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Sep 30, 2024 | 
governing.com | Zina Hutton |Zina focuses
Editor's Note: This article appears in Governing's Fall 2024 magazine. You can subscribe here. A few years ago, the Red for Ed movement brought thousands of teachers to state capitols across the country, demanding higher salaries. The effort began in West Virginia, where teachers got their raises and helped stop legislation that would have brought private school choice to the state. They kept pressing their apparent advantage, unseating a couple of choice advocates in the state Senate.
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Aug 30, 2024 | 
governing.com | Zina Hutton |Zina focuses |Alan Greenblatt
In the wake of 2020, states and localities created a number of new civilian police accountability boards to meet widespread demand for transparency. Civilian boards have limited power, and despite community members' attempts to change that, law enforcement and legislators are increasingly aligned. In states like Florida and Tennessee, legislators have all but banned civilian boards from being created or from operating.
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Aug 22, 2024 | 
governing.com | Zina Hutton |Zina focuses |Jared Brey |Carl Smith
Reflecting increasing concerns around teen safety online, legislators around the country have introduced over 300 bills to protect them. Several states' bills have received challenges under the First Amendment. Legal experts critical of these laws note that they create potential First Amendment violations on the basis of limiting teens' rights to self expression.
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Jul 22, 2024 | 
governing.com | Zina Hutton |Zina focuses |Alan Greenblatt |J.B. Wogan
State audits have found that film tax credits often cost states more money than they draw in revenue. Still, over the last three years, at least 19 states have created or expanded such credits. Some others states have gone the other way, blocking programs and expansions due to cost concerns. From Marvel blockbusters to "The Walking Dead" series, many big hits have been filmed in Georgia due to the state’s massive production tax credits.
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Jul 18, 2024 | 
governing.com | Zina Hutton |Zina focuses |Jabari Simama
After a pandemic spike, violent crime rates are falling across the country. In several major cities, the homicide rate is dropping by double-digit percentages. Still, the public and politicians remain concerned. There are limited areas where crime is increasing, including car thefts. Last year, for the third year in a row, homicide rates in Kentucky have declined, dropping to 571.
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Jul 12, 2024 | 
governing.com | Zina Hutton |Zina focuses |Aaron M. Renn |Alan Greenblatt
College enrollment has already taken a hit due to the pandemic and is projected to decline by double digits over the next five years. One of the main drivers will be declining birth rates, but rising costs are also a factor for today's teens. Major universities will be fine, but smaller colleges are now closing at a rate of one per week. This past spring, there were an estimated 9 million undergraduates enrolling in college. That may be the high point for a while.
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Jul 2, 2024 | 
governing.com | Zina Hutton |Zina focuses |Ashley Silver |Paul Taylor
Listen to this episode on the player below or subscribe for free on YouTube or the podcast app of your choice — Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Audacy and Audible. Politico calls him California’s “chief gatekeeper” when it comes to AI rules and regulations. However, state Sen. Thomas Umberg isn’t all that interested in closing the door to progress on how we use and develop large language models (LLM).
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Jun 30, 2024 | 
governing.com | Zina Hutton |Zina focuses
Editor's Note: This article appears in Governing's Summer 2024 magazine. You can subscribe here. Generation Z consists of people born since 1997, meaning older members of the generation are already politically active. A survey from Tufts University found that as many as 20 percent of Gen Z would consider running for office, but they’ll have a long way to go to catch up with the baby boomers (who hold nearly half the seats in Congress despite representing only a fifth of the population).
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Jun 18, 2024 | 
governing.com | Zina Hutton |Zina focuses |Alan Greenblatt |Girard Miller
Attempts at seeking reparation for slavery has been a non-starter in Congress. Multiple states have introduced bills calling for further study or action. Some localities have put programs in place, but these have become subject to pushback from lawsuits. More than 150 years have passed since slavery was abolished in the U.S., but the effort to grapple with its harms continues to this day.
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Jun 12, 2024 | 
governing.com | Zina Hutton |Zina focuses |Alan Greenblatt
The CHIPS and Science Act has prompted some companies to make investments in the tens of billions of dollars. Most are building in small towns not known for their tech connections, prompting some workforce concerns. Despite labor shortages, companies are succeeding with expansions in areas where they're already established. Taylor, Texas, which is about 40 minutes northeast of downtown Austin, has a population of less than 20,000 people. Nonetheless, it’s recently drawn some huge investments.
