Governing: State and local government news and analysis
Maryland’s awareness campaign and Urban Institute research offer a blueprint state leaders can use to increase uptake, helping residents keep more of what they’ve earned.
As cities come back from the pandemic, a few elite performers are leading the way.
Chicago’s mayor has low approval ratings and has struggled to pass his agenda. What does it mean for other big-city progressives?
As high schools rethink graduation requirements, a growing number are moving away from requiring all students to pass a comprehensive test.
The conventional wisdom gets it wrong, relying on stereotypes. That’s an issue for public debates, policies and resources.
Updating property assessments often causes headaches for political leaders, especially in areas with rapid increases in home value. A backlash recently led to a county executive’s recall in Missouri.
With federal support diminishing, local governments are on the forefront. They have plenty of effective approaches to draw on to direct resources toward proven ideas — and away from ineffective ones.
The order calls for suing and denying grants to states with “onerous and excessive” artificial intelligence regulations, and for recommending a “minimally burdensome” national standard to pre-empt state laws.
A proposed new city in California demonstrates the benefits of packing more people and businesses into a small geographic area. Removing daunting roadblocks can open up vital experiments in city-building.
There was plenty of coverage, but it provided little perspective on politics and government or on the important relationships among the people who ran cities and states. Newer forms of journalism might be evolving into something better.
New AI tools and proven best practices can enhance the work of government purchasing teams. It’s time to transform the process.
Legislation states passed or enacted in the past 30 days.
A district at the edge of the Mojave Desert is part of a network of California schools harvesting environmental, behavioral and academic benefits from a school forest.
New federal funding policy pits minority-serving technical and community colleges against other institutions that serve the nation's most vulnerable learners. State and local leaders must do what they can to limit the damage.
Mississippi is hoping IT upgrades, new trainings and other efforts can reduce its SNAP “error rate” — or how often it over- or underpays benefits — before new federal penalties come into effect.
Federal policy changes stand to make it harder for local governments to cope with housing instability and homelessness. There are some things they can do to brace for what’s coming.
Millions of Americans are at risk of losing their health coverage if Congress does not renew ACA subsidies.
At Stillwater, corrections officials are testing an “earned living unit” that trades privileges for accountability and has gone two months without a lockdown.
The state employed disciplined budgeting, debt repayment, spending cuts and targeted tax relief to dig itself out of a cash-flow crisis. To deal with crushing national debt, Washington policymakers should model this discipline.
Washington, D.C., will become the first locality with its own child tax credit. An expansion of the federal child tax credit during the pandemic led to dramatic reductions in child poverty.
Success in the coming years will require sustainability, adaptation and perseverance, especially as AI both enhances and disrupts government. Professional leaders need to look beyond the short term, facilitate change where needed, and reinvent themselves.
Zohran Mamdani’s promise to raise taxes on New York City’s richest residents set off a chorus of warnings about tax flight. But when millionaires do move, it’s rarely for tax reasons.
AI companies can’t grow at speed without electricity to power their data centers. A new report argues that this isn’t just a matter of adding more power plants.
Their minority contracting programs and others are under federal attack, and the consequences reach into the tens of billions of dollars. The souls of our communities should not be for sale.
Private-sector entrepreneurs know how important it is to prototype, even at the risk of failure. For local governments, testing, learning and adapting is a path toward reimagining core municipal services.
A runoff election to replace Miami’s outgoing Republican mayor has taken on national significance ahead of the 2026 midterms. And a progressive blocks a former governor’s hoped-for comeback in Jersey City.
Over 2,100 schools in 26 states have adopted shorter weeks, mostly in rural districts seeking teacher retention and budget relief.
Higher education battles around the country are beginning to look like a sports competition.
In one form or another over decades, this urban improvement program and its predecessors have found bipartisan support. But their record is mixed at best.
The only viable path to a national standard is one built on the foundation that our laboratories of democracy are laying. Congressional efforts to freeze state oversight over AI companies would leave Americans exposed.
