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Carl Smith

Senior Staff Writer

Carl Smith is a senior staff writer for Governing and covers a broad range of issues affecting states and localities. For the past 30 years, Carl has written about education and the environment for peer-reviewed papers, magazines and online publications, with a special focus on conservation and sustainability. He has guest-edited special issues of the International Journal of Occupational and Environmental Health focused on the Precautionary Principle and the human rights dimensions of environmental degradation. Carl attended the University of Texas and the University of Georgia. He can be reached at carl.smith@governing.com or on Twitter at @governingwriter.

State and local governments will be forced to return pandemic relief funds if they aren’t properly obligated by the end of December.
Bird flu is affecting more and more dairy cattle. There’s no sign yet of human-to-human spread, but new dimensions of the outbreak continue to emerge.
The Trump administration is likely to reverse some climate policies but local officials are determined to continue addressing impacts on their communities.
Evidence is growing that participation in art has public health benefits. Rhinelander, Wis., is using it as a remedy for social isolation.
The Salt Lake City Public Library's in-house social workers and suite of other services help the unhoused find their way.
Latinos make up ever increasing shares of student bodies and the workforce but lag behind whites in science and technical education. One North Carolina county has a promising approach.
An initiative to cut a carbon tax out of the Washington Climate Commitment Act was soundly rejected by voters. Gov. Jay Inslee sees the margin of defeat as an important message.
Voting and election administration became contentious topics after 2020. This time, years of preparation, efforts to improve transparency and collaboration with law enforcement helped things run smoothly.
Arizona is the only state to require all jurisdictions to livestream ballot processing, but there are other places to watch.
Public service videos featuring election officials and voices from law enforcement and the military stress the importance of secure elections — and that interference will be punished.