Policy
This coverage will look at how public leaders establish new policies in a range of crucial areas of government – health, education, public safety, for example – and how these policies impact people’s lives through better services, effective regulations and new programs. This will include stories examining how state and local government approaches policymaking around emerging areas, including artificial intelligence.
An investigation found that suicides in 2025 were tied to isolation, substance use and inconsistent clinical care.
State and local government PIOs and social media teams are navigating the drastic changes at what was once Twitter, grappling with unexpected features and shifts in user verification, as they weigh the pros and cons of remaining on the evolving platform.
Up against an Oct. 14 deadline, Gavin Newsom acted on hundreds of bills over the weekend, vetoing some major legislation such as juror pay, caste discrimination, decriminalizing psychedelics and capping insulin costs.
Currently, to become a county sheriff in the state, a person only needs to live in the area where they’re seeking a four-year term and be eligible to vote. But proposed legislation would add a law enforcement or corrections experience requirement.
The court said it will rule on how the First Amendment applies to social media and whether Texas and Florida are allowed to impose fines on Facebook, YouTube and other platforms for allegedly discriminating against conservatives.
The legislation, which goes into effect Sunday, Oct. 1, will implement a three-day waiting period for firearm purchases and makes it easier for victims of gun violence and their families to sue gun manufacturers and dealers.
At first the bill would protect outdoor workers on days with a heat index of 90 degrees, which has occurred about five and a half months out of every year since 1981. The updated version doesn’t kick in until the air temperature hits 95 degrees, a rare occurrence.
Lawsuits take years, draining money and frustrating everyone involved. The few cases that do make it to trial generate indecipherable rulings. It all undermines faith in our system, and it doesn’t have to be this way.
In hopes of luring in chipmakers, states have been increasing their incentives for semiconductor manufacturers so that they may capitalize on the long-term economic development opportunities.
A range of current and former bills are giving housing developers and local governments more options to reduce red tape for housing projects.
Kansas’ safeguards for identifying and weeding out problematic officers are incomplete or not enforced. The lack of thorough background checks allows officers to keep troubling details hidden.
But there's no agreement on details, according to Sen. Majority Leader Charles E. Schumer. Disagreements arose around licensing, testing and other forms of regulation for artificial intelligence.
Three years after the first-in-the-nation law was passed, a record number of opioid overdoses, bad press and a growing homelessness crisis could slow the movement to treat addiction as a public health matter.
The state law that went into effect on July 1 enacts a series of immigration-related restrictions, which has deterred many undocumented workers from assisting in the debris clearing and rebuilding after a storm.
Demand for nonprofit services is on the rise, and legislators are paying more attention to ways they can support the sector.
Gov. Mike DeWine announced the formation of a safety task force that will be charged with finding ways to improve safety on school buses, including possibly requiring seat belts. Last week an Ohio school bus crashed, killing one student and injuring 23.
Six people died on Feb. 11, 2021, in one of the most destructive crashes in state history when a winter storm caused cars to skid along a two-lane tollway. On Sept. 1, two bills that aim to prevent similar crashes in the future will go into effect.
How regulations are created, updated and challenged can make it easier — or harder — for citizens and businesses to weigh in on the rules that impact them. New research shows what states can do to improve their processes.
Proposed legislation would give Atlanta Public Schools ownership of a 1.5-acre building parcel in exchange for a two-acre vacant property so that the city can develop housing and services for homeless residents.
State legislators have passed more than 700 new laws and a variety of notable or controversial laws will take effect this week, including policies surrounding transgender athletes, chaplains in schools and a tampon tax.
A federal judge who experienced the unthinkable is advocating for laws that restrict access to personal information about state and local judges.
Experts worry that curfews disproportionately target young people of color.
It isn’t just about constitutional rights and fairness. Underfunded, undervalued public defense is also costly to taxpayers. A few states are showing the way toward meaningful reforms.
A report by Morgan State University found that the law enforcement agency does not support employees to speak out against the culture or problematic events and troopers of color have said they were subjected to micro- and macroagressions.
At least 14 school resource officers will be at campuses across the city, one of the most significant changes since the shooting at East High School five months ago, overturning a three-year-old policy which had previously removed the officers.
An advocacy group for nude recreation has been a presence at the annual meeting of state legislators for decades — not to advertise, but to prevent inadvertent disruption of a way of life and a multibillion-dollar industry.
Federal pandemic aid that supported thousands of child-care providers will end soon, leading to downsizings and closures. There are innovative ways for states, local governments and businesses to mitigate the blow to working families and employers.
The study scored Indiana’s voter removal practices at 76 percent, but the state’s safeguards at just 20 percent, along with five others, for not allowing same-day voter registration. The study has received pushback from state and local officials.
The advocacy group for press freedom has called for a “thorough investigation” into the Marion, Kan., Police Department after its raid at a local newspaper, which many claim was a violation of state and federal laws.
Spalding County’s election board voted last month to require a manual tally before results are certified, but experts are concerned about the accuracy and efficiency of a hand count.
Some professors have decided to ban the use of generative artificial intelligence technology programs while others have worked to incorporate it into their curriculum. Now colleges are working to establish clear policies for the tech.
