Governing: State and local government news and analysis
Many see next year's election as a historic test of American democracy. What does a national survey say about how “democratic” the attitudes of the voters themselves are?
Focusing on prevention doesn’t stop us from preparing for disasters, it just makes them less likely. We can and should do the same for mass shootings.
More public transit agencies are offering low-fare, on-demand shuttle service as a way to connect people to existing transit services and serve far-flung communities. But many transit advocates are wary of the trend.
Halloween seems an apt metaphor for what state and local financiers will encounter over the next year and beyond: plenty of tricks but a modest supply of treats.
The great dams of the early 20th century have outlasted their questionable usefulness, declining in their power output, providing unpredictable sources of water and doing massive environmental damage.
The Carter Center is leading an effort to turn down anti-democratic noise around elections, neighbor by neighbor. Arizona is one of the first stops for their campaign.
They make up the smallest percentage of workers in state and local government. Despite being sought after, efforts to hire and retain them aren’t increasing those numbers.
Three state-level officials demonstrate the characteristics of good governance, without the chaos playing out in the nation’s capital.
Election officials brace for surge in AI-generated misinformation, and lawmakers face complex challenges in containing it.
Fifty years ago, Atlanta’s Maynard Jackson was elected as the first Black mayor of a major city in the Deep South. His legacy is one that today’s mayors and other public officials would serve themselves well to know about.
Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear looks more likely than not to win re-election. Meanwhile, Louisiana Democrats failed to field candidates in many districts for state House and Senate, Oklahoma's Republican attorney general files a lawsuit to block a publicly funded religious charter school and more.
A new report from the Urban Institute tracks how a year of infrastructure and housing grants align with federal priorities for equitable spending.
Future in Context
From inhaler watches to redesigned crutches: How a unique summer program in Birmingham is pushing boundaries in STEM education.
User fees in particular have the potential to fund a variety of programs, from traditional services like disease intervention to new initiatives dealing with social determinants of health, such as housing and food insecurity.
Proposition 4 could usher in a bevy of property tax changes for homeowners and businesses. If passed, the measure includes using $12.7 billion from a record state budget surplus to lower school district taxes. Unanswered is the proposition’s affordability.
It just might. The state’s new election system, combining nonpartisan primaries and instant-runoff general election voting, makes elections more competitive and encourages cooperative governance.
The city may join the ranks of others where it's free to ride the bus. It's part of a growing trend among smaller cities that are prioritizing ridership over revenue.
Cities harness shared data to provide a necessary escape from governing silos as cities and counties face complex problems affecting their regions.
Pollution-control laws were never intended to block residential and transportation development. But that’s how they’re being misused all over the country.
Experts explore how AI could be used to create and spread election-related falsehoods that disrupt democratic processes.
Too often, the data that states collect is inaccessible to those who need it to make decisions about education and careers. It’s encouraging that policymakers are moving toward cross-agency policies that ensure robust data access.
Faced with a seven-figure gap in its operating budget and unable to find a corporate sponsor, Houston BCycle, the city’s 10-year-old bike-share network, could soon shut down entirely. But the local public transit authority may step in to replace it.
One effective way is to work with providers, payers and other stakeholders to set statewide cost growth targets. The approach is having an impact.
Data-driven decisions, support from the state and a dedicated, collaborative team are helping Hennepin County get a handle on an intractable problem.
States and city governments are rethinking job requirements, replacing four-year degrees with proven skill applications to bring in new applicants.
Vulnerable homeowners need financial help when flood, fire or dangerous winds strike. But whose job is it to provide the money?
The annual Medicare-plus advertising blitz now under way should remind us that smarter post-employment benefit designs for state and local employees are long overdue.
Pandemic-era federal money is gone, yet problems remain.
A new report, using new, more granular data sets, compares the recovery of 26 downtowns. Those with a mix of land uses, jobs and residents are faring the best, it says.
People in struggling communities can benefit from the work-from-home phenomenon. But they need some mentoring to do it. Some innovative startups are getting them there.
