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Colorado River agreement punts on drastic cuts and difficult negotiations
Read more Stateline coverage of how communities across the West are grappling with drought that’s worsening because of climate change. State and federal officials are celebrating an agreement reached this week by Arizona, California and Nevada to reduce their use of Colorado River water by millions of gallons over the next three years. But it’s a temporary […]
Western states agree to Colorado River water-sharing agreement
The governors of Arizona, California and Nevada have announced a historic water-sharing agreement for the Colorado River in an attempt to salvage one of the West’s major sources of drinking water that has dwindled in severe drought. The agreement this week marks the culmination of months of tumultuous negotiations among seven Western states, whose 40 […]
Why Republican-led states keep leaving a group that verifies voter rolls
Eight Republican-led states this year left an interstate cooperative that seeks to maintain accurate voter registration rolls, and three more may join them — a move that election security experts say is fueled by conspiracy theories. Earlier this month, Virginia’s top election official said the state would become the latest to stop participating in the […]
Even after a wet winter, California is preparing for the next drought
SAN DIEGO — Mountains are capped with record snowpack, rolling hills are covered in a rainbow of wildflowers, reservoirs are filled to the brim, and rivers are rushing with snowmelt. A vast majority of California is finally out of drought this month, after a punishing multiyear period of severe aridity that forced statewide water cuts […]
California just can’t quit Big Oil
SACRAMENTO, Calif. — California is an oil state. For a century, the Golden State has been one of the leading oil producers in the country. Although production has declined in recent decades, fossil fuels remain a major source of jobs and tax revenue. That’s why a crusade against oil that is revving up in the […]
After historic year of environmental laws, California wants to go further
SACRAMENTO, Calif. — California’s Democratic supermajority wants to follow up its most ambitious year of environmental legislation by passing new clean energy incentives and measures that would accelerate greenhouse gas reductions and require billion-dollar businesses to disclose their emissions. On the cusp of becoming the world’s fourth-largest economy, California could influence global climate policy if […]
After Nashville Shooting, Democratic States Push for New Gun Restrictions
After a shooter killed three elementary school children and three faculty members in Nashville last month, hundreds of student activists flooded the Tennessee state Capitol to demand new gun restrictions. On the state House floor, three Democratic members disrupted proceedings by shouting through bullhorns, calling for a debate on firearm access. But those calls went […]
More States Allow Residents With Felony Convictions to Vote
Last week, thousands of people with felony convictions regained the right to vote in New Mexico, the latest in a growing number of states seeking to reintegrate residents into society by allowing them to participate in elections upon leaving prison. New Mexico Democratic Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham signed a wide-reaching voting rights package into law […]
Facing Drought, Western States Seek to Deny Groundwater to Foreigners
Read more Stateline coverage of how communities across the West are grappling with drought that’s worsening because of climate change. Just off an arid stretch of highway in western Arizona, a Saudi dairy company pumps unrestricted amounts of groundwater from underneath its fields, uses it to grow thousands of acres of alfalfa and ships the bales of […]
The Fight Against Election Lies Never Ends for Local Officials
State and local election officials across the country have begun pursuing strategies to combat election lies ahead of the 2024 presidential election: They’re meeting with community organizations, posting social media videos and even inviting skeptics to visit election offices in efforts to “pre-bunk” falsehoods they know are coming. The threat, officials said, has not gone […]
Feds Push Local Election Officials to Boost Security Ahead of 2024
WASHINGTON, D.C. — Some of the nation’s top cybersecurity leaders are warning state and local election officials of ongoing foreign and domestic national security threats to election systems, urging them to upgrade their defenses ahead of next year’s presidential election. At separate conferences this month, federal officials warned gatherings of the National Association of Secretaries […]
Can Western States Agree on the Future of the Colorado River?
Read more Stateline coverage of how communities across the West are grappling with drought that’s worsening because of climate change. SAN DIEGO, Calif. — Western state water officials will spend the next few months trying to agree on how to divvy up water from the Colorado River, which sustains a region of 40 million people across seven […]