State Politics

We are witnessing some of the most heated national policy debates in decades. From border control to Supreme Court nominees, disputes in the nation’s capital have taken center stage. But while all eyes are on Washington, significant work is happening at local levels.

Kentucky HEALTH is the Commonwealth’s new health coverage plan for some Medicaid beneficiaries. Kentucky HEALTH’s Community Engagement program connects able-bodied Medicaid recipients to robust workforce development programs, tuition-free job certification programs and volunteer opportunities in their communities.

After two years of low revenue growth, most state governments finished fiscal year 2018 with surpluses driven by unusually high individual income tax payments from non-withholding income sources. Many characterize much of this increase as one-time. Rainy day fund deposits will be the most common use; raising reserve levels above those prior to the recession.

Both red and blue states will react to the new limits on State and Local Tax (SALT) deductibility for federal taxes. Red states will continue to reduce the top individual rates; blue states will slow or stop planned increases.

Until recently, federalism was described almost entirely in terms of the relationship between state and federal government. States, we’ve been told, are the “laboratories of democracy,” developing policies and ideas that might eventually be replicated at the national level.

As Congress considers legislation to support the nation’s response to the opioid epidemic, it’s important to note that this is a local crisis – experienced in families and in communities across the country.

Hawai‘i has one of the lowest rates of gun violence in the nation thanks to our common-sense laws, so when the Legislature passed a bill prohibiting bump stocks and other trigger modifications, I was proud to sign it.

At National Governor Association (NGA) meetings across the country this year, Republican and Democratic governors have increased their engagement with foreign leaders on issues of trade, investment and shared policy challenges.

Short answer: If we don’t, we’re looking at another four years of Trump and another decade of gerrymandering.

The 2018 ALEC annual meeting in New Orleans marks 45 years of legislators coming together to share ideas and experiences to create research-based model policies focused on limited government, free markets and federalism.

Eyewitness misidentifications are the leading cause of wrongful convictions in this country. In Louisiana alone, studies reveal that 14 out of 15 exonerated cases involved eyewitness misidentification.

Most states don’t comprehensively track their disaster spending. But with costs rising, the federal government is looking to manage spending in ways that could affect the federal-state partnership in disaster assistance.

After 83 years of a Democrat-controlled legislature, Republicans took control of the Legislature beginning January 2015. Since then, West Virginia’s unemployment rate dropped to 5.3 percent, and its GDP growth has been among the highest in the country.

The Founders knew a time would come when the states would have to flex their constitutional muscles to restore the balance of power between the states and the federal government. They gave the states the constitutional power to push back against an intrusive federal government. That’s why the states matter.

Representation matters. That’s not a motto. It’s not aspirational. It’s research. In their forthcoming book, “A Seat at the Table: Congresswomen’s Perspectives on Why Their Presence Matters,” CAWP scholars show, through interviews with more than 80 women members of Congress, that different experiences bring different perspectives – leading to different policy priorities.

State legislatures around the country are kicking off their sessions with an eye on dramatic changes in Washington.

While Capitol Hill is abuzz with the start of the 115th Congress, we can’t forget the states. State legislators are uniquely positioned as agents of change.