Historically, U.S. school districts have led schooling, while state education agencies (SEAs) have held a largely regulatory role in school improvement. Yet, a recent reform strategy, the "state takeover," allows an SEA to assume direct governance of a low-performing district -- potentially creating a much more active role for state involvement in instruction. Due to substantial variation across takeovers enacted thus far, we know little about the defining characteristics of takeovers as a distinct phenomenon. I review takeover-enabling legislation across a provisional subsample of nine states, and analyze them in terms of (1) their core elements, and (2) their implicit theories of action about the state's role in improving schools.