Governing: State and local government news and analysis
The nationwide shortage is leading to hundreds of criminal cases being dismissed while harming defendants. Better pay would help, but efforts to expand the pipeline are needed.
With oil prices spiking at a time when voters are focused on affordability, states could find it even harder to pay for transportation needs.
Sweeping state limits — or eliminating the tax altogether — are politically appealing. But cuts in property tax rates combined with targeted state tax relief are less disruptive to local finances.
Girmay Zahilay is the first new executive of King County, Wash., in 16 years. His restructure of the executive office sprouted rumors he "fired everyone" — but Zahilay says he's just organizing his office around his campaign promises.
The notion that we can assume people suffering from substance use disorders will freely choose what is best for them and their children is regularly undermined by reality. Too many children have paid the price.
In many states, it’s too easy for malicious actors to gain access to EBT cards. Officials in California, and now several other states, are trying to change that.
A lot of cities have tried doing away with the fare box. Most of them have run into problems of one kind or another.
Some people fear self-driving vehicles, but experts say their potential to save lives might be their biggest benefit.
As long as Congress disregards the collateral damage that AI and other new technologies are already bringing to our economy, states and municipalities will need to move quickly to capture new revenues to support workers left behind.
The explosive growth of data centers, fueled partly by the AI race, has some states scrambling for a piece of the action and some localities trying to pump the brakes.
Formerly incarcerated women have expertise that is policy-ready. We need to mandate including them on the bodies that shape jails, prisons, parole, sentencing and reentry.
The U.S. homeland is out of range of military strikes, but state and local governments could see cyber attacks, cloud service disruptions and rising supply costs.
This long-depressed city has overcome some of its most serious problems. Maybe others can accomplish the same thing.
Every seat in the Michigan state Legislature is up for grabs this fall, with opportunities for Democratic or Republican gains. A three-way gubernatorial race could complicate candidates’ strategy.
The U.S. House and Senate have both voted for a package of changes to federal housing programs, with broad backing from cities and states. A final bill could get a vote this week.
How can tariffs affect not just consumers, but state economies? An economist who studies trade policy offers an overview.
Especially when it comes to data centers, it’s hard to square the costs to taxpayers with the benefits to states’ economies.
It's not a question of if or when: State and local governments are already putting artificial intelligence to work.
It’s about motivation, openness to alternative candidates and ballot access.
Between 2023 and 2025, the city cleared encampments and quickly built new shelters. It reduced the unsheltered homeless population by 45 percent, even as the total number of homeless people in Denver has increased.
It’s a core public safety issue: Researchers need access to agency data, but it can be difficult or impossible to come by. You can’t solve a problem you can’t measure. Model state legislation offers a framework for expanding access.
Construction regulations have evolved through a rigorous process guided by professional expertise. But safety and housing affordability shouldn’t be seen as competing goals.
The rapidly advancing technology is going to reshape American work. Public officials are trying to prepare workers for the seismic shift.
A traffic signal prioritization product developed for the city of San Jose has made buses 20 percent faster. The city has turned to Silicon Valley tech companies for a range of needs.
For public officials who support equal opportunity, recent court rulings and other developments provide reasons for a little optimism.
Whether it’s political polarization, ruthless social media or federal interference, this is a particularly tough time to be in elected office in a city or a state.
President Donald Trump gave the longest State of the Union speech in history Tuesday night. It emphasized the administration’s work on affordability issues as polls suggest most Americans are dissatisfied with his handling of the economy.
It doesn’t look good for the GOP, but these intermittent elections are far from perfect barometers of public opinion.
For a few of them, particularly ambitious Democrats, the answer is yes.
State and local governments have been issuing record amounts of debt, mostly to maintain and expand infrastructure. Will the surge continue?
