Governing: State and local government news and analysis
Neighborhood change is unsettling. Whose fault is that? Maybe nobody’s.
If stocks keep declining, the outlook for pension obligation bonds improves. State and local financial teams should prepare now for a cyclical opportunity.
Highly detailed data around cycling and pedestrian activity has not always been easy to come by. Public officials and micromobility advocates stress the need for better data to make the case for more and better infrastructure.
Our resident humanities scholar is spending July leading tour groups that retrace the Lewis and Clark Expedition. It is an annual summer ritual, and one that has him questioning where the trail actually begins.
During extreme weather events, renewable energy alone will not be enough to meet the state’s rising power demand. The state’s solution: Keep Diablo Canyon open as a failsafe for electricity generation.
Cities could offer to absorb 100 percent of the purchase and installation costs of micro-irrigation systems in exchange for a percentage of the water that farmers would save by making the switch.
In a political landscape already divided over climate action, the ruling in West Virginia vs. EPA effectively leaves state and local government to face a global challenge on its own.
Twice as many teachers are thinking about quitting than at the start of the pandemic. States are raising pay, but there's a promising model in Arizona that might make more stick around.
With authority and accountability split between three jurisdictions, the nation’s third-largest transit system has lurched from one crisis to another. Now, with ridership and reliability tanking, the service faces an uncertain future.
Western states are in the forefront of bringing technology to bear to expunge the records of long-ago convictions and provide new economic opportunity for millions of Americans.
Election officials are working in an unprecedented climate of antagonism, with threats on the increase. A nonpartisan group of election and law enforcement officials have joined forces to give them resources and support.
Some of America’s capital cities are especially vulnerable to floods, coastal storms, land subsidence and other risks. Moving their functions elsewhere could be critical to governance.
As cybersecurity continues to concern state governments, many have turned to task forces to address issues such as ransomware, phishing and other threats. But what have they accomplished so far?
Continuing our coverage of how large city transit systems are faring fiscally since the pandemic, we take a look at Philadelphia, New York City and Chicago.
The pandemic brought the weaknesses of public health data systems into plain view. A new survey of public health officials finds that fixing this is a top priority. But high costs and politics remain a problem.
Assessing a terribly broken system, a veteran analyst details the conflicting dynamics and possible solutions to America's illegal immigration dilemma.
The theme of independence has recurred throughout the history of Texas, which was a republic from 1836–45. But the Civil War established that a state cannot secede.
The U.S. National Bridge Inventory maps the location and other details of all bridges in the nation 100 years old or older. The interactive map offers data around the age of the bridge, its condition and daily traffic.
The road map for a more sustainable future that meets the President's ambitious climate goals and dramatically reduces carbon emissions starts with clean energy and fossil-fuel-free transportation.
The Supreme Court decision overturning Roe v. Wade sends the abortion question back to the states. Additional red states are expected to join those with suddenly relevant bans on the books.
While a handful of the largest agencies have funding sources that don’t make the future immediately dire, others are looking at hard decisions next year as city transit ridership remains depressed, cutting into revenue streams.
Gentrification’s pressure on homeownership is threatening a rich history and culture while worsening the racial wealth gap. There are some steps governments should take to preserve as much of it as we can.
Texas Republicans aren't pulling any punches, South Dakota attorney general Jason Ravnsborg is impeached and Washington, D.C., mayor Muriel Bowser nearly guarantees that she'll win a third term in the fall.
By most reckonings, tiny schools should be gone by now. But a few of them are hanging on in a state where the rural population has been declining for decades.
By making producers responsible for the recycling of their products, Colorado is showing the way toward improving recycling rates, reducing unnecessary packaging and lightening the burden on local governments.
In response to the pandemic, leading experts are calling for a reassessment of public health efforts. More money is only part of the solution.
Clerks have stolen an estimated $1.7 million from 17 towns in the past decade, according to audit reports and restitution orders. And the problem could be worse: 158 towns have gone more than 20 years without a full financial audit.
Corporate investment can be an economic boon to low-income communities. It can also be a cultural threat.
Congress responded to the COVID crisis by allocating unprecedented sums to help cities and states recover. Early data about how they are using the money suggests that big spends can have complications.
Recent investment losses have highlighted provisions that are missing from most municipal money management contracts: full disclosure of the downside and stronger risk controls.
