In July 2000, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court issued a ruling that upholds the Education Empowerment Act adopted by the Pennsylvania General Assembly, and signed by then–Governor Tom Ridge, that permitted a change in the governance of the Harrisburg School District from an elected school board, to a board of control named by Harrisburg mayor Stephen R. Reed, and which gave the mayor direct oversight of the troubled district. It was the first time a mayor had taken on the role in the state.