Workforce
911 call centers cope with more calls, fewer workers
Staff shortages are forcing emergency call center workers to pick up more overtime, work longer hours, adding extra pressure to an already stressful job, a new survey found.
Management
Holdout states consider expanding Medicaid—with work requirements
The prospect of a second Trump administration has renewed interest in the idea.
Workforce
What cities can learn from Seattle’s racial and social justice law
COMMENTARY | Working to end institutional racism is part of every employee’s job and the functioning of municipal government.
Sponsor Content
Securing Support for Short-Term Rental Revenue Collection Projects
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Emerging Tech
In one city, litter meets its mechanical match
A pilot program in Detroit has enlisted a trash removal robot to reduce plastic pollution on the beach from entering local waterways.
Infrastructure
Initial funding for digital equity plans is available. But how do states plan to use it?
Some have identified creative solutions to address affordability, digital skills and accessibility issues. But one approach—reliance on the federal internet subsidy that is about to expire—could force some states back to the drawing board.
Infrastructure
3 tips for short-term land-use planning
COMMENTARY | As populations grow and real estate requirements change, cities or counties should regularly evaluate their mix of land use designations so they get the kind of development they can live with long term.
Management
To stop fentanyl deaths in Philadelphia, knocking on doors and handing out overdose kits
City officials hope that this proactive approach will normalize naloxone as an everyday item in the medicine cabinet, and prevent people from dying of overdoses, especially Black residents.
Finance
Lawmakers hope to use this emerging climate science to charge oil companies for disasters
Under their proposals, state agencies would use computer models to tally up the damages caused by climate change and identify the companies responsible. Then, they would send each company a bill for its portion of the destruction.
Management
How states can give released inmates the best chance of staying clean
A Medicaid waiver can help state corrections facilities finance reentry services aimed at keeping former inmates in recovery and curbing the opioid crisis.
Cybersecurity
National data privacy standard would preempt state efforts
A bill in Congress would supersede more than a dozen state laws. While most support a national standard, some state leaders and experts worry the legislation’s preemption provisions are too prescriptive.
Featured eBooks
Finance
Half of new state spending on preschool was backed by COVID aid last year, new report finds
That money helped improve access — preschool enrollment was up in nearly every state — but it also raises real questions about whether states will be able to sustain their investments after that federal funding runs out this fall.
Sponsor Content
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Management
Other 'zombie' state laws, like Arizona's, on abortion, LGBTQ+ issues and more could resurface
COMMENTARY | It might seem unnecessary for a state legislature to repeal a law that is not enforced or has been superseded by a more recent law, but the recent Arizona abortion ban shows the consequences of assuming that old laws will always remain dormant.
Finance
Can the snarky ‘Save Our Yachts’ campaign save Washington’s capital gains tax?
The long-fought-for and hard-won tax has survived its legal challenges. Now it must survive the ballot.
Management
States are banning private funding of elections. Some worry about unintended consequences.
Wisconsin voters approved a ballot measure banning such cash infusions earlier this month. Proponents of the bans say they limit interference in elections, but opponents say chronically underfunded elections offices need help.
Digital Government
California looks to AI to automate health insurance enrollment
The state will use artificial intelligence after a pilot found it significantly sped up processing times.
Infrastructure
Too many cubicles, too few homes spur incentives to convert offices to housing
States are stepping in with tax breaks and zoning changes to help replace the unwanted cubicle farms with much-needed housing.
Infrastructure
Key takeaways from the Explore Act, one of the largest outdoor recreation bills ever
The proposal will streamline the permitting process for outdoor recreation companies, study internet access at National Parks, identify potential long distance bike trails and paths, and support recreation and tourism economies and towns.
Infrastructure
Under new partnership with feds, state AGs can investigate airline complaints
States have not been allowed to pursue air carriers for violating consumer protection laws since 1978, but a new partnership with the U.S. Department of Transportation will give attorneys general power to probe and report violations.
Management