Governing: State and local government news and analysis
More than 10 percent of statehouse reporters are university students, and in some states they are a significant presence in the statehouse media corps. They have stepped up coverage at a time when newspapers are pulling back.
More than 100 million people, or nearly one-third of the nation, have trouble accessing primary care. The problem is more acute in rural areas, which have long struggled to recruit and retain doctors and other medical professionals.
Black Americans are still being incarcerated at nearly five times the rate of whites. There’s much that state lawmakers can do to reduce inequities and make legal processes fairer.
Voter turnout is lower in rural places, something researchers say is a symptom of unequal amounts of civic infrastructure.
Pandemic expansion of Medicaid benefits ended on March 31. A former Medicaid deputy director offers thoughts on what lies ahead.
Some conservatives want to rein in journalists’ protections established long ago by the Supreme Court. That would be a blow to the news coverage that aims to keep state and local governments accountable.
Only a few states require judges to sit out cases involving their campaign contributors. The Wisconsin Supreme Court's new liberal majority has expressed support for strengthening recusal rules. Will other states follow its lead?
Agencies are spending new money — lots of it, in some cases — to crack down on fare evasion, with new fare gates, updated collection systems and beefed-up policing. But some experts question the cost.
COVID is far from the only explanation for the United States’ dismal trend line. Other diseases, along with drug overdoses, were also contributors, along with politics, policies and inequality.
The sheriff’s office in Washington County is tackling concerns about equity in policing by partnering with an advisory committee of Latino community members.
Culture wars over environmental, social and governance factors used by pension fiduciaries are in the spotlight, but it’s the municipal bond arena where long-term analysis must trump short-term symbolic politics. Sustainability actually matters to investors.
As the work-from-home revolution shows signs of creating a “two-tiered system” of public employment, government employees who can’t do their jobs remotely are going to expect to be paid a premium.
A new report from the Urban Institute attempts to measure the impact of a broad array of zoning reforms on housing supply and cost. The effects are significant, but very small, researchers found.
Millennial and Gen Z Americans will be the majority of the electorate in 2028. But predicting which party will benefit will be challenging. These young voters care more about policy than party, according to experts.
The ability of the new generation of generative artificial intelligence systems to create convincing but fictional text and images is setting off alarms about fraud and misinformation.
Trains are getting longer. Railroads are getting richer. But these “monster trains” are jumping off of tracks across America and regulators are doing little to curb the risk.
Catholic Church doctrine was used to justify the world’s largest land grab and the resulting colonialism. It had an outsized role in shaping the United States and other countries of the New World.
But first, researchers need to figure out a good, consistent way to extract the minerals used in electronic devices and develop a supply chain that supports the operation. That's going to take time and money.
The right has appropriated and weaponized the term. Progressives shouldn’t let them. Banning the teaching of our true history casts a chilling effect on the debates we must have. We need more Americans to be woke.
A $70 million effort is trying to put a third party on the 2024 presidential ballot. Meanwhile Democrats present a short target list, crime doesn't pay and more.
Everyone in the criminal justice system — sheriffs, prosecutors, judges, parole boards — has enormous discretion. Some lawmakers believe that authority is now being abused.
Population loss creates a challenging fiscal environment for local governments. But there’s no good reason for places to be struggling while tens of millions of people want to move to the U.S.
Thousands of local officials arrived in Washington last week for the National League of Cities’ annual Congressional City Conference, including a lone city councilman from South Dakota.
The state's lawmakers adopted a broad-based package of housing reforms in a fast-moving legislative session. But a provision that bans local rent control has angered tenant advocates.
Pledging greater efficiency, lots of governors (and candidates for the job) want to reorganize their states’ administrative structures. Sometimes they pull it off, but usually the reforms don’t last.
In a new report, the University of Wisconsin’s Population Health Institute shows that civic infrastructure affects how long and how well we live.
A radical planning idea that is well-known in Spain is taking root in Africa and South America.
Governments are struggling with high vacancy rates. Rather than trying to return to the pre-pandemic world, they should rethink how workers do their jobs to foster job satisfaction and more capable performance, an expert argues.
New research points to the policy and market conditions that help spread these small rental units which can be added to existing properties and ease housing shortages.
A statue long considered a Renaissance masterpiece in Florence (and the world over) has now been deemed pornographic in Florida. Such a stark contrast in points of view — here or there — has a long history.
