Governing: State and local government news and analysis
Greater investment is key, enabling smaller classes with better-paid teachers, and most state and local governments have the money. But our public schools also need leadership stability and more parental involvement.
D.C.’s program illustrates the growing promise of "stat" programs, with data and analytics enabling a new era of processes and insights.
They are a key source of funding for transportation infrastructure, but have been shrinking for years. Two new reports explore possible alternatives.
Weakening licensing requirements for high-impact technical professions doesn’t help businesses. They value it in their hiring to maintain service quality and avoid liability and reputational damage.
Demand for nonprofit services is on the rise, and legislators are paying more attention to ways they can support the sector.
Many Americans are at risk of outliving their retirement savings. State pension plans could have a new role: selling longevity insurance. It could even save states money in the long run.
Governments need to balance expected returns on their invested cash with the costs of their bonds and other obligations. Shifting a portion of their long-term debt from fixed to floating rate is a way to hedge interest rate risk.
There’s no reason to think the consequences of dumping water contaminated by a nuclear accident into the ocean would be only local or only short-term. No one's drinking that ocean water, but the sea does feed billions of people.
All 22,000 city workers in Philadelphia are now eligible for a free transit pass under SEPTA’s Key Advantage program. More than 10,000 have already signed up.
Why has the state's Republican Legislature descended into chaos and hostility? Plus, it's probably too late to beat Trump and Richard Russo and the humor of mergers.
Keeping election workers and voters safe in a politically charged environment is an expensive challenge. Federal resources are available, and local election officials should take advantage of them now to get ready for 2024.
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.
Houston has created a real system to address homelessness, aligning city, county and nonprofit efforts. That innovative program is now under threat, due to changes in leadership and funding.
A federal judge who experienced the unthinkable is advocating for laws that restrict access to personal information about state and local judges.
With little in local tax revenue to help pay staff, rural Texas sheriffs are often forced to do more with less. Lawmakers hope a new grant program will help rebuild the ranks of rural law enforcement.
Experts worry that curfews disproportionately target young people of color.
They’re an important part of community social life, but too many cities and suburbs neglect them.
They are intended to stop victims from paying cyber criminals and cut off lucrative profit streams bring plenty of practical difficulties and risks that attackers will redouble focus on the most vulnerable entities.
Billions of federal dollars are coming to states to make broadband for all a reality, but funding alone doesn’t ensure results. Powerful resources are available to help state and local governments succeed.
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.
Misinformation can thwart the work of public health. Leaders from the field are bringing the mindset they use to detect and contain disease to the rapid, far-reaching spread of an information epidemic.
As funds flow from the Inflation Reduction Act for projects across the country, getting the full benefit of this landmark law will depend on governors seizing the moment.
It is on track to become ubiquitous in public services, but it will introduce unpredicted challenges. Success will require not only an understanding of coding and statistics but also the knowledge that humans apply from their lived experience.
New research describes transportation engineers as part of the public health workforce, and argues they should emphasize strategies that reduce risk for greater proportions of the population.
A patchwork of confusing and sometimes contradictory policies, involving all levels of government as well as health care providers, resulted in a chaotic response. We need to figure out how to upgrade the system for future health emergencies.
An online resource now being built out has the potential to become an important intellectual hub for public-sector investment practitioners. They need to articulate what they most want to find there.
Municipal strikes have been rare for decades, but union activity in California suggest they might be making a comeback. Blame it on inflation and staff shortages.
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.
If you live in rural America, your Internet access can still be hard to come by. States can change the situation.
