Public Safety
Covering topics such as corrections, criminal justice, emergency management, gun control and police/fire/EMS.
New laws aim to streamline guardianship and prevent children from being placed in foster care when parents are detained.
State actions outside the typical legislative process are cutting undocumented immigrants off from school, work and driving.
The state required counties to sign 287(g) agreements and pressured cities to do the same. Some local sheriffs say it's making their jobs harder.
A proposed ordinance targeting single-serve alcohol sales in select neighborhoods has sparked debate over whether it would improve safety or hurt local businesses.
With promising early results, prevention programs are expanding nationwide as a potentially more effective and cheaper model.
An investigation found that suicides in 2025 were tied to isolation, substance use and inconsistent clinical care.
Innovative programs make them safer while enhancing opportunities for success after release. Some states are showing the way.
Proponents say California's major AI legislation offers essential guardrails on a quickly developing technology. But detractors — including the president — say it's burdensome, unnecessary and unfair.
Critical infrastructure that holds up the state’s foster care system is quietly collapsing, leaving children at risk. A well-meaning reform for sexual abuse survivors is contributing to the crisis.
Proposed legislation would allow schools to check immigration status and potentially deny enrollment or charge tuition, challenging the Supreme Court’s long-standing guarantee of public education for all children.
Officials from both parties have halted proposed warehouse conversions in several states, even as federal officials continue exploring a 1,500-detainee processing facility near Orlando.
The U.S. homeland is out of range of military strikes, but state and local governments could see cyber attacks, cloud service disruptions and rising supply costs.
Lawmakers halted a proposal to bar unvaccinated children from schools as the state faces its largest measles outbreak in two decades.
A sharp increase in federal-local partnerships could reshape local policing across the country.
It's not a question of if or when: State and local governments are already putting artificial intelligence to work.
Inmates and families say costly per-minute fees and limited services under a widely adopted system have turned a communication tool into a financial burden.
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