Study: The Best—and Worst—State Highway Systems
North Dakota maintained its first-place ranking in the 25th Annual Highway Report, which uses 13 categories to evaluate the condition and cost-effectiveness of state-run highways.
States’ Face-Covering Mandates Leave Gaps in Protection
Not all masks provide the same level of protection, but state guidelines often fail to spell out exactly what is allowed and what is not.
More Crucial Than Ever, EMS Agencies Are Short Staffed and Overworked
COMMENTARY | Adequately staffing emergency medical services has been a problem for some time, potentially putting lives at stake. The pandemic threatens to make shortages worse.
Three Ways Governments Can Maximize Covid-19 Funding Now
COMMENTARY | One of the most important things state and local governments can do with their remaining Covid-19 funding is to invest in digitization.
Texas Democratic Losses Reflect Broader Statehouse Trend
There was no blue wave to topple the red statehouse wall.
Rural Public Health Staff Strained by Covid Surge, Public Backlash
STATE AND LOCAL ROUNDUP | Two Minnesota state senators switch from Democratic caucus to independents, citing polarization … Plans for historic dam removal moving ahead … Matthew McConaughey for Texas governor?
3 Reasons for Information Exhaustion—and What to Do About It
COMMENTARY | Uncertainty, polarization and misinformation can make you miserable if you don't find ways to cope.
State and Local Officials Want to See Climate Policy Support—and Funding—Under Biden Administration
At a virtual event held by the NewDEAL Forum, state and local officials discussed their next steps on climate policy.
Ahead of Thanksgiving, Cities See Surge in Demand for Covid Tests
Leaders in San Francisco warned the city’s testing capacity is being overrun by people looking to travel, and urged people to just stay home.
Why One Election Official Blocked Her Mother's Mail-In Ballot
Sara Knotts, elections director for North Carolina's Brunswick County, helped her mother complete her mail-in ballot. But then Anne Ashcraft died three weeks before Election Day, making her vote ineligible under state law.
Immigration Advocates Make Some Election Gains, But Face Pushback
Some sheriffs won after pledging to limit deportations.
Major Changes to Internet Regulation Unlikely Under Biden Administration
A split Congress makes major internet policy changes even more unlikely.
Biden Names Intergovernmental Affairs Chief
STATE AND LOCAL ROUNDUP | New Orleans nixes Mardi Gras parades due to Covid … Mississippi governor calls for axing state’s income tax … Leaders in both parties urge against out-of-state political supporters moving to Georgia ahead of special election.
States Need Federal Money to Do the Right Thing
COMMENTARY | Bailing out bars and restaurants would allow them to remain closed—and curb the spread of the coronavirus.
EPA Sets National Recycling Goal at 50% by 2030
To increase the national recycling rate from 32% to 50%, the federal government says steps need to be taken to reduce contamination in the recycling stream and strengthen the market for recycled goods.
Federal Intervention in Police Departments to Return Under Biden
The Biden administration will reinvigorate “pattern and practice” investigations into police departments and correctional facilities, while also looking to more aggressively examine prosecutors.
One City Council Tried to Dissuade Protesters from Targeting the Governor's Private Home. (It Didn't Work.)
The city council in Orem, Utah, convened an emergency meeting to pass an ordinance restricting protests that target public officials' private homes. Two days later, protesters were back at Gov. Gary Herbert's house.
Smart Concrete Could Pave the Way for High-Tech, Cost-Effective Roads
COMMENTARY | The life of structures could be extended, however, if damages were monitored in real time and fixed early on.
Patients Struggle to Find Prescription Opioids After New York Tax Drives Out Suppliers
The tax was touted as a way to punish major drugmakers for their role in the opioid epidemic and generate funding for treatment programs. But to avoid paying, scores of manufacturers and wholesalers stopped selling opioids in New York.
GOP Lawsuits Restrain Governors’ COVID-19 Actions
In most states, judges have tossed out the lawsuits or sided with governors.
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