Policy
This coverage will look at how public leaders establish new policies in a range of crucial areas of government – health, education, public safety, for example – and how these policies impact people’s lives through better services, effective regulations and new programs. This will include stories examining how state and local government approaches policymaking around emerging areas, including artificial intelligence.
Health departments across the country rely on manual processes, like phone calls and fax machines, to get access to crucial data, a new study finds.
Legislators are expected to pass a bill this week that would take oversight of the police away from the city. That Civil War-era approach had been ended by state voters in 2012.
Citizens in half the states have the power to place initiatives or referendums on the ballot. That process is under threat, but in an era of partisan gerrymandering and unresponsive legislatures we must keep it viable.
Local governments and school districts are now forbidden from requiring masks to prevent the spread of disease. Masks can still be required for certain types of jobs such as health care and working with hazardous materials.
Missouri brings more children into foster care than the national average but places some in inappropriate settings. The bill would require more residential care centers along with a set of other protections and tax credits for youth programs.
Police have increasingly adopted drones and ground robots to supplement their work. But departments often lack clear policies on the tools’ uses.
The new law will offer families $7,000 annually per child for costs such as tuition and tutoring. It will also offer funding for pre-K costs, but only to income-qualified families.
GOP Gov. Mike DeWine wants more able-bodied recipients to work to receive benefits. Such requirements in other states have been held up in court but Congress might make them universal.
GOP Gov. Brian Kemp is pushing hard for a civil litigation overhaul, contending that excessive damages are harming businesses and driving up insurance costs. Opponents say it would give too big a break to negligent companies.
Mass culling is expensive, but alternatives, like vaccinating chickens or luring wild birds away from domestic flocks, would also impose logistical and environmental costs. And they may be more expensive, anyway.
Anti-vaccine sentiment was rising even before the COVID-19 pandemic. We’re seeing the ugly results play out in Texas, with dozens of children suffering from measles and one dying.
The Legislature and lieutenant governor threaten to cut $400 million if colleges and universities do not end diversity initiatives.
The plan comes after crime in Downtown Crossing and other areas throughout the city has reached a seven-year high due to drug use, focusing on treating rather than arresting users and dealers.
The bill calls on utilities to meet wildfire protection standards. In return, they'd gain legal protection.
Between 2017 and 2022, the number of Black-owned businesses rose 56.9 percent, accounting for more than half of the overall growth in companies.
Gov. Gavin Newsom and other state Democrats who frequently invoked the idea of providing sanctuary to undocumented immigrations during Trump’s first term have softened if not changed their tune.
Jeff Landry has secured $42 million to reopen a youth prison in the Baton Rouge area, part of his push to expand juvenile incarceration facilities.
Since 2021, the number of states offering universal eligibility for vouchers has grown from zero to 14.
Idaho lawmakers have introduced legislation requiring counties to get voter approval for wind farms. If they’re rejected, counties must charge an excise tax that could exceed $2.5 million per turbine.
A proposal to set a per-enrollee limit on federal money for the program is gaining traction. But states know how to game Medicaid rules and federal oversight is woefully inadequate.
President Trump signed an executive order to increase federal support for school choice programs, causing debate about the impact on public schools and student outcomes.
Seven individuals received approval to open psilocybin-related businesses as Colorado moves toward a legal psychedelic-assisted therapy industry.
The consequences of sanctuary policies extend far beyond the ideological debate surrounding immigration enforcement. These policies enable criminal networks to make communities more dangerous.
As Iowa's math scores decline, the state should use public funds to provide private tutoring for families in need and give students extra support without switching schools.
The school district is one of a growing number across the country to pump money into creating a building tailor-made for pre-kindergarteners.
Abbott is in Washington this week to lobby Congress for $11 billion to compensate Texas for money spent on immigration enforcement.
The proposed measures include a bill allowing incarcerated individuals to register and another that would require ID verification.
Republicans are exploring cuts to Medicaid in an effort to pay for the president’s priorities. But public opinion, a divided Senate, and state governors worried about the impact to their budgets could dash those efforts.
It’s a battle of state vs. state and calls for the federal government to restrict Democratic state policies.
State lawmakers have introduced bills to limit SNAP benefits, change vaccine policies and ban fluoride in public water.
We should hold students to higher expectations and give them the support they need, and we need to give teachers the resources to do their job well. Two state lawmakers who started out as teachers have some insights.
