Fed up with federal inaction, many states found their own ways to address crumbling roads and bridges.
Pew Charitable Trusts
States Struggle With ‘Hidden’ Rural Homelessness
Rural areas are more likely to be poor, with limited transportation, making it that much harder for the homeless to get to a center that can provide counseling, a housing voucher or medical care.
Not Expanding Medicaid Can Cost Local Taxpayers
Dallas County property owners paid more than $467million in taxes last year to Parkland Health and Hospital System, the county’s only public hospital, to provide medical care to the poor and uninsured.
‘Move Over’ Laws Aim to Save Lives on the Highways
Speeding past emergency vehicles is an everyday occurrence on the nation’s highways, even though every state has a “move over” law that requires drivers to slow down or switch lanes when emergency vehicles are on the scene.
States Pursue Varied Police Reforms Amid National Debate
About half of the police agencies in the U.S. employed fewer than 10 officers in 2013, and the cost of training for those small departments is a major barrier to additional training.
To Collect Revenue, Some States Put Tax Scofflaws in Virtual ‘Stocks’
Almost two-thirds of the states are punishing tax delinquents with a digital version of the Colonial practice of locking lawbreakers in stocks set up in the village square.
Elder Abuse a ‘Huge, Expensive and Lethal’ Problem for States
We know that victims of elder abuse tend to be socially isolated, physically weakened and struggling to maintain their independence. What we don’t know, because elder abuse is underreported, is how big the problem really is.
Where Has Housing Grown the Fastest Since 2010?
In every state except for Rhode Island, the number of housing units increased between 2010 to 2014.
New Efforts to Keep the Mentally Ill Out of Jail
In many places, police, judges and elected officials increasingly are pointing out that a high proportion of people in jail are mentally ill, and that in many cases they shouldn’t be there.
Keeping the Mentally Ill Out of Hospitals
Relatively rare in the U.S., respite centers cost a fraction of the price of a hospital stay, and can be far more effective at helping people avoid a psychotic break, severe mood swing or suicidal episode.