Category: Governors and States

Governor Gavin Newsom is leading California into a new court fight against the Trump administration’s election-security conditions on homeland-security grants. The lawsuit does not claim that Trump’s policy has already been struck down. It asks a federal court to stop the conditions before states must surrender 20% of their Homeland Security Grant Program awards to…

Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker demanded an $8.7 billion tariff refund from the White House, turning a simmering legal dispute into a direct financial confrontation with the federal government. The demand targets duties collected under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act, or IEEPA, which a coalition of state attorneys general has challenged as unlawful. With private…

Ohio Governor Mike DeWine has warned that a proposed constitutional amendment to eliminate property taxes statewide could lead to a dramatic increase in the state sales tax to cover the resulting revenue gap. The warning follows a formal step forward for the ballot initiative: Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost accepted the petition title and summary…

A top defense giant with extensive operations in Virginia is drawing fresh attention after revealing a bold strategic shift as a new political era begins in the state. Democratic Gov. Abigail Spanberger took office on January 17, 2026, and immediately signed ten executive orders focused on affordability, signaling a shift in state priorities that could…

The Florida House of Representatives voted 80-30 on February 19, 2026, to pass a joint resolution that would exempt homestead properties from certain non-school ad valorem (property) taxes, if it is ultimately approved by the Senate and voters. Designated CS/CS/HJR 203, the measure proposes a constitutional amendment to exempt homesteads from all non-school ad valorem…

Republican Rep. Kevin Kiley of California introduced federal legislation on Feb. 18 that would bar states from imposing retroactive taxes on the assets of former residents, a direct strike at the core enforcement mechanism of a proposed California ballot measure that would levy a one-time tax on billionaires. The bill, called the Keep Jobs in…

Wisconsin Republican lawmakers have introduced Senate Bill 1 at the start of the 2025 legislative session, targeting property tax relief through an expanded school levy tax credit. The move follows the tax and University of Wisconsin funding debate in the state’s 2025-27 budget cycle, raising questions about how additional property tax relief would be paid…

Washington’s Senate has approved a new tax targeting residents who earn more than $1 million a year, pushing the state closer to adopting what supporters call a long-overdue correction to one of the most regressive tax structures in the country. Senate Bill 6346 would impose a 9.9% levy on individual income above a $1,000,000 standard…

Oregon Senate lawmakers are advancing a bill that would disconnect the state’s tax code from three federal tax breaks, a move the Legislative Revenue Office projects would net an additional $311.6 million for the state’s General Fund in the 2025-27 biennium. SB 1507 is now in its engrossed form after clearing the Senate Finance and…

Trump Accounts promise a $1,000 federal seed contribution for eligible children, turning a slice of federal tax law into a long-term wealth experiment for working families. The program’s design runs through the tax code, but its impact will be felt on the ground, where states with the right mix of demographics, administrative capacity and private…