States Should Improve Opportunities for Older Youth in Foster Care Systems
An Annie E. Casey Foundation report said more investments are needed toward job training, post-secondary education and stable housing for those in foster care between the ages of 14 and 21.
The Real Impact of State Tax Cuts
COMMENTARY | The debate over tax cuts that’s happening in statehouses across the country is about much more than revenues and spending. It’s a fight over whether we will have an inclusive democracy where everyone—all races in all places—can thrive.
New York To Ban Fossil Fuels in New Buildings. 23 States Have Forbidden Such Bans.
A partisan rift is widening as states clash over electrification of buildings.
The Montana Legislator's Censure Shows That American Standards of Political Decorum Are Failing
COMMENTARY | The move violates the spirit of legislative rules set by none other than Thomas Jefferson, one of the founders of this country, more than 200 years ago. Those rules were written to protect minority views.
Nation’s Longest-Serving Governor Won’t Run for Reelection
Washington Gov. Jay Inslee made a name for himself at home and nationally as an environmental champion.
Half of Lieutenant Governors Are Women. Could It Pave the Way to Higher Office?
New research shows the opportunities and challenges for women who are second in command.
States Abandon Access to Shared Voter Registration Data
As states gear up to leave the Electronic Registration Information Center, few have specific plans in place to maintain accurate voter rolls on their own.
Voting to Raise Their Own Pay Puts State Lawmakers in a Bind
Persistently low salaries discourage everyday citizens from serving in state legislatures. Unless salaries are raised, “we’ll have a legislature of only wealthy or retired people.”
Some States Want to Give You a Constitutional Right to a Clean Environment
Grassroots efforts have boosted the number of states considering so-called green amendments to 15 this year.
An Attack on Auditor Independence Jeopardizes One State’s Fiscal Future
The Iowa Senate passed a bill that severely limits its auditor’s access to critical documents. The ramifications could be severe.
How Washington Raised $300 Million for Climate Action From Polluters
The state's first "cap-and-invest" auction nearly doubled the price of carbon recently sold in California.
Biden Administration Recognizes States’ Role in Highway Spending
A new memo from the Federal Highway Administration that replaces one from last year explicitly acknowledges the role of states in deciding how to use federal highway dollars—allaying concerns raised by Republicans in Congress.
Legislative Staffs Are Pushing to Unionize
Since Oregon successfully unionized in 2021, statehouse employees in half a dozen states have also sought to organize.
There's 'Clear Evidence' of Bias in Past US State Spending
COMMENTARY | New research shows a direct link between constituent race, class, and immigration status and US state spending between 1921 and 1961.
Why Two States Remain Holdouts on Distracted Driving Laws
Missouri and Montana are the only states without distracted driving laws for all drivers. With traffic fatalities rising, lawmakers are eyeing bills that would crack down on texting while driving.
Minnesota to Require 100% Carbon-free Electricity by 2040
Utilities can use a mix of solar, wind, hydropower, nuclear, hydrogen power, and biomass—energy obtained from burning wood and trash—to meet the 2040 goal.
A New Bill in Washington State Seeks to Reduce Unneeded Packaging
Laws requiring companies to cover the costs of recycling services are gaining momentum in the U.S. Washington is one of the latest states to consider a strategy that is popular in Europe.
Top State Democrats Outline Legislative Priorities
Where the party has majorities, they hope to focus on issues like housing, voting rights and criminal justice. In GOP-controlled states, they want to hold the line against Republican proposals on abortion, school vouchers and guns.
A Governor Proposes Slashing His State's Income Tax by Half
The "biggest tax cut in the history of this state" is how he described it. But critics say the hit to revenue, estimated at over $1 billion annually in future years, would further undermine already shortchanged public services.
Shared Power Used to be the Norm in Statehouses. Now It’s Nearly Extinct
State government control is split between the parties in only 10 states—the fewest since 1952.
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