Governing: State and local government news and analysis
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.
If a presidential nominee drops out, there are wildly different answers to what happens across the nation. Experts say it’s likely the Supreme Court would settle the resulting mess.
The national Suicide and Crisis Lifeline is two years old. Americans know it’s there, but not many know what it does.
The top 10 percent of drivers in the U.S. consume more than a third of the gasoline. Some lawmakers hope targeting them with EV incentives will help reduce emissions more quickly.
Regardless of the continuing partisan debates about climate change, Republican-led states are benefiting economically from clean energy investments.
The major public funds have almost doubled their investments in high-fee, nontraditional vehicles, and important new research shows how costly it’s been. It’s a wake-up call for greater scrutiny of fee structures and consultants' assumptions.
On the first day of the Republican National Convention, Trump announced Sen. J.D. Vance as his vice president running mate. Vance was once a sharp critic of Trump but then rode the president’s support to the Senate in 2020.
Gov. Jim Pillen ordered state workers back in the office at the start of the year, but the employees union balked. A labor court said the union had "engaged in a pattern of willful, flagrant, aggravated, persistent and pervasive prohibited misconduct."
No rainmaker, aqueduct or prayer can save the Ogallala Aquifer from depletion. The battle over its decline pits good policy against powerful agricultural and political interests.
State Attorney General Patrick Morrisey filed a petition with the court asking it to overturn an appellate court finding that the ban violated Title IX rights.
The weekend was not a time of healing or even shared shock. Instead, partisans found ways to snipe at each other in all-too-familiar ways, despite the circumstances.
College enrollment levels were already projected to decline due to lower birthrates. Recent difficulties with federal financial aid and teens’ growing concerns about cost haven’t helped.
There are reasons Congress writes vague laws. Giving courts more latitude to strike them down will ultimately limit the power of Congress, not just the agencies that interpret those laws.
Name recognition is central in the GOP primary. Also, California lawmakers find compromises to head off ballot initiatives. Plus, the reasons governors make good running mates.
There are penal provisions in every state’s election codes. Most officers don’t know that they exist.
Peers who have been through the juvenile justice system can help put incarcerated young people on a path to rehabilitation and redemption, but these mentors need access. States should give it to them.
People associate climate effects more with California and Florida, but Florida has seen flooding, wildfires and devastating thunderstorms in addition to this week's hurricane.
The court’s recent ruling prompted concern in some quarters that police could become the primary face of homeless response. But some chiefs worry they’re caught in the middle of societal problems they aren’t equipped to handle.
Members of the youngest generation of adults are starting to hold office.
The leader of San Antonio’s public housing authority built strong relationships with tenants and committed to preserving public housing units. The board fired him last month.
New York and other cities are changing their zoning codes to allow clean, small-scale production in their commercial corridors. Opening up retail spaces to “artisanal manufacturing” has many benefits for communities.
Do some politicians get into trouble because they believe they can get away with anything?
The changes in Houston Independent School District rival some of the most significant shake-ups to a public school system ever. Could it change schools nationwide?
Voters in at least seven states will decide property tax measures in November. Most would limit what homeowners have to pay, but two would eliminate the tax completely.
The lost water costs the cities millions and heightens the state’s water supply challenges.
From cars to school buses to battery manufacturing, no state can match Georgia's corporate investments. They’re making a real impact in communities across the state, creating thousands of permanent jobs.
Women make up only 12 percent of police officers nationwide. One initiative aims to triple that.
After years of rapid growth, states are starting to see revenue declines. Tax cuts red states enacted could become more costly in future years, while some blue states are debating tax increases.
