gets $2M, Brownback Forms PAC
As newspapers around the country today ran headlines about Texas Gov. George W. Bush's GOP fund-raising lead, Bradley, a Democratic presidential candidate, raised $2 million at a New York fund-raiser Thursday night.
• Bradley Hailed in Triumphant N.Y. Fund-Raiser (The Star-Ledger, Newark, N.J., April 16)

Sen. Sam Brownback (R-Kan.) has formed a leadership political action committee, to help elect "pro-growth, pro-family candidates."
• Brownback Forms PAC to Back Candidates (The Wichita Eagle, April 16)

The 2000 congressional race in Massachusetts's 8th District is already shaping up to be an expensive one. John O'Connor, a wealthy environmental activist who placed fourth in last year's Democratic primary, is gearing up to challenge newly elected Democratic Rep. Michael Capuano.
• Capuano May Face a Run for His Money (The Boston Globe, April 15)

Following a recent state court ruling, the North Carolina Republican Party said it may begin to solicit corporate contributions that were previously illegal. State Democrats have said they would not seek corporate money.
• GOP May Try to Get Corporate Dollars (The Winston-Salem Journal, April 14)

Iowa Gov. Tom Vilsack (D) said on Monday that he would not sign a Republican-backed proposal to make Iowa one of seven states that have no limits on corporate contributions.
• Vilsack: I'll Veto Finance Laws (The Des Moines Register, April 13)

Ryan Thornburg can be reached at ryan.thornburg@washingtonpost.com