Vice President J.D. Vance casts fifth tie-breaking vote, four states enact cellphone bans
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Here are the top stories from the week of July 7 - July 11.
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** Vermont, Ohio, North Carolina, and Oregon enact K-12 cellphone bans
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Since June 27, Vermont, Ohio, North Carolina, and Oregon have all enacted statewide bans on cellphone use in K-12 schools.
Twenty-five states have enacted cellphone bans or limits in K-12 schools, with at least 17 doing so this year. Three states require all school district boards to adopt a policy on cellphones, but do not specify requirements. Four other states have policies encouraging school districts to establish restrictions on cellphone use in the classroom.
There are statewide cellphone bans or limits in four states with Democratic trifectas, five states with divided governments, and 16 states with Republican trifectas.
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** Vice President J.D. Vance casts his fifth tie-breaking vote to pass the One Big Beautiful Bill Act
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On July 1, Vice President J.D. Vance (R) cast his fifth tie-breaking vote in the U.S. Senate to pass the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, the budget reconciliation bill.
Under Article I, Section 3, Clause 4 of the U.S. Constitution, the vice president also serves as the president of the Senate. In this capacity, he or she may cast the deciding vote when there is a tie in the Senate.
Compared to the last two vice presidents, Vance has cast more tie-breaking votes at this point in the administration than Mike Pence (R), and fewer than Kamala Harris (D). Pence had cast three tie-breaking votes while Republicans had a 52-46 majority in the Senate. Harris had cast six tie-breaking votes while the Senate was evenly divided.
So far, Vance has cast the third-fewest total number of tie-breaking votes among vice presidents who have served since 1981. By the end of her four-year tenure, Harris cast the most tie-breaking votes of any vice president in U.S. history at 33.
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** President Donald Trump's rate of issuing new executive orders decreases again in June
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President Donald Trump (R) issued nine executive orders in June, bringing his total to 166.
In June, Trump also signed fewer executive orders than in any other month in his second presidential term. He issued 46 executive orders in January 2025, more than any other month of his second presidential term.
Looking at the number of executive orders that presidents have issued in their first year in office, Trump's 166 executive orders are the highest since Franklin D. Roosevelt (D) issued 568 executive orders in 1933.
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** Missouri becomes the ninth state in 2025 to prohibit foreign spending in ballot measure campaigns
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On July 9, Missouri Gov. Mike Kehoe (R) signed SB 152, prohibiting the foreign funding of ballot measure campaigns. This move makes Missouri the 19th state to prohibit foreign nationals or governments from contributing to ballot measure committees, and the ninth state this year. That's the most states that have enacted such a law in a single year.
California passed the first such ban in 1997. Before Kehoe signed SB 152, Louisiana was the most recent state to pass such a law when Gov. Jeff Landry (R) signed HB 693 on June 20.
Looking at the trifecta status of the 19 states at the time of their bans, 11 had Republican trifectas, six had divided governments, and two had Democratic trifectas. Of the nine states that have enacted bans this year, seven had Republican trifectas, and two had divided governments.
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