Kentucky
As Book Bans Gain Favor, Some Say Libraries Could Go
This story has been updated to clarify Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin’s stance on “explicit” books in schools during his campaign. Amid the national uproar about whether to allow students access to a wide variety of books, the superintendent of a Virginia school district this week proposed a sweeping solution: Get rid of school libraries altogether. […]
Bourbon Connoisseurs’ Spirits Run High, Then Low, as States Allot Rare Bottles
As liquor connoisseurs’ quest for certain high-end bourbons becomes a blood sport, the 17 states that control their own liquor stores have adopted more and more complex methods to stop obsessed seekers from gaming the system by stalking delivery trucks and reselling sought-after bottles on the black market. Over the past decade, bourbon, once […]
Egged on by Grocery Prices, Cities Welcome Backyard Chickens
For five years, a woman known as the Chicken Lady of South Jersey urged local officials in Haddon Township, New Jersey, to allow her and other residents to keep chickens in their backyards. She eventually won them over — but that was just the beginning. The woman, Gwenne Baile, became a traveling chicken guru for […]
Migrating Professionals Grow Black Middle Class in the South and West
Jan. 5—Erika Harrison, a Houston attorney who has lived in the area since she was 5, started her blog, Black Girls Who Brunch, “to showcase the vibrant food scene beyond the franchise restaurants.” But recently, the blog has grown into much more than that. In addition to providing restaurant recommendations, Harrison has become a connector […]
This State Could Be the Last One (for a While, Anyway) to Expand Medicaid
The story has been updated to correct the number of organizations comprising the Alliance for a Healthy Kansas. It is 128. For years, state Sen. Phil Berger says, there was nobody in North Carolina who opposed Medicaid expansion under the Affordable Care Act more vehemently than he did. “If there was somebody in the state […]
These Hyperlocal Weather Networks Can Help States Face Climate Threats
To prepare for climate change, states are getting into the weather business. Thirty-eight states are operating or building networks of weather monitoring stations to provide more precise data than they receive from the National Weather Service. They’re using that information to help spot flash floods, assess wildfire risk, inform farming practices and choose locations for […]
Abortion Bumped Inflation to the Back Burner. Both Sides See Lessons for 2024.
Read more Stateline coverage on how states are either protecting or curbing access to abortions. The candidates and ballot measures that triumphed in the midterm elections prove that millions of voters are most energized by abortion access — not worries about inflation or crime. It’s a lesson that both sides of the abortion debate will take into […]
No Simple Solution to Helping Voters in Jail Cast Ballots
Each election cycle, thousands of eligible voters are effectively disenfranchised because they sit in a jail cell. Americans detained before trials are allowed to vote, a status affirmed by a 1974 Supreme Court case. As a matter of law, pretrial detainees are presumed innocent and retain the voting rights they had before being charged with […]
Abortion Ballot Measures Seen as Critical — but Tricky — Strategy
Read more Stateline coverage on how states are either protecting or curbing access to abortions. The landslide victory for abortion rights in a Kansas primary election this month was the first direct expression of voter sentiment on the issue since the U.S. Supreme Court overturned the nearly 50-year-old constitutional right to abortion in June. Even abortion rights […]
Abortion Rights Hacktivists Strike States with Bans
An abortion rights hacktivist group says it launched cyberattacks against Arkansas and Kentucky state governments and leaked files from their servers to protest their bans on abortion after the U.S. Supreme Court’s recent decision to overturn Roe v. Wade. The group, which calls itself SiegedSec, said it hacked the two states because it was angry […]
4 States Extend Medicaid Coverage for a Year After Childbirth
To boost maternal health for low-income women, California, Florida, Kentucky and Oregon in May received approval from the federal government to extend Medicaid coverage for 12 months after childbirth. Nationwide, pregnancy-related chronic illnesses such as diabetes, heart disease and high blood pressure, combined with mental health issues including suicides and drug overdoses, are contributing to […]
After Leaked Roe Ruling, GOP Weighs Stricter Abortion Bans
If, as expected, the U.S. Supreme Court decides as early as next month to overturn Roe v. Wade, just how quickly Republican-dominated legislatures will act to restrict abortion and how far they will go to eliminate the procedure is uncertain. But recent rhetoric from state officials and events in state capitols offer some clues. GOP […]