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Amount from its state budget that California is spending this year, amounting to approximately $1.5 billion, on homelessness services to help the nearly 182,000 people who are homeless on any given night ...
Pennsylvania House Majority Leader Matt Bradford during floor debate on a bill that passed 139-63 this week to expand the state's 5 percent gross receipts tax to online advertising — expected to raise roughly $500 million a year — and dedicate the revenue entirely to rebates on seniors' school property tax bills. The framing was deliberate: By pitting struggling seniors against Big Tech rather than defending a new tax, Democrats won support from nearly half of House Republicans. Maryland already raises about $170 million annually from a similar digital ad tax; Utah is projected to bring in more than $400 million. Pennsylvania faces a $6.7 billion baseline deficit heading into its June 30 budget deadline. (PennLive)
The state is investing in a statewide mapping system designed to help police, firefighters and EMS personnel respond more quickly and effectively during school emergencies.
Urban planners see an opportunity to transform downtowns from business districts into vibrant mixed-use hubs that are active beyond the workday.
Across the country, nonprofits are stepping in where schools often lack the funding and flexibility to provide the housing, mental health and family support that homeless students need to succeed.
State legislatures tend to favor omnibus bills, but housing advocates have found success breaking their agenda into separate pieces. Also: The L.A. mayor’s race is down to two, and Philadelphia’s City Council rejected a ride-share tax.
Los Angeles is betting a massive rail tunnel can ease congestion on the notoriously clogged 405 freeway.
The program intended to replace the property taxes counties can’t collect is unpredictable and relies on a complex, inefficient formula. Congress has the chance to address its flaws and redefine the federal-local relationship.
That's the number of states where children's well-being declined in the 2026 KIDS COUNT Data Book compared to just 15 states where it improved ...
Toby Doeden, a first-time candidate and businessman who finished first in South Dakota's four-way Republican gubernatorial primary on June 2 but with only 31% of the vote, just short of the 35% threshold required to avoid a runoff. Doeden now faces incumbent Gov. Larry Rhoden in a July 28 runoff he didn't anticipate. (South Dakota Searchlight)
The city's proposed rodeo restrictions have exposed deep divisions over cultural preservation, animal welfare and the role local governments play in balancing competing values.
As measles cases rise and vaccination rates fall, state officials are rethinking how they balance public health goals with growing resistance to vaccine mandates.
The growth of soccer in the United States reflects decades of public-sector involvement, raising broader questions about sports-related economic development.
Author and security expert Nicole Perlroth explains why state and local infrastructure is in the crosshairs.
Fire seasons are becoming longer and more severe, affecting communities far from the fires themselves. There are steps that could mitigate the problem.
That's the share of rural counties with the highest rates of disability that are also health workforce shortage areas for nearly every type of medical service studied, a finding the authors of a new report called "abysmal and deeply concerning" ...
Ashley Parker Sheils, executive director of the Children's Foundation of Mississippi, reacting to the 2026 KIDS COUNT Data Book, which ranks Mississippi 50th in the nation for child health outcomes and 49th for both economic well-being and family and community factors, even as the state achieved its highest-ever education ranking of 16th. (Mississippi Today)
State approval of new online charter academies reflects growing demand for remote learning options, even as questions persist about student outcomes and accountability.
A growing number of legislatures are considering measures that would require greater financial transparency and oversight of private equity-backed facilities.
Federal officials are moving ahead with changes to mail ballot procedures, forcing states to navigate new legal, logistical and political challenges ahead of the midterms.
State and local governments are likelier to face a ransomware attack than they are almost any other major emergency. These attacks' true damage goes far beyond the price of the ransom.
AI poses a threat to Native sovereignty over cultural knowledge. Tribal nations should have the authority to govern how their data is collected, stored, interpreted, shared and used.
That's the share of Americans who will live in states where medical aid in dying is legal by September 2026, when Illinois' new law takes effect, making it the 13th state plus Washington, D.C., to authorize terminally ill patients to end their lives with a lethal prescription ...
Regan Dunn, a paleobotanist and curator at the La Brea Tar Pits in Los Angeles, describing what makes the site irreplaceable and what makes moving its 3.5 million fossils for a two-year renovation so daunting. The museum closes July 6 for a massive overhaul, with every bone requiring a custom foam shell, before reopening in 2028 as the Samuel Oschin Global Center for Ice Age Research. (Los Angeles Times)
Facing persistent labor shortages, state leaders are investing millions in youth robotics programs to create a new generation of manufacturing and STEM workers.
Supporters say the policy helps working parents serve in office, while critics argue some expenditures highlight the need for clearer guardrails.
A reform designed to produce more centrist candidates has largely yielded traditional Democrat-versus-Republican contests, prompting renewed questions about whether the system is working as intended.
From AI and customer experience improvements to shared services and smarter IT, state and local governments are using modern tools to deliver faster, simpler and more cost-effective services for residents.
An array of non-traditional investment vehicles will likely be offered up to governments’ defined-contribution plans. Consultants, plan sponsors and overseers need to approach them with caution.
The cancellation of these funds has left communities scrambling to scale back long-planned infrastructure projects meant to reduce future disaster risks.
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