Governing: State and local government news and analysis
Attorney General Ken Paxton sued the Facebook parent company in 2022, claiming it had used personal biometric data without permission.
The Supreme Court’s ruling in the Chevron case empowers the levels of government most trusted by Americans to have more impact on issues that directly impact their economies and communities.
State and local treasurers have been playing it safe by capturing high short-term rates. Some are wary of longer maturities, but markets spell lower short-term yields. Tricky decisions are in store.
The money flowing from Washington can go a long way toward decarbonizing the buildings we live and work in. But it’s crucial to design the implementation of these projects to benefit everyone.
Jonathan Daniels, an experienced crisis manager, is getting Baltimore’s port back in business.
Lawmakers are proposing hundreds of measures to micromanage and control this emergent technology. A complicated regulatory framework could devastate America’s technology businesses and global competitiveness.
Nonprofit service providers publish plenty of metrics about their activities, but too often they don’t reflect actual success in reducing homelessness. Measuring impact would help them do more good.
Back to back earthquakes in the presidential race are likely to have spillover effects in state and local politics. Plus, New Jersey loses a senator and total recall in the Bay Area.
There are lawmakers who want to support news coverage but the market is not kind.
In 1976, Coloradans dismantled Denver’s Olympic torch before it could be lit. With the 2024 Summer Olympic Games now underway in Paris, it seems like a top-of-mind moment to revisit a hard lesson in the complex politics of growth.
They need meaningful, continuing relationships to carry them into adulthood. But the child welfare system isn’t set up to provide that.
Mark Twain famous aphorism, “History doesn't repeat itself, but it often rhymes,” reminds us that while exact circumstances may be unique, patterns do in fact repeat. That is true meteorologically this year as the U.S. navigates through another summer of extreme weather.
Tom Perez, the White House intergovernmental affairs director, looks to states and localities to carry out much of the administration’s agenda.
The swing states of Georgia, Nevada and Pennsylvania are changing — and fast.
Talk instead of fight: It’s a crucial tool for police officers confronting people in crisis. But too often when it isn’t working, a reluctance to use non-lethal force leads to a shooting. Better training and a cultural shift are needed.
Joe Biden’s letter announcing his departure from the presidential race is just the latest example of a form of discourse that’s been shaping our politics and society since before our revolution. It still can.
A year after the controversial project’s completion, the Douglas County Youth Center remains empty. Even with that, there are more kids in custody than beds in the county’s controversial detention center.
Few states have laws and guidelines for such an apparent conflict of interest. A new report provides a framework for decision-making and legislation.
The movement to protect historic buildings seemed unbeatable for decades, but it has spawned sophisticated, well-funded critics — and critics of the critics. Is it really “a good idea that has gone too far”?
A new law extends the state’s sexual assault evidence protections to cover DNA samples. But getting justice in hundreds of cold cases will require more than just testing, survivors say.
Budgeting sets the course for what government will and will not do. An initiative from the Government Finance Officers Association is designed to help long-term planning and foster public trust in a “new normal” of uncertainty.
Audits in a number of states have found that tax incentive programs for film and TV end up as money losers. Although some states are considering capping their programs, more are expanding theirs.
Florida’s once crime-ridden metropolis has forged a new identity in the 21st century.
Red states are leaving the long-established Electronic Registration Information Center for a new system launched by Alabama. It’s about voter suppression, not election integrity.
After President Biden's withdrawal over the weekend, the vice president may tap a state executive as her vice presidential pick.
The proposal would increase property taxes to fund new sidewalks, bike lanes, and other transportation infrastructure. It would replace a $930 million levy expiring this year.
The federal government has deployed the National Guard to Texas’ border with Mexico for years, but a number of states have dug into their own budgets to send more military and law enforcement personnel. Some states have spent millions.
The pandemic led to a spike in violent crime that brought the issue back to the political fore. However, homicides are dropping by double digits in many major cities.
When it comes to public-sector jobs and elective office, age discrimination is real. Governments would do well to tap into the experience and the particular type of intelligence that people of a certain age can bring to bear.
Larger departments struggle to hire, despite big salaries and bonuses, while smaller agencies are seeing their incentives yield more hires.
