Governing: State and local government news and analysis
Dozens of cities are running pilot programs to show that direct cash assistance is an effective way to address poverty. Critics warn that offering money without work requirements or any strings attached will backfire.
James Brainard has stepped down after seven terms leading Carmel. The Indianapolis suburb has become a widely cited model for urban design.
As inflation and interest rates ease, 2024 will be a perfect time for overdue multiyear strategic planning and keeping up with breakthrough information technologies.
Texas, Florida, North Carolina, Georgia and South Carolina added almost 1.2 million people between them this year. The South was the only region to draw net new residents from other states.
After the U.S. Supreme Court stripped federal oversight of millions of acres of wetlands, the financial maintenance of those lands now falls to the states. It could take years for them to address the loss of federal standards, if they do it at all.
Only 75,490 votes were cast nationally for a candidate other than Joe Biden or Donald Trump in the 2020 presidential election. And yet, 1,500 voters have already registered with Oregon's newest party: the No Labels Party.
Local jails struggling to provide adequate mental health treatment to inmates could benefit from the expansion.
‘Are we going to revert back to “normal?” No, we will have a new normal.’
A poll found that 42 percent of North Dakota Republicans ages 18-34 said climate change was human-caused, as compared to just 11 percent of those ages 50-64. But this wouldn’t be the first GOP generation to prioritize the environment.
States define recidivism differently, which can result in misleading interpretations of the statistics.
In the last decade, the state’s retention rate of physicians post-residency has declined. The Legislature hopes that funding 700 additional slots for medical school graduates, at $100,000 each, will incentivize the doctors to stay.
Tourist-dependent Clatsop County, population 41,000, has the highest rate of homelessness in Oregon. A project to convert a hotel into housing units for healthcare workers and the unhoused is a step in the right direction, leaders say.
A new poll of the state’s Hispanic voters found that 53 percent said inflation was the most important policy ahead of the 2024 election with the economy ranking second. Latinos are the state’s second-fastest growing group.
The Judiciary Compensation Commission has endorsed a salary increase for the state's 370 judges, claiming their pay has not kept up with inflation. The current average annual salaries for Louisiana judges range from $173,788 to $193,227.
With boosts in private capital and federal initiatives, the tech and digital services industry is expanding into a variety of cities across the nation. As growth continues, ancillary industries are also expected to develop.
City leaders must ensure that the voices of all residents are heard. It’s easier said than done.
Homeownership is more common in rural areas, but the rental market can be tight, especially for lower-income families. A new report from the Housing Assistance Council analyzes the central role of housing in community resilience.
The latest data from HUD shows a 12 percent increase in the homeless population. After declines over the last decade, current trends are troubling, but it's not clear how long the upward swing will last.
Our federalism expert makes predictions about climate and the culture wars and how states will take the lead in policy in 2024. He also owns up to what he got right — and wrong — over the past year.
Supporters of a proposed ballot initiative have collected nearly 425,000 signatures. The measure would ensure parents have access to the materials their children are taught in K-12 classrooms.
James Brainard is stepping down after leading Carmel, Ind., for 28 years. He’s best known nationally for building roundabouts and promoting local climate efforts, but his legacy rests with how he rebuilt the Indianapolis suburb.
Omaha Housing Authority has filed more than 400 evictions this year, with 85 percent of those filings over debts allegedly owed to the agency. More than four-dozen filings involved debts of less than $300.
Maryland Gov. Wes Moore promised to revive long-neglected transit projects when he took office earlier this year. Instead, he’s now proposing broad-based transportation cuts.
Increased education, the demand for service workers and an increased share of citizens within the Latino population are combining to boost incomes.
There’s not much research on getting a new program in place, but police chiefs who have been there have a lot of ideas about what to do — and what not to do.
Chicago is pondering city-owned grocery stores in its poor neighborhoods. It might be a worthwhile experiment.
Wealthier, healthier states receive far more than those with fewer taxable resources and less healthy populations. Congress could do a lot to narrow this fairness gap.
They’re a costly form of welfare for the wealthy that hurts rural and low-income students. They provide no educational accountability and lead to state-funded discrimination.
More than 95 percent of PAC spending from the four biggest public-sector unions went to Democrats, according to the Commonwealth Foundation.
The state’s Supreme Court has issued a ruling in an eight-year-old school desegregation case, overturning a finding from an appellate court that only “intentional segregation” could violate the state Constitution.
