Governing: State and local government news and analysis
There’s plenty of demand for space in central cities. We just need to stop dictating what it can be used for.
State and local government innovation offices are neither ubiquitous nor standardized. GT talked to veterans of four such agencies to get insight on best practices, lessons learned and what’s ahead.
In 22 states, the share of renters in debt increased.
Registered apprenticeship can bridge the gap between job seekers looking for a living wage and employers who need skilled workers. The system, established during the Great Depression, is experiencing a renaissance.
State and local bans have been of some help in keeping renters in their homes, but the federal moratorium hasn't had much impact. Targeted cash relief and an abundant housing market are the best tenant protections.
Loretta Weinberg, the “Jewish grandmother” of the Garden State’s political arena, has battled with Chris Christie and Andrew Cuomo to get better transit for the common worker. Now, it’s time to say goodbye.
State laws and local practices vary widely, so the impact on budgets will defy generalizations. But it’s unlikely that rising revenues will uniformly cover impending growth in municipal costs.
Total aid ranges from about 5 percent to more than 20 percent of annual spending.
Bristol, R. I., has celebrated July Fourth for nearly 240 years, making it “The Most Patriotic Town in America.” Legendary Providence Mayor Buddy Cianci made the festivities not only historic, but infamous.
As the nation’s Independence Day approaches, a report analyzes which state is the most patriotic based upon its military and civic engagement. Montana scored the highest. Republican states are more patriotic than Democratic ones, but just barely.
Slavery was a national issue, but its legacy increasingly is being addressed by local officials. The mayors of nearly a dozen cities have pledged reparations programs.
Assuming the Supreme Court casts a hostile eye toward Roe v. Wade, abortion rights would disappear overnight in half the states.
State, local and county governments officials testified that they need continually renewed, flexible funding to fend off increasing cyber threats during a U.S. Senate hearing earlier this month.
The Big Easy isn’t the only city using chatbots to bridge equity gaps and provide more residents with the answers they seek on a 24/7 basis. Smarter chatbots are finding their places in public service.
New Mexico Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham has announced several upcoming changes to the Department of Workforce Solutions to improve technology capabilities in handling unemployment insurance claims and reducing fraud.
Braddock, Pa., is where Andrew Carnegie first mass-produced steel. The city, now one-tenth its former size, is home to a new kind of industry: robotic farms that grow greens inside buildings.
Big tech companies could soon be facing down new antitrust rules if a suite of five bills from the U.S. House gain enough support. Lawmakers on both sides of the aisle have voiced interest in reining in tech monopolies.
With the final CDC eviction moratorium set to expire at the end of June, three Texas families recount their experiences facing their own housing struggles over the past year.
Are the election law changes proposed in statehouses across the country really as bad as some say? An election law scholar cuts through the yelling to take a sober look at the new voting landscape.
While wealthy cities have managed to grow transit ridership, overall numbers have dropped by nearly 50 percent since 1970. The decrease in riders makes it harder for officials to support future transit investments.
Civil debate about American democracy is possible if it’s grounded in civic literacy. The new president of the Center for Civic Education says civics and constitutional education offers a chance for special unity.
Without federal help, cities in the Northeast and Midwest face heavy cost burdens to upgrade aging roads, bridges and water systems. Younger municipalities in the South and West are beginning to have similar problems.
Road reformers want to demolish aging center-city freeways to make up for old racial harms. It’s a bit of a stretch, but it may be an effective argument.
As the coronavirus pandemic forced Americans outside, states are now investing some of their federal aid in updating park infrastructure to keep up with the record crowds.
Billions in federal aid give state and local governments the opportunity to leverage evidence-based approaches to help disproportionately impacted communities and address long-term systemic challenges.
A bipartisan group of senators proposed the gas tax should be indexed to inflation to help pay for new infrastructure spending, an approach Biden calls ‘regressive.’
In the public sector, customer service can easily devolve to “our way or the highway.” The head of the Arlington, Texas, planning department is transforming its service culture into a place where your “dream comes true.”
State and local leaders should prod Washington for the funding that can close the digital divide, protect utilities from cyber criminals, build smart cities and shape incentives for high-tech manufacturing.
The idea has come up again and again, and now there’s a flurry of experimentation. But it never seems to take hold.
A new book makes a multi-generational examination of the origin stories of Martin Luther King, Jr., Malcolm X, and James Baldwin to understand how they were shaped and by whom – their mothers.
