Barb Barrett

Federal law already prohibits armed federal personnel at polling places. Some Democratic state lawmakers, citing Trump's calls to "nationalize" elections and rhetoric by his allies, don't want to take any chances and are pushing state-level bans on immigration enforcement near the polls

State & federal funding to anti-abortion pregnancy centers is growing — but oversight isn't. New series sheds light. (Illustration by David Jack Browning for States Newsroom)

State & federal funding to anti-abortion pregnancy centers is growing — but oversight isn't. New series sheds light: newsfromthestates.com/tags/crisis-pregnancy-centers-series

by @kelciemmorris.bsky.social @acvollers.bsky.social @chatlanis.bsky.social @amandavhernan.bsky.social & me

Blue states push to ban ICE at the polls amid federal voter intimidation fears • Stateline Several Democratic states are moving to bar federal immigration agents from being near polling places and other election sites, amid persistent worries that President Donald Trump will use federal law...

Blue states push to ban ICE at the polls amid federal voter intimidation fears stateline.org/2026/03/05/b...

Snow drought, higher temps spell active NM wildfire season, forecasters warn • Source New Mexico Fire season has already begun in New Mexico, with much of the northeastern part of the state under a Red Flag warning.

“We’re kind of dependent on hope this fire season, like last year,” a UNM fire ecologist said.

buff.ly/2NUMRss

As federal immigration enforcement expands, local police struggle with cooperation • Stateline When Maryland Democratic Gov. Wes Moore signed emergency legislation last month prohibiting agreements between local law enforcement agencies and federal immigration authorities, he was pushing back a...

287(g) agreements have surged from 135 at the end of the Biden presidency to nearly 1,500 now.

from @amandavhernan.bsky.social and @stateline.org

stateline.org/2026/03/03/a...

Georgia Is Letting a Railroad Seize Land a Black Family Has Owned For 100 Years Descendants of enslaved people are fighting an attempt to use eminent domain to carve a spur through one of Georgia’s largest Black‑owned farms.

The families in the railroad’s path said they see this as another instance in a pattern of extraction that has defined this corner of Georgia since before the Civil War.
bit.ly/4qS3nIA

Data center tax breaks are on the chopping block in some states • Stateline As some states welcome more data centers with tax incentives, others are scaling back to balance economic development and energy considerations.

Lawmakers changing their minds about data centers...

Great story from @maddyfitz.bsky.social @stateline.org
stateline.org/2026/02/24/d...

Supreme Court takes up climate case testing local lawsuits against oil companies • Maine Morning Star The Supreme Court announced Monday that it will hear a significant climate lawsuit in which oil companies are seeking to avoid being tried in state court. The fate of several dozen climate lawsuits br...

Supreme Court takes up climate case testing local lawsuits against oil companies mainemorningstar.com/2026/02/23/r...

School choice programs grow in popularity — and cost • Stateline States are scrambling to meet rising demand for newly expanded school choice initiatives, pouring more money into the programs as waiting lists — and budget concerns — grow.

School choice programs grow in popularity — and cost stateline.org/2026/02/23/s...

As Trump pushes voting restrictions, states have a rarely used option to push back • Stateline President Donald Trump and Republicans in Congress are trying to impose a proof-of-citizenship voter registration requirement through a proposal called the SAVE America Act. Blue states would have a m...

Stateline's @jonshorman.bsky.social explains how states could respond to the SAVE America Act and Trump's idea about "nationalizing" elections...

@stateline.org
stateline.org/2026/02/20/a...

I'm a health reporter at @stateline.org and @statesnewsroom.com. I'm looking for experts and researchers following the effects of #ACA subsidy expiration and #Medicaid coverage loss on chronic illness, specifically #diabetes. DM's are open and open to research links. s chatlani AT stateline dot org

Alabama House bill would create sales tax holiday for guns | Alabama Reflector Sells' Bill would create the Second Amendment Sales Tax Holiday during the last weekend in August. Firearms and accessories would be exempt.

Alabama House bill would create sales tax holiday for guns alabamareflector.com/2026/02/17/a...

Criminal justice is a top issue in state legislatures this year • Stateline Criminal justice has emerged as one of the most wide-ranging and politically charged areas in this year’s state legislative sessions.

Guns, death penalty, prison conditions, sentencing and immigration may all be legislated this year.

stateline.org/2026/02/12/c...

Mayors ignore, flatter or confront Trump to serve their cities • Stateline Cities rely on federal money, and Trump has made it clear that more ICE agents and fewer federal dollars will flow to cities that don’t respond to his requests.

Some mayors view confrontation with the Trump White House as the right approach, others are opting for accommodation — or just keeping their heads down.

@stateline.org
stateline.org/2026/02/10/m...

Exhibit 2 – #22, Att. #2 in Pitts v. United States (N.D. Ga., 1:26-mi-00012) – CourtListener.com NOTICE of Filing by United States of America re 9 Order,, Case Unsealed,, Set Submission Deadline, (Attachments: # 1 Exhibit 1, # 2 Exhibit 2)(Albus, Thomas) (Entered: 02/10/2026)

From a quick read, the Fulton County affidavit doesn't include any suggestion of a foreign nexus to the investigation — further highlighting the unusual nature of DNI Tulsi Gabbard's involvement

storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.us...

Trump’s calls to ‘nationalize’ elections have state, local election officials bracing for tumult • Stateline State and local election officials are bracing for the prospect of federal action after President Donald Trump’s call to “nationalize” elections.

Trump’s calls to ‘nationalize’ elections have state, local election officials bracing for tumult

from @jonshorman.bsky.social @stateline.org
stateline.org/2026/02/06/t...

States that once led in child vaccination fall as they expand exemptions • Stateline States that were leaders in childhood vaccination before the pandemic are among those losing ground as exemptions and unfounded skepticism take hold, encouraged by the Trump administration’s stance un...

Mississippi and West Virginia are out of the top vaccination ranks; Connecticut and New York are in.
stateline.org/2026/02/02/s...

Mayors describe ICE presence in their cities • Stateline As federal immigration enforcement agents continue to clash with protesters in cities around the country, U.S. mayors gathering for a conference in Washington, D.C., said they’re anxious about what mi...

Mayors describe ICE presence in their cities stateline.org/2026/01/30/m...

State lawmakers stand ready to help ICE — or impede it • Stateline As lawmakers convene for this year’s state legislative sessions, immigration has surged to the top of the agenda.

State lawmakers stand ready to help ICE — or impede it stateline.org/2026/01/28/s...

Democratic AGs stress importance of citizen-generated evidence in challenging ICE • Stateline Cellphone video has emerged as a powerful rebuttal to the Trump administration’s version of immigration enforcement incidents.

Democratic AGs stress importance of citizen-generated evidence in challenging ICE stateline.org/2026/01/27/d...

As AI-generated fake content mars legal cases, states want guardrails • Stateline As more false quotes, fake court cases and incorrect information appear in legal documents generated by artificial intelligence, state bar associations, state court systems and national law organizati...

As AI-generated fake content mars legal cases, states want guardrails stateline.org/2026/01/26/a...

Footage, documents at odds with DHS accounts of immigration enforcement incidents • Stateline As a growing number of encounters between civilians and Department of Homeland Security agents — including the widely scrutinized fatal shooting of Renee Good in Minneapolis — are scrutinized in court...

Footage, documents at odds with DHS accounts of immigration enforcement incidents
stateline.org/2026/01/23/f...

Three people arrested while protesting Customs and Border Patrol recruiters at Ohio State University Three people were arrested by Ohio State Police while protesting U.S. Customs and Border Patrol recruiters at an annual Ohio State University ​​career fair on Tuesday. More than 50 people, mostly…

Three people were arrested by Ohio State Police while protesting U.S. Customs and Border Patrol recruiters at an annual Ohio State University career fair on Tuesday.

via @ohiocapitaljournal.com

Trump administration sues another state for sensitive voter data • Stateline The Trump administration has sued another state — Virginia — in its quest to obtain sensitive voter data, despite two recent legal setbacks in suits against other states.

ICYMI: The Trump administration has sued another state — Virginia — in its quest to obtain sensitive voter data, despite two recent legal setbacks in suits against other states.

stateline.org/2026/01/20/t...

States, cities are hard-pressed to fight violent ICE arrest tactics • Stateline State leaders who want to curb the increasingly violent arrest tactics of immigration enforcement agents in Minneapolis and elsewhere are struggling to push back.

States, cities are hard-pressed to fight violent ICE arrest tactics

"You can’t go after a murderer and a garden-variety immigration violator, like a poor nanny or a poor landscaper, with equal emphasis."

from @tim-henderson.bsky.social and @stateline.org

stateline.org/2026/01/22/s...

With rental registries, cities try to track housing and hold bad actors accountable • Stateline As many people struggle to afford housing and tenant populations grow in some regions, more cities are turning to official registries to answer questions about their rental housing market.

With rental registries, cities try to track housing and hold bad actors accountable stateline.org/2026/01/21/w...

In the Twin Cities, ICE resistance goes mainstream • Minnesota Reformer The week before an ICE agent shot and killed Renee Good in south Minneapolis, her 67-year-old neighbor Terri Sullivan heard that a school in nearby Richfield that serves mostly Latino students needed ...

In the Twin Cities, ICE resistance goes mainstream minnesotareformer.com/2026/01/21/i...

ICE is using Medicaid data to find out where immigrants live • Kansas Reflector In a win for President Donald Trump’s immigration crackdown, a recent court ruling has cleared the way for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement to resume using states’ Medicaid data to find people...

ICE is using Medicaid data to find out where immigrants live | via @acvollers.bsky.social #ksleg

A cloud of fear hangs over Minnesota immigrant communities • Minnesota Reformer “I feel as though the weapon I built is coming to kill me and my people,” she said about her vote for Trump.

A cloud of fear hangs over Minnesota immigrant communities

Even citizens are afraid to go out.

minnesotareformer.com/2026/01/19/a...

AI therapy chatbots draw new oversight as suicides raise alarm • Stateline States are passing laws to prevent artificially intelligent chatbots, such as ChatGPT, from being able to offer mental health advice to young users, following a trend of people harming themselves afte...

AI therapy chatbots draw new oversight as suicides raise alarm

stateline.org/2026/01/15/a...