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Letting all depositors off the hook creates a moral hazard, but taxpayer money should be protected. If Congress won’t extend full insurance to states and localities, banks should be required to protect those deposits with their own collateral.
The state’s latest proposal would create a flat income tax rate of 2.75 percent and would cut corporate property taxes and increase residential/agricultural property taxes. But experts say benefits of Ohio’s tax cuts are unclear.
Since Jan. 31, 10 bills have been signed by Gov. Gretchen Whitmer and several more are awaiting her signature. Though the speed was breakneck, the process wasn’t always pretty and most new laws had little public vetting.
A proposed bill would allow all police and firefighters enrolled in the state’s pension system an option to retire early with a reduced pension after 20 years of service. Opponents warn it could burden taxpayers.
Nearly 10 percent of the state can’t participate in elections because they have been convicted of a felony. Restoring the right to vote to those who have completed their time is complicated and frustrating, advocates say.
Jeff Bernauer, a resident of Huntsville, Ala., on why he does not support reparation movements across the U.S. Bernauer is among a large swath of Americans, about three-quarters or more of white adults and a majority of Latinos and Asian Americans, who oppose reparations. Overall, two-thirds of Americans are against cash payments to the descendants of slaves. Bernauer believes racism is a sin and says of course slavery was wrong. (NPR — March 27, 2023)
Climate change and other factors put growing pressure on critical watersheds.
A cloud of misinformation has led a half-dozen states to abandon the most powerful tool available to combat voter fraud across state lines.
State and local leaders will face implementation challenges of scale, complexity and accountability. To mitigate those and maximize the benefits of new federal programs, they need to have the right strategies in place.
The forgotten legacy of President Benjamin Harrison, who paved the way for Teddy Roosevelt. His tenure was marked by a mix of contributions to civil rights and conservation even while making a naked grab on Indigenous land.
But practitioners must remember there's a high bar and rigor required to making human-centric design work correctly. Simply saying a product was created using the practice won’t cut it.
The 2022 stock market plunge has taken a toll on some of the nation’s largest state and municipal pension funds, making it harder to pay for future retirement benefits to millions of K-12 teachers and other public employees.
State lawmakers would spend some of The Education Trust Fund’s money on the Mobile Airport Authority, the Port of Alabama, hydroelectric and EV workforce training and more.
The two bills come as the centerpiece of the state’s efforts to crack down on progressive criminal justice policies in Texas’ big cities. The bill would go after officials who won’t prosecute cases related to abortion or gender-affirming care.
The new $20 million bridge is similar to the Florida International University pedestrian bridge that collapsed in 2018 and killed six people. Officials are confident that critical design changes will prevent another catastrophe.
About 10 percent of union workers reported being homeless at some point while working for the Los Angeles Unified School District. Nearly 30 percent reported being at high risk of homelessness. The strike ended on March 23.
South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster, accepting the resignation of Comptroller General Richard Eckstrom after a $3.5 billion error in the year-end financial report he oversaw. Eckstrom has held the position for 20 years; his resignation will be effective April 30. (NPR — March 23, 2023)
Record rain and snowfall are easing drought pressures, but California can’t overcome long-term water challenges if infrastructure is neglected.
Last year the city’s hotel occupancy rate reached 66.2 percent, up almost 13 percent from the year prior but still below pre-pandemic levels. Experts agree that sometimes the best mayors are simply the best cheerleaders.
At 14 of 16 executive branch agencies, the percentage of non-white employees is less than the share of the state’s minority population. A 2010 diversity requirement is now at odds with growing GOP suspicion of DEI efforts.
Construction on the $1.5 billion, 25.3-mile stretch of dedicated bus lanes could begin late next year or early 2025 if approved. Yet residents are concerned that a planned overpass will undermine the local community.
Two dozen states have active online sports betting and, while those states have reported record levels of wagering and revenues, they have questions about how to keep gambling responsible and get help to those who need it.
North Dakota state Rep. SuAnn Olson, regarding a bill that would prohibit public schools and state agencies across the state from referring to students and employees by any pronouns that don’t reflect their sex assigned at birth. The House approved the bill 60-32 with both Democrats and Republicans voting against the bill. (Associated Press — March 23, 2023)
If Chicago mayoral candidate Paul Vallas wins, he may owe it all to his law-and-order message. Meanwhile, the North Carolina Supreme Court and promoting partisan gerrymandering, Doug La Follette steps down and more.
Kansas City tenants have formed a power base and are seeking equal footing with the forces that have traditionally defined how the city is governed.
Fecklessness with limited water. Big land hustles. A lack of rootedness. The state has long been a geography of personal reinvention, ambitious schemes and glowing hype.
Newcomers from liberal states don’t always tilt their new homes to the left. It’s the reason why migration politics is more complex than people give it credit for.
