Should the Smoking Age Be 21? Some Legislators Say Yes
Hawaii is raising its legal smoking age to 21, and nearly a dozen other states have considered it to deter young people from starting to smoke.
When Residents Clash With Homeowner Associations, Some States Step In
Some states are creating ombudsman offices to handle the deluge of complaints that often land at state and local agencies.
Lions, Tigers and Bears Attract State Scrutiny
More than 30 states have banned the private ownership of some dangerous exotic animals, a move that has been supported by animal welfare groups and assailed by owners and breeders.
Challenges State Auditors Face According to Illinois' Auditor General
Recruiting and retaining qualified staff and cybersecurity are pressing problems for state auditors, comptrollers and treasurers.
'Checkbook' Websites Shine Light on State Spending
While many states have been ramping up their efforts to make their sites accessible and comprehensive, some still have a long way to go.
States Crack Down on Driver's License Fraud
At least 39 states use facial recognition to help detect driver’s license fraud and thwart other criminal activity.
Hiring Cybersecurity Staff Is Hard for States
State IT departments are having a tough time hiring and keeping staffers, especially cybersecurity specialists.
Cultivating Civility at State Capitols
More than 200 state legislators have participated in workshops aimed at improving civil discourse and building bipartisan trust.
Increasing State Speed Limits Spur Safety Concerns
Drivers’ rights advocates argue that if higher speed limits are being set at appropriate levels based on valid engineering standards, roads will actually be safer. But many safety experts disagree.
How States Use Cameras to Crack Down on School Bus Scofflaws
More than a dozen states now authorize the use of cameras mounted on school buses to catch drivers who illegally pass them.
Cities Turn to Social Media to Police Restaurants
Putting restaurant inspection information on Yelp "gives more information to the public about making decisions as far as where to go to eat," says the acting director of San Francisco's health department.
States and Cities Try Adaptive Technology for Smarter Traffic Signals
A growing number of states and cities are trying to reduce traffic congestion by improving the way signal lights are synchronized.
States Work to Protect Electric Grid From Solar Storms, Nuclear Threat
A growing number of state legislators are introducing measures aimed at protecting the electric grid from catastrophic events.
Professional Licensing Rules Draw Lawsuits in Many States
A license to braid hair? Critics say some state requirements are burdensome and create barriers to competition and job growth.
Touting Prevention, Police Put Crime Info Online
From mapping meth labs in Indiana to 911 calls in Colorado Springs, police agencies are letting the public better understand crime in their communities.
Courts Plunge Into the Digital Age
Courthouse digitization efforts are "affecting every single person who works in the courthouse and everyone in the legal profession," and are saving money in the process.
States Train Officials in Public Records Access
Some states are requiring that public officials who are subject to open government laws learn how they work.
Save or Delete? Official Email Policies Vary By State
State policies about whether employees should delete or save emails vary considerably, creating concerns among open government advocates.
States Clear Way for Crowdfunding
Frustrated with the feds, entrepreneurs are looking to state legislatures for help.
Do Not Sell My Personal Information
When you visit our website, we store cookies on your browser to collect information. The information collected might relate to you, your preferences or your device, and is mostly used to make the site work as you expect it to and to provide a more personalized web experience. However, you can choose not to allow certain types of cookies, which may impact your experience of the site and the services we are able to offer. Click on the different category headings to find out more and change our default settings according to your preference. You cannot opt-out of our First Party Strictly Necessary Cookies as they are deployed in order to ensure the proper functioning of our website (such as prompting the cookie banner and remembering your settings, to log into your account, to redirect you when you log out, etc.). For more information about the First and Third Party Cookies used please follow this link.
Manage Consent Preferences
Strictly Necessary Cookies - Always Active
We do not allow you to opt-out of our certain cookies, as they are necessary to ensure the proper functioning of our website (such as prompting our cookie banner and remembering your privacy choices) and/or to monitor site performance. These cookies are not used in a way that constitutes a “sale” of your data under the CCPA. You can set your browser to block or alert you about these cookies, but some parts of the site will not work as intended if you do so. You can usually find these settings in the Options or Preferences menu of your browser. Visit www.allaboutcookies.org to learn more.
Sale of Personal Data, Targeting & Social Media Cookies
Under the California Consumer Privacy Act, you have the right to opt-out of the sale of your personal information to third parties. These cookies collect information for analytics and to personalize your experience with targeted ads. You may exercise your right to opt out of the sale of personal information by using this toggle switch. If you opt out we will not be able to offer you personalised ads and will not hand over your personal information to any third parties. Additionally, you may contact our legal department for further clarification about your rights as a California consumer by using this Exercise My Rights link
If you have enabled privacy controls on your browser (such as a plugin), we have to take that as a valid request to opt-out. Therefore we would not be able to track your activity through the web. This may affect our ability to personalize ads according to your preferences.
Targeting cookies may be set through our site by our advertising partners. They may be used by those companies to build a profile of your interests and show you relevant adverts on other sites. They do not store directly personal information, but are based on uniquely identifying your browser and internet device. If you do not allow these cookies, you will experience less targeted advertising.
Social media cookies are set by a range of social media services that we have added to the site to enable you to share our content with your friends and networks. They are capable of tracking your browser across other sites and building up a profile of your interests. This may impact the content and messages you see on other websites you visit. If you do not allow these cookies you may not be able to use or see these sharing tools.
If you want to opt out of all of our lead reports and lists, please submit a privacy request at our Do Not Sell page.
Cookie List
A cookie is a small piece of data (text file) that a website – when visited by a user – asks your browser to store on your device in order to remember information about you, such as your language preference or login information. Those cookies are set by us and called first-party cookies. We also use third-party cookies – which are cookies from a domain different than the domain of the website you are visiting – for our advertising and marketing efforts. More specifically, we use cookies and other tracking technologies for the following purposes:
Strictly Necessary Cookies
We do not allow you to opt-out of our certain cookies, as they are necessary to ensure the proper functioning of our website (such as prompting our cookie banner and remembering your privacy choices) and/or to monitor site performance. These cookies are not used in a way that constitutes a “sale” of your data under the CCPA. You can set your browser to block or alert you about these cookies, but some parts of the site will not work as intended if you do so. You can usually find these settings in the Options or Preferences menu of your browser. Visit www.allaboutcookies.org to learn more.
Functional Cookies
We do not allow you to opt-out of our certain cookies, as they are necessary to ensure the proper functioning of our website (such as prompting our cookie banner and remembering your privacy choices) and/or to monitor site performance. These cookies are not used in a way that constitutes a “sale” of your data under the CCPA. You can set your browser to block or alert you about these cookies, but some parts of the site will not work as intended if you do so. You can usually find these settings in the Options or Preferences menu of your browser. Visit www.allaboutcookies.org to learn more.
Performance Cookies
We do not allow you to opt-out of our certain cookies, as they are necessary to ensure the proper functioning of our website (such as prompting our cookie banner and remembering your privacy choices) and/or to monitor site performance. These cookies are not used in a way that constitutes a “sale” of your data under the CCPA. You can set your browser to block or alert you about these cookies, but some parts of the site will not work as intended if you do so. You can usually find these settings in the Options or Preferences menu of your browser. Visit www.allaboutcookies.org to learn more.
Sale of Personal Data
We also use cookies to personalize your experience on our websites, including by determining the most relevant content and advertisements to show you, and to monitor site traffic and performance, so that we may improve our websites and your experience. You may opt out of our use of such cookies (and the associated “sale” of your Personal Information) by using this toggle switch. You will still see some advertising, regardless of your selection. Because we do not track you across different devices, browsers and GEMG properties, your selection will take effect only on this browser, this device and this website.
Social Media Cookies
We also use cookies to personalize your experience on our websites, including by determining the most relevant content and advertisements to show you, and to monitor site traffic and performance, so that we may improve our websites and your experience. You may opt out of our use of such cookies (and the associated “sale” of your Personal Information) by using this toggle switch. You will still see some advertising, regardless of your selection. Because we do not track you across different devices, browsers and GEMG properties, your selection will take effect only on this browser, this device and this website.
Targeting Cookies
We also use cookies to personalize your experience on our websites, including by determining the most relevant content and advertisements to show you, and to monitor site traffic and performance, so that we may improve our websites and your experience. You may opt out of our use of such cookies (and the associated “sale” of your Personal Information) by using this toggle switch. You will still see some advertising, regardless of your selection. Because we do not track you across different devices, browsers and GEMG properties, your selection will take effect only on this browser, this device and this website.
Help us tailor content specifically for you: