The States

The Center Square

The States Powered by The Center Square is a show that highlights the work of The Center Square reporters from statehouses across the country to Washington D.C. all with an eye towards the impacts of today's news on the taxpayer.

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#229
Yesterday · 47 min
AGs Conceal Records Tied To Longstanding Plans To Sue Trump | Weekend Edition
On this edition of the Center Square Radio Hour, Attorneys general across the United States are using a range of strategies to withhold 2024 emails discussing a longstanding plan to file lawsuits against the second Trump administration prior to his re-election. A coalition of education and union groups sued the Trump administration, seeking to block a rule that would impose time limits on visas for international students, exchange visitors and foreign journalists. Inflation remains the issue Ame
#228
Friday · 44 min
Diary Reveals Fauci Recommended Cooper Delay NC Schools by Two Weeks + SCOTUS 2A Cases | The States
This episode of The States covers a new voters' poll on student loan debt risk, a Fauci diary entry showing his influence on Gov. Roy Cooper's 2020 North Carolina school reopening delay, Second Amendment litigation developments including a Supreme Court gun ban case and NRA bus tour, Illinois' new e-bike safety law, Virginia and Arizona communities reconsidering Flock camera contracts, Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro's response to measles-related deaths, and headlines on data center regulation an
#227
Thursday · 41 min
Trump's Tariffs Add $147 to Back-to-School Shopping, National Taxpayers Union Finds | The States
Greg Bishop covers where Meta's $17 billion state settlement money could go, how tariffs are driving up back-to-school costs, New York City's extended deadline on its second-home tax amid ongoing litigation, inflation's status as voters' top midterm concern, what to expect from the Fed chair this week, and headlines from Pennsylvania, California, and Missouri. States are beginning to learn how much they'll receive from Meta's roughly $17 billion multistate settlement, with amounts ranging from
#226
Wednesday · 40 min
Newsom Calls Trump Mail-In Ballot Order "Orwellian" After Supreme Court Ruling | The States
On this episode of The States, mail-in ballots, ICE cooperation, student visas, inflation, Meta's $17.1 billion settlement, SpaceX's $100 billion Louisiana facility, and new midterm polling. A new The Center Square's Voters' Voice poll finds 63% of registered voters are concerned about the growth of socialism in American politics, with New York Governor Kathy Hochul and NYC Mayor Zohran Mamdani weighing in on the controversy surrounding DSA figure Gustavo Gordillo. Gordillo faces allegations of
#225
Monday · 43 min
Polling Shows Vance Is in a Different Tier — Democrats Still Haven't Found Their Vance | The States
The Trump administration announced a 90-day suspension allowing 300,000 metric tons of imported beef at 25% below current market prices to lower grocery costs, drawing criticism from cattle ranchers and rural-state lawmakers who say the move won't meaningfully lower prices given the U.S. cattle herd is at a 75-year low. Noble Predictive Insights' Voters' Voice poll (2,500 registered voters, Aug. 12-16) found VP JD Vance leading the Republican 2028 field at 41% with Marco Rubio at 18% and no one
#224
August 21 · 42 min
Florida's Official Budget Is $113.8 B, Tax Watchdogs Found a Hidden $4.5 B | The States
Florida Tax Watch launched a Property Tax Resource Center to help voters evaluate a November constitutional amendment that would raise the non-school homestead exemption to $150,000 in 2027 and $250,000 in 2028, cutting local government revenue by an estimated $12 billion annually within five years. Florida Tax Watch's Kurt Wenner said the measure doesn't restrict local governments from raising millage rates, fees, or special assessments to offset the lost revenue, and separately found the state
#223
August 20 · 44 min
Arizona's Voter ID Law Is Heading to the U.S. Supreme Court | The States
The U.S. national debt topped $40 trillion Wednesday, up from $39 trillion just five months ago, with the government adding more than $90,000 per second and fiscal year 2026 deficit spending projected to hit $2 trillion. Watchdog groups called the figure "intergenerational theft," noting the U.S. now spends more on debt interest than national defense, while House Budget Committee Chairman Jodey Arrington called the debt an "existential threat." The U.S. Supreme Court will hear a case on whether
#222
August 19 · 41 min
Maryland's Digital Ad Tax Was Just Struck Down, Illinois & Washington Have Similar Laws | The States
A Center Square investigation found the NEA spent more than $51 million and the AFT more than $41 million on political activities and lobbying in 2025, with both unions contributing thousands of dollars each to all 16 Democratic members of the U.S. Committee on Education and Labor and no contributions to any Republican committee member. Maryland's Tax Court struck down the state's five-year-old digital advertising tax on multiple constitutional grounds, ordering an estimated $500-700 million in
#221
August 18 · 41 min
86% of States With High Electricity Bills Are Blue, While 80% with Lower Bills Are Red | The States
President Trump said he'll declare the Strait of Hormuz a U.S. territory after defeating Iran, but no federal agency — including the Department of War — has provided a cost estimate for controlling the waterway, which runs through Iranian and Omani territorial waters that neither country is offering to cede. Gas prices have climbed to $4.06 a gallon nationally, up from $4.01 a week earlier and $3.13 a year ago, coinciding with the ongoing conflict. A joint report from energy research groups fou
#220
August 17 · 47 min
Union Bosses Make 7x More Than Starting Teachers — Students Score 30% Proficient | The States
A new Urban Institute tool tracking 2023 data found large gaps between eligibility and enrollment in means-tested programs — SNAP had the highest participation rate nationally at about 57-60%, while LIHEAP had the lowest at 17%, with wide state-by-state variation. Senior fellow Linda Giannarelli said non-participation stems from lack of awareness, application hurdles, and underestimating one's own eligibility, and that entitlement programs like SNAP have no funding caps while block-grant program
#219
August 15 · 47 min
Taxpayer Philanthropy: Tax cash to nonprofits more than doubled since 2016 | Weekend Edition
On this edition of the Center Square Radio Hour, In the past decade, government grants to nonprofits and the number that receive tax money has doubled, raising questions about whether public money is being wasted. Illinois state officials awarded more than $170,000 in taxpayer money to a nonprofit that paid for PTSD injections that don't have strong evidence backing them up. The U.S. Supreme Court will hear arguments in a case that could determine the future of legal actions over energy companie
#218
August 14 · 41 min
Georgia Governor May Suspend City School Board After 20 Years of Financial Problems | The States
Hillsdale professor Richard Samuelson discussed the distinction between inalienable rights and government-granted privileges, tracing the Bill of Rights' 1791 ratification and how it secured broader public support for the Constitution. Samuelson said modern technology and past emergencies have repeatedly tested constitutional protections, and warned that civil rights-era government oversight of associations could be a future pressure point on free speech and privacy. Also, in this episode: 22 s
#217
August 13 · 46 min
Is Publishing 3D Printer Firearm Files Protected Speech? SCOTUS May Decide | The States
Facing scrutiny over surveillance concerns and security breaches, Flock announced it's cutting license plate data retention from 30 to 7 days, adding an "evidence mode" for active investigations, letting cities restrict which offense categories other agencies can search, and requiring all customers to adopt upgraded audit-log tools by year's end. CEO Garrett Langley said Flock also added automatic account lockouts for abnormal user activity and hired security firm Bishop Fox for an independent r
#216
August 12 · 43 min
Flock Safety Rep Caught Off Guard by Lawmakers Over Hacking Claims | The States
Milwaukee County Executive David Crowley won Wisconsin's Democratic gubernatorial nomination despite having dropped out of the race, defeating Rep. Francesca Hong and setting up a November matchup against Republican Tom Tiffany, while Sen. Amy Klobuchar won Minnesota's Democratic nomination to face House Speaker Lisa DeMuth. In Connecticut, former Hartford Mayor Luke Bronin defeated 78-year-old, 14-term Rep. John Larson, while Vermont's progressive challengers largely lost to moderate incumbents
#214
August 11 · 48 min
States Range from Strict Voter ID to None, Election Attorney Weighs In | The States
Wisconsin, Minnesota, Connecticut, Vermont, and Alabama held primaries under widely varying voter ID requirements, with attorney Stephen Kaufman arguing that federal and state voter-ID/citizenship-documentation efforts amount to voter suppression rather than integrity measures. The U.S. Senate's Save America Act, which would require documentary proof of citizenship for federal voter registration, remains stalled short of the 60 votes needed, while a related California ballot measure (Proposition
#215
August 10 · 39 min
Government Grants to Nonprofits Doubled From $149B to $319B in Six Years | The States
The Liberty Justice Center filed an amicus brief asking the Supreme Court to review a Fourth Circuit ruling that upheld a Maryland school district's policy requiring teachers to use students' preferred pronouns without notifying parents, citing conflict with the Court's earlier ruling in Mirabelli v. Bonta. The group also sent demand letters to Washington, Illinois, New York, and New Jersey over similar state-level policies allowing students to socially transition at school without parental noti
#213
August 8 · 48 min
31 States Decide to Join Federal School Choice Program | Weekend Edition
On this edition of the Center Square Radio Hour, thirty-one states have opted in to the federal Education Freedom Scholarship Program, while 19 states and Washington, D.C. have not, ahead of the January 2027 deadline. California Gov. Gavin Newsom and his wife released the last four years of tax returns late last week, providing a glimpse into their financial life over the last four years of Newsom’s time in office. The notary public who certified that a Georgia judge's brother signed a wi
#212
August 6 · 43 min
Federal Judge Strikes Down Gun Registration for Suppressors and Short-Barreled Rifles | The States
Confidential documents show nearly two dozen state attorneys general, including 21 Democrats, signed a plan as early as April 2024 — nine months before Trump took office — to coordinate litigation against his administration, with a former Republican AG calling the practice a politicized waste of resources. A federal judge in Texas ruled the NFA's registration requirement for short-barreled rifles and suppressors unconstitutional, reasoning that Congress can't require registration tied to a $200
#211
August 5 · 45 min
Missouri Voters Rejected Ending the Income Tax 75%-25% | The States
Yesterday several states went to the polls to decide primary contests ahead of November's midterm election. Progressive Abdul El-Sayed defeated Rep. Haley Stevens by roughly 16,000 votes in Michigan's Democratic primary and will face Trump-endorsed Republican Mike Rogers, who leads recent polling 46.7% to 42.3%, in November. In Virginia, retired Army Major General Bert Mizusawa won the Republican Senate primary with 52.5% of the vote and will face Democratic Sen. Mark Warner in November. Missour
#210
August 3 · 47 min
Texts Point to Possible Delay in Washington Shooting News Conference | The States
Former Seattle Police Chief Sean Barnes resigned following communication breakdowns after a mass shooting at the Bite of Seattle Festival left three dead, with public records showing a five-hour delay before officials held a press conference. Text messages obtained by The Center Square show Washington Governor Bob Ferguson was not responsible for the delay, while reporting also revealed Barnes doesn't live in Washington state and received a $700,000+ severance package on top of a $300,000+ salar

Showing 1–20 of 23 episodes