Tax
With fire departments struggling for volunteers, states respond to the alarm
When firefighters show up to a blaze or medical emergency across much of the United States, they most likely are volunteers. It’s also likely the department is understaffed, struggling to replace old equipment and facing uncertainty about its next generation of firefighters. “So much of our country relies on the volunteer fire service,” said Kimberly […]
States Feel Budget Pinch Amid Darkening Revenue Projections
After two years of record tax collections, budget writers in some states are starting to feel a revenue pinch created by a slumping stock market, banking and tech layoffs, slower consumer spending and lower energy prices.
As 988 Crisis Line Sees More Use, States Debate How to Pay for It
Editor’s note: If you or someone you know needs support now, call or text 988 or chat 988lifeline.org. Almost everyone agrees that putting money behind the national suicide and crisis hotline is a good thing. But not everyone thinks a new phone tax is the best way to pay for it. Since the crisis line’s […]
Top State Stories 3/22
CA: Amid soaking storms, California turns to farmland to funnel water into depleted aquifers latimes.com Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom recently signed an executive order suspending permit requirements for groundwater recharge in many areas in California. The order, which lasts until June 1, will make it easier for local water districts and farms to route river […]
Top State Stories 3/17
IA: Iowa House passes ‘bathroom bill’ focused on transgender students desmoinesregister.com The Iowa bill would prohibit people from entering a school restroom or changing room that does not align with their sex at birth. Students would need parental consent to request a special accommodation, such as using a faculty or single-occupancy restroom. The bill now heads […]
Top State Stories 3/16
AR: Arkansas House sends public school bathroom bill to governor’s desk arkansasonline.com Arkansas House Republicans approved a bill that would limit transgender people from using the bathroom of their choice at public schools. Republican Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders’ spokesperson said earlier this week that Sanders “believes that schools are no place for the radical left’s […]
Top State Stories 3/8
MO: Federal judge tosses Missouri gun law, calling it unconstitutional kansascity.com A federal judge has overturned a Missouri law that declared certain federal gun laws “invalid” if they don’t have a state-level equivalent, after the U.S. Department of Justice sued to overturn the measure. OK: Oklahoma voters reject legalization of recreational marijuana oklahoman.com Oklahomans gave a […]
Top State Stories 3/6
AZ: Banning books to restricting bathrooms: Lawmakers push new rules for Arizona classrooms azcentral.com Arizona lawmakers are seeking to reach deep into classroom operations with proposals to require the recitation of the Pledge of Allegiance, designate which students can use which bathrooms and, once again, limit how race and ethnicity are taught. GA: Georgia Republicans seek […]
States Scramble to Replace Ripped-Off SNAP Benefits
Last September, when Baltimore resident Tzu Yang went grocery shopping for his intellectually disabled daughter with a food benefits card that he thought was worth about $300, he discovered at the checkout that the card had no value left. The same thing happened in October, November and December. The benefits meant for Hawlie Yang, age […]
States Put Grocery Taxes on Ice
As inflation soared in the past year, families in some states suffered a double whammy — paying food sales taxes on top of higher-priced groceries. At least five of the 13 states where groceries were taxed as of last Jan. 1 passed laws to reduce, eliminate or ease the pinch — Kansas, Virginia, Illinois, Tennessee and […]
Top State Stories 1/13
MA: Massachusetts lawmakers plan biggest gun control push in years with Democratic governor bostonglobe.com Massachusetts legislators say they will file at least two dozen gun safety bills amid rising concern about gun violence and loopholes in existing state laws, setting the stage for what could be the biggest push for sweeping gun reform that the state […]
Top State Stories 10/17
OR: Oregon gun control measure attracts national attention as one of the strictest in the US oregonlive.com One of the nation’s strictest gun control measures will go before Oregon voters next month. Measure 114 would require a permit to purchase a gun in the state and ban the sale or transfer of gun magazines that hold […]