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A lot of the hard-line GOP governors who won in 2010 have surprised their supporters with a shift toward pragmatism. What’s driving the change?
A roundup of money (and other) news governments can use.
A refugee center in Twin Falls has endured many months of anti-immigrant hostility -- and emerged stronger as a result.
Detroit's former emergency manager praised Mitch Landrieu's speech on race and gave a memorable one of his own. Listen to it here.
Medicaid, children's health insurance and chronic disease programs would be first to feel the weight of the president's proposals.
Gov. Jerry Brown held up California as a leader in the fight against climate change, renewing a pledge Wednesday with representatives of the Netherlands to continue cutting carbon emissions and investing in clean technology.
On Tuesday, Gov. Eric Greitens led Missourians who'd attended his afternoon rally to lobby opponents of a bill he says will create jobs.
Gov. Phil Scott rejected a marijuana legalization bill that passed the Vermont Legislature this month, but said he was willing to work with lawmakers on a compromise.
At least eight law enforcement officers and seven inmates were injured Wednesday morning in a riot at Pelican Bay State Prison that ended when guards fired live ammunition into the crowd, state corrections officials said.
The Republican overhaul of the federal health law passed by the House this month would result in slightly lower premiums and slightly fewer uninsured Americans than an earlier proposal.
The first of a now annual report details what cities are doing well and where they could improve.
Several states are turning to private contractors to verify people’s eligibility for the program.
Education funding has yet to bounce back from the recession in many states. But nowhere is the situation more dire than in Oklahoma.
Though an elected lawmaker in Oregon, Brian Clem has spent much of the last two years living out of a dorm room at a defunct university in this Mississippi River town trying to make millions.
New York Medicaid regulators aim to use the threat of imposing increased scrutiny of prescription drugs — such as eyeing their relative effectiveness and their profit margins — to coax additional discounts from drugmakers.
Two weeks after a federal judge blew a major hole in Missouri's new campaign finance law, another decision has been handed down that further chips away at limits on contributions even though Missouri voters approved limits last November.
Maine's high court said Tuesday that the state's first-in-the-nation ranked-choice voting system is unconstitutional, throwing the voter-approved law into jeopardy ahead of the key 2018 campaign when it was supposed to be implemented.
President Trump proposed a dramatic expansion of the law at the center of the administration's fight against sanctuary cities -- changes that could enable the federal government to punish cities like San Francisco for shielding immigrants.
The annual price tag for California's proposed universal, single-payer health care system would come to a staggering $400 billion and possibly trigger substantial tax increases, according to a state review released Monday.
As protesters filled the Mesa City Council chambers with signs stating "NO PRIVATE JAIL," and chanted "do the right thing," the Mesa City Council disregarded their pleas and voted to become the first city in Arizona with a private jail.
The ongoing family feud among California Democrats just got worse.
In an apparent retreat on the war against cities and counties that refuse to cooperate with immigration enforcement, the Trump administration has settled on a narrow definition of what it means to be a "sanctuary city," and limited the potential financial consequences for state and local governments.
Mississippi Lawmaker Calls for Lynching Leaders Who Let Confederate Statues Come Down in New Orleans
It took a while, but most Republicans caught up in the uproar over Mississippi state Rep. Karl Oliver's comments about the removal of four Confederate statues in New Orleans have crawfished away from the Republican.
In striking down North Carolina's congressional district map, the Supreme Court sent Texas a firm warning Monday about how the state's case may fare if it reaches that stage.
The Supreme Court rebuked North Carolina's Republican leaders Monday for shifting tens of thousands of black voters into two congressional districts that had steadily elected black Democrats, striking down the move as racial gerrymandering.
The controversial passage of a new voter-approved law in Los Angeles illustrates the complexities of civilian review boards. Experts say there are better ways for civilians to keep cops accountable.
As deportation fears drive some immigrants to give up their government benefits, a new report offers the most comprehensive state-level look at what aid they're legally entitled to.
The Texas House passed a whittled down though still controversial bill Sunday night that would bar transgender students from using school bathrooms that best align with their gender identity.
Texas GOP Chairman Tom Mechler announced his resignation Saturday, citing personal reasons. It's effective immediately, he said.
President Donald Trump plans to propose $1.7 trillion in cuts to a category of spending that includes major social and entitlement programs for lower-income Americans, as part of an effort to balance the budget within a decade.
Utah's new toughest-in-the-nation drunken driving law contains a little-noticed provision that would impose a not-a-drop-of-alcohol-before-driving standard for two years on foreign immigrants who obtain driving licenses here.
Oregon budget writers plan to meet Tuesday with state health officials to discuss concerns that the state has kept thousands of people on Medicaid while their eligibility is in question.
A new law signed by Gov. Phil Scott Wednesday creates a legal protection for information given to journalists by confidential sources or conversations that take place “off-the-record."
It soon will be against the law in Colorado to lock people in jail when they are picked up on mental health holds.
A mayoral candidate in Carlisle, Pa., was shot with a Taser and arrested this week after he challenged police to a fight when they responded to a call for an out-of-control person, officials say.
Cincinnati Mayor John Cranley on Thursday night emotionally apologized to the police union after the city "mistakenly" issued a proclamation in honor of a man who killed Officer Sonny Kim nearly two years ago.
State officials plan to stop releasing water down the mangled main spillway at Oroville Dam on Friday, allowing workers to begin months of round-the-clock repairs to the chute and to an emergency spillway that is also badly damaged.
Nevada Gov. Brian Sandoval signed a law on Wednesday outlawing licensed therapists from attempting to talk children out of being gay, an exercise that leading medical organizations say has been scientifically disproven.
U.S. Energy Secretary Rick Perry entered into politics in his home state again this week, while touting his efforts on criminal justice reform during his tenure as Texas governor.
The massive cyberattack that has infected computers in at least 150 countries this past week hasn’t had a major impact on the federal government.
Attorneys general from 15 states and the District of Columbia filed a motion Thursday to intervene in a long-running lawsuit over a core part of the Affordable Care Act.
It's the logical home for people-management expertise. We need to re-define its function.
Plans to close an infamous plant were just announced. Such closures can be devastating for local economies -- even more so than when mining and manufacturing ceases to exist in a town.
The education secretary's complaints about the city's schools highlight one of her biggest priorities -- and one of her biggest battles.
Between gag orders and secret funds, the governor isn't living up to his campaign promise of transparency.
Their heroic image is a political asset -- one that makes changes to the profession difficult.
The opioid epidemic has killed tens of thousands over the last two years, but another deadly but popular drug, methamphetamine, also has been surging in many parts of the country.
There's a wide range of dependence across and within the states. Here's a state-by-state look at how welfare, education and roads could be impacted by the next budget that Trump signs.
A roundup of money (and other) news governments can use.
St. Louis International could become the largest airport in the country under private control.
A federal judge in Seattle has temporarily blocked a Justice Department order that called on a local immigrant-rights organization to stop some of its legal work. His ruling also applies to similar groups around the country.
Chicago police officials on Wednesday announced policy changes intended to cut back on questionable shootings and other uses of force that have haunted the department for years.
A white Oklahoma police officer who fatally shot an unarmed black man last year has been found not guilty of first-degree manslaughter after nine hours of jury deliberations.
Milwaukee County Sheriff David A. Clarke Jr. will leave office next month to accept a federal appointment as an assistant secretary in the U.S. Department of Homeland Security.
The embattled state lawmaker who was outed as the founder of a controversial online forum resigned Wednesday, House Speaker Shawn Jasper said.
Wyoming’s only Planned Parenthood clinic will close this summer because of financial reasons, the organization confirmed Tuesday.
Under pressure from advocacy organizations that had threatened a lawsuit, the Wolf administration said Tuesday that it would expand Medicaid coverage for treatment of hepatitis C, a major change that many states have put off over fear of spiraling costs.
Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson announced Tuesday he’s running for re-election, as the Republican vowed to expand on tax cuts he’s championed since taking office and on efforts to create more jobs in the state.
Like the president, state politicians are playing by new rules and openly trying to undermine critics who threaten their power -- whether they're lawmakers, reporters or voters.
The Missouri Supreme Court on Tuesday upheld a lower court ruling striking down a law that imposed special requirements for municipalities in St. Louis County after the unrest following the fatal police shooting of Michael Brown in 2014.
Mayor Ed Murray's supporters can't solicit money through the fund they've proposed to help him battle a lawsuit that accuses him of sexually abusing a teenager in the 1980s.
Crown Point Mayor David Uran says the city and its residents deserve an apology after the city was depicted as a racist community on the May 10 episode of the NBC drama "Chicago P.D."'
People in Washington state likely won’t have to worry next year about the identification they take to the airport after Gov. Jay Inslee signed a measure Tuesday seeking to make the state one of more than two dozen in compliance with federal identification requirements.
The New York City Correction Department’s top internal affairs official, who was demoted last week amid accusations that he eavesdropped on telephone conversations between city investigators and their jailhouse informers on Rikers Island, was quietly fired this week.
Former acting Attorney General Sally Yates is dismissing calls from Democrats for her to enter the 2018 Georgia gubernatorial race.
As the GOP health care bill moves from the U.S. House of Representatives to the Senate, many consumers and lawmakers are especially worried that people with preexisting conditions won’t be able to find affordable health coverage.
Women working in public administration make, on average, 25 percent -- or $16,900 -- less than men.
But observers disagree about whether it will work.
Testing their luck with the Trump administration, Texas officials are asking for federal money to help support the state's women's health program even though it has barred Planned Parenthood as a provider.
With the support of consumer advocates, film studios and police chiefs, California lawmakers decided last year, without a dissenting vote, to require sellers of autographed collectibles to include a certificate authenticating the signature or face substantial financial penalties.
In South Carolina one political consulting firm represents more than 25 lawmakers, a couple of large state agencies and a quartet of the state's biggest corporations.
After months of debate, Missouri remains the only state in the country without a prescription drug monitoring program.
For school districts still getting their financial footing after the Great Recession, the Medicaid changes being advanced as part of the health care overhaul are sounding familiar alarms.
Opponents of strict voter ID laws won a closely watched, but perhaps temporary, victory Monday, as the Supreme Court declined to revive a 4-year-old North Carolina measure.
Utah continues to reject federal guidelines meant to prevent prison rape — and now is one of only two states that won't comply, according to a recently released U.S. Department of Justice report.
Thousands of Flint children are expected to receive extra money this month for nutritional foods that can limit the effects of lead exposure.
Kentucky State Police announced Thursday that the agency will change its requirements for becoming a state trooper recruit.
EL CENIZO -- Leo Ayala parked his white pickup on the Texas banks of the Rio Grande and cast fishing lures toward Mexico into the muddy waters of the Rio Grande on a warm, still Wednesday afternoon.
It's not fraud. It's tens of millions of inaccurate registration records. Election administrators need better tools.
A group of white nationalists carried torches Saturday night in Charlottesville, Virginia while protesting the planned removal of Confederate statues in the city -- an incident that has provoked anger and frustration from politicians and activists.
Anthem announced Friday morning that it will stop pursuing Cigna, a merger that long ago turned into a hostile takeover bid.
Behaviorally informed interventions can improve outcomes. Louisville's approach shows the wisdom of starting small.
Attorney General Ken Paxton has dropped a lawsuit against the city of Brownsville over a 2010 ordinance that imposed a $1 per-transaction fee on plastic bags offered at grocery stores and other retailers.
The email or letter looks official, and it contains an attention-grabbing message: The state is holding on to your unclaimed property, which may be worth hundreds of thousands of dollars. All you have to do is pay a fee upfront or provide your personal information and the money is yours.
John Legend, the award-winning singer-songwriter and University of Pennsylvania graduate, has pumped a little celebrity into Tuesday’s Democratic primary election for district attorney in Philadelphia.
Gov. Chris Christie on Thursday conditionally vetoed a bill that would have made New Jersey the first state in the nation to ban marriage by anyone under the age of 18, a measure advocates had said would protect primarily young women from being forced into unwanted marriages by their families.
The FBI raided a Republican campaign consultant's Annapolis office Thursday, causing Maryland Republican lawmakers to say they will stop doing business with the firm.
Kansas Secretary of State Kris Kobach, who repeatedly has made questionable claims of rampant voter fraud, will co-chair President Donald Trump's new Commission on Election Integrity -- and civil rights groups and top Democrats are outraged.
The Obama administration rejected many conservative politicians' attempts to alter the health-care program for the poor. With Trump in the White House, they may finally get their way.
It's all about collective bargaining, according to a new report.
A roundup of money (and other) news governments can use.
A proposal to raise the S.C. gas tax will become law after the Legislature Wednesday overrode Gov. Henry McMaster's veto.
Aetna Inc., which has signaled for months that mounting financial losses would force its exit from Obamacare, announced Wednesday it is quitting the remaining two states in which it participated.
Vermont’s Legislature has become the first in the nation to approve a recreational marijuana legalization bill.
Lawmakers in California, home to almost half of the nation’s electric vehicles, decided this year to impose an annual fee on the owners of plug-in electric cars beginning in 2020.
The Trump administration has given states three extra years to carry out plans for helping elderly and disabled people receive Medicaid services without being forced to go into nursing homes.
Gov. Paul LePage will not enter the 2018 race for the U.S. Senate seat now held by Angus King, said LePage's former gubernatorial campaign strategist and current political adviser in a prepared statement Wednesday night.
We'll soon find out as high school students in Georgia test a new award-winning app to reduce distracted driving.
School and city officials blame the lack of funds on Illinois' ongoing budget impasse.
Republican lawmakers said the mapping requirement isn’t needed and wouldn’t improve public safety.
Colorado lawmakers overlook pitfalls of hospital provider fee program as they race to save it.
Gov. Rick Scott approved the new law implementing statewide rules for ride-hailing companies, along with several other pieces of legislation.
The February spillway emergency at the dam forced the evacuation of 188,000 residents.
The Republican incumbent mayor won against Democratic challenger Heath Mello.
It's the latest city to approve "accessory dwelling units" on the lots of existing homes.
Fear of deportation is keeping immigrants from sending children to school, showing up for medical appointments, and appearing in court as witnesses or for other reasons.
With plummeting student performance and enrollment down by nearly a third since 2010, some see an opportunity to reform a struggling education system.
The county's court system is still a confusing tangle of fees and court dates. The creators of a new online tool hope to change that.
Last week's ruling leaves open a key legal question that could make cities unlikely to file suit.
Ed Murray’s announcement ends a political career that has spanned decades.
Parties learn from losing, not winning. The lesson many progressives have drawn from Democratic defeats in 2016 is that the party needs to more fully embrace liberal policies and candidates.
A new study finds large — and increasing — disparities in life expectation among the nation's counties.
Sinkholes are not a new phenomenon in the United States, but a recent spate of huge, sudden-appearing caverns is prompting alarm because they’re happening in places where they were once rare.
More than half of the state's alternative Medicaid recipients didn't make the payments required for top service.
Pay is an issue for attracting qualified workers, but it's not the only one. The public sector must up its game.
LGBT advocacy groups say the law is a way to limit rights of same-sex couples, particularly when it comes to parenting.
State Sen. Bob Hasegawa has announced he's running, as Murray battles a sex-abuse lawsuit.
The governor wants a cap on sick-time payouts and "golden parachutes" for retirees.
State lawmakers want to head off the kinds of protracted protests that occurred at the Dakota Access Pipeline last year.
Growth in the sector could put Kansas behind only four other states in terms of wind-energy production by the end of this year.
With limited federal subsidies under the GOP health care bill, experts say states like California and New York would be under pressure to cut costs.
San Antonio Mayor Ivy Taylor will face councilman Ron Nirenberg in a runoff in her reeelection bid. In El Paso, former state Rep. Dee Margo came up short and will face David Saucedo in a mayoral runoff.
Fifty times stronger than heroin, fentanyl is showing up in more places, leaving state and local health and law enforcement officials scrambling to stanch the death toll.
Legislators signed off on changes that proponents say will better protect defendants’ right to immunity from prosecution in such cases — but gun-safety advocates argue it perpetuates a culture of 'shoot first, ask questions later.'
The law grants new authorities to police and blocks localities from passing local measures related to questioning a detained person's immigration status.
Democratic critics complain the state energy office is “being held hostage.”
Supporters and opponents of removing New Orleans' Confederate monuments met Sunday afternoon in a tense and angry confrontation.
GOP governors at odds in repsonses to House health-care bill.
The increase in hiring in April follows several months of weak growth.
Nearly half the states have increased fuel taxes in the past five years, suggesting it's perhaps not the political risk it was once thought to be.
In recent years, a handful of states have missed out on millions in federal subsidies for child care.
Following a water crisis that saw sky-high levels of lead contamination in Flint, Mich., many homes in the city still do not have access to safe tap water.
What was an unremarkable debate over the General Fund budget exploded Thursday over accusations of poor budget prioritizing and state overreach.
Georgia Gov. Nathan Deal signed a measure Thursday that would allow college students and others to carry concealed weapons on campus, despite vetoing similar legislation last year amid an uproar from gun control advocates.
The House Republican repeal bill narrowly approved Thursday lets states opt out of much of Obamacare — but not a single governor has stepped up to say they want to take advantage of that leeway.
The soda tax defeat in New Mexico's capital city this week interrupted a string of successful campaigns to increase taxes elsewhere.
After weeks of will-they-or-won’t-they tensions, the House managed to pass its GOP replacement for the Affordable Care Act on Thursday by a razor-thin margin. The vote was 217-213.
Most 911 calls don't actually require a trip to the hospital. Instead, telemedicine can do the trick, and Houston's system is catching on among the country's paramedics.
A roundup of money (and other) news governments can use.
In what's expected to be a close election on Tuesday, major national figures have joined the campaign trail, sometimes bringing controversy over social issues with them.
Diversity has a lot of benefits, but achieving it isn't as easy as it sounds.
Richard Figueroa still shudders at the memory of the calls he fielded as enrollment director of California's special health plan for sick patients who had been rejected by insurers.
When two generals signed papers here 152 years ago bringing the Civil War to a close, they ended the bid by 11 Southern states to secede from the Union. And that, most believed, was that.
Health officials in Minnesota are scrambling to contain a measles outbreak that has sickened primarily Somali-American children. Officials have identified 34 cases as of Wednesday, and they’re worried there will be more.
A pioneering, California-led effort to create retirement security for low-income workers has been thrown into jeopardy after the U.S. Senate voted Wednesday to block states from starting programs to automatically enroll millions of people in IRA-type savings plans.
A ban on so-called "sanctuary cities" that would allow police to ask people about their immigration status and could lead to jail time for sheriffs and police chiefs who refuse to cooperate cleared its final hurdle Wednesday after the Senate voted to agree with changes House lawmakers made, sending the contentious proposal to Gov. Greg Abbott for his signature.
Puerto Rico has finally and officially filed for protection from its creditors in what amounts to the biggest municipal bankruptcy in U.S. history.
In planning for an autonomous-vehicle future, governments need to pay attention to the broader picture.
Tom Price has a vision for a "reimagined HHS" that adopts a more holistic approach to problem solving and relies more on states and localities.
