Governing: State and local government news and analysis
A deal that would have raised billions for the state’s roads, bridges and transit imploded in the last days of the legislative session. The path forward isn’t clear, but layoff notices are already going out.
Downtowns have always evolved. A look at history shows they’ll never go away.
It’s a common complaint by executive branch managers: Lawmakers don’t always grasp the importance of providing resources for more efficient use of tax dollars down the road.
The landmark environmental bill, CEQA, has been credited with preventing irreversible damage to natural habitats. But it’s also provided an avenue for resistant neighbors to block new housing in urban areas.
Its ideals, expressed by New York’s Democratic mayoral nominee, have seen plenty of success around the world. Maybe it’s time for a third party that would unapologetically stand for working- and middle-class Americans.
Supporters of vouchers and other funding for private schools are on a winning streak.
News about cyberattacks — including those unrelated to voting — leaves even election winners with diminished confidence in the process. Education is key: It’s vital that voters understand how elections are run, how they're protected and how failures are caught and corrected.
Flood events are bigger and more frequent. Governments can’t change the weather, but they can invest in infrastructure that is better able to handle it.
Proposed statewide standards would cover everything from transporting young people to arresting their caregivers.
Even where abundantly available, the costs of clean water are rising faster than the CPI. Where it’s scarce, there’s double trouble. Ultimately, securing enough clean and affordable water will require state laws mandating realistic long-term pricing.
Hospitals stand to lose hundreds of millions of dollars under the new tax and spending law, with rural facilities at particular risk. Some states are likely to reconvene their legislatures to deal with funding shortfalls.
The state is trying to make apprenticeships a common offering in high school, but there are challenges, including a shortage of interested businesses.
Children with a parent in prison face a higher risk of social, economic, educational and behavioral challenges. There’s much that could be done to reduce collateral damage to families.
After more than 1 million deaths, opioid mortality is dropping fast.
Phone lines that provide mental health support to tens of thousands of Californians say they are on the verge of shutting down or dramatically scaling back as a result of cuts in the state’s new budget.
Employers aren’t happy with the skills today’s college graduates bring to the workplace. A few states are addressing the problem with effective work-based learning programs.
Andrew Cuomo avoided the mistakes that kept his father from reaching his full potential. But then he found other mistakes to make.
Arizona has seen more turnover in its election offices than most states. A fellowship program showed a path for attracting young workers to these jobs.
Self-government and local control are in jeopardy as never before. Diversity initiatives are engines of equal opportunity, offering a direct return on public investment.
Lawmakers approved numerous bills to help his companies, including a shield against shareholder lawsuits and changes to highway and airspace usage around his SpaceX facility.
A narrow majority of justices found that by regulating abortion, legislators had "impliedly repealed" the state's near-total ban on the procedure. Dissenters called the ruling pure policymaking.
Universities were already facing a grim future due to demographic changes. Then along came Trump.
Senators voted 99-1 to strike the ban from the One Big Beautiful Bill Act. It would have blocked state and local governments from regulating AI for a decade.
States should remove barriers to building, siting and competition to unleash electricity.
The growth of cities between San Antonio and Austin, separated by 75 miles, is creating one massive metro region.
Congress is still working through the budget process but it's clear no federal agency or program is immune from change.
The notion of controlling development and limiting suburban sprawl is finding some traction in pockets of the Sun Belt and West. You might be surprised at what’s been happening in Montana.
The public sector is more obsessed than ever with using data to make decisions. But some think the quality of it may be getting worse.
Threats down to the local level have grown more pervasive. Party officials worry that recent shootings could have a deterring effect on some prospective candidates.
A slew of measures that passed the Senate failed to come up for a vote in the Assembly. Advocates blame Speaker Carl Heastie, who says they’ve failed to build up support for legislation.
