Welcome to the July 18th, 2025 edition of State of the States, your weekly roundup of key legislative activity happening across the country. From capital punishment expansion efforts in Alabama to cannabis legalization proposals in Pennsylvania and AI workforce training in Virginia, this update brings you a snapshot of the most impactful and emerging policy developments at the state level. Whether you’re tracking public safety, healthcare, economic development, or infrastructure, we are here to highlight the diverse and dynamic issues shaping statehouses from coast to coast.

Alabama

Representative Matt Simpson (R) has prefiled House Bill 20 for the 2026 session, which would make it a capital offense to murder a person while knowingly creating a great risk of death to multiple persons. The bill is an attempt to expand the number of circumstances that can allow the death penalty to be imposed. 

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Alaska

On Tuesday night, the Anchorage Assembly voted 7-5 to approve a new measure adding criminal penalties for camping on public lands. The bill bans camping within several hundred feet of designated protected premises, including schools, day cares, playgrounds, streams, roads, and recreational trails. It also makes it a misdemeanor to knowingly engage in the construction of any hard-walled, hard-roofed, or hard-floored structure of any kind on public land. 

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Arkansas

The Arkansas Department of Education and the Department of Agriculture have launched a toolkit to help schools develop food pantries for communities. The toolkit was developed through Governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders (R)’s Faith-Based Initiative Office. The kit provides schools with step-by-step instructions, quick tips, and supplemental resources to assist them with the establishing school-based food pantries. 

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California

California lawmakers met on Wednesday at the State House to discuss a new proposed law moving through the legislature. Senate Bill 549 would allow property taxes to fund Los Angeles-based “Resilient Rebuilding Authorities” that could use loans to buy land ruined by wildfires and build low-income housing on the previously devastated areas. 

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Colorado

More than two dozen families are being covered by Colorado’s new property insurer of last resort, which protects homeowners who cannot find coverage on the private market. The Fair Access to Insurance Requirements Plan began accepting applications from residential property owners on April 10, 2025, and applications for commercial property owners are slated to open this week. 

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Connecticut

State officials have underfunded key contractual obligations in Connecticut’s budget by hundreds of millions of dollars for the second consecutive year, knowing the rest of the plan will generate enough surplus to cover the shortfalls. Underfunding parts of the budget allows legislators to allocate more money to education, municipal aid and other core programs without violating budget caps. 

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Delaware

Governor Matt Meyer (D) signed four immigrant protection and civil liberties bills into law on Monday. Some of the bills prohibit certain types of arrests, including warrantless arrests of individuals accused in the courts of another state of a felony, and citizen’s arrests. Others expand the criminal offense of impersonating law enforcement officials and prohibit law-enforcement agencies from sharing immigration enforcement data. 

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Florida

A new law will allow pregnant women to apply for a temporary disabled parking permit, allowing expecting mothers to avoid long walks across hot parking lots. 

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Georgia

A committee of lawmakers met for the first time on Tuesday at the state Capitol to examine how elections are run in Georgia. The House Study Committee on Election Procedure heard from state officials on the role of the State Election Board, Georgia’s voter roll maintenance process, and voter registration procedures. Members of the public also gave testimony on their concerns about elections. 

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Idaho

The Idaho Public Safety Communications Commission approved a $15 million grant to modernize the state’s emergency response system. The money will go toward moving Idaho’s decades-old analog 911 infrastructure to a secure, digital network called Next Generation 911. 

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Illinois

Senate Deputy Minority Leader Sue Rezin (R) has filed a bill to ban the use of renewable energy components made by foreign adversaries in any Illinois energy projects. Rezin’s proposal could allow Illinois to have more information from vendors about the origin and capabilities of their technology and ensure energy infrastructure is secure, reliable, and protected from foreign interference. 

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Indiana

House Speaker Todd Huston (R) recently announced the list of this year’s summer study committees, where legislators will go over important topics to kickstart potential measures to propose in the next legislative session. There will be committees focused on a variety of pressing issues, including artificial intelligence (AI), child welfare, government reform, and the annual Indiana state fair, among others. 

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Kansas

State Senator Kenny Titus (R) and Representative Jim Minnix (R) appeared alongside Governor Laura Kelly (D) at a ceremony to outline their vision for the state’s new bipartisan Water Program Task Force that includes business leaders and conservationists. Their mission is to evaluate risks to water quality and quantity, build a management system that addresses those risks, and secure a dedicated revenue source to ensure the plan is actually active and impactful. 

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Kentucky

Parents, advocates, and legislators gathered on Wednesday at the Capitol Annex for a bipartisan roundtable to spotlight diaper needs in Kentucky and explore solutions to reduce the financial burden on families. Following the discussion, lawmakers from both sides of the aisle have filed legislation aimed at eliminating diapers from Kentucky’s sales and use tax. 

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Louisiana

A new law signed by Governor Jeff Landry (R) requires all state programs that fund “green energy” or “clean energy” initiatives to also accept natural gas – also known as methane gas – and nuclear energy. Under this law, natural gas producers can now apply for grants typically reserved for clean energy sources like wind and solar. 

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Maine

Legislators opted to maintain the status quo regarding campaign finance regulations this year, rejecting attempts to expand clean elections, require more transparency into who is spending in elections, and ban direct corporate contributions to candidates. Lawmakers voted against many of these bills in committee because of the tight budget year, but also because they believed the plans did not get to the root problems regarding money in politics. 

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Maryland

State Senator Joanne Benson filed Senate Bill 1033 earlier this year, hoping to shut down the Maryland online sports betting market. Despite the pushback against online sports betting, the Maryland General Assembly is considering the possibility of expanding casino gambling operations in the state. In fact, the Senate and House are both assessing proposed bills that would allow the addition of historical horse machines at certain Maryland sportsbooks.  

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Massachusetts

Lawmakers on Monday heard testimony on a bill that would institute a statewide ban on nicotine sales to anyone born after January 1, 2006. The Nicotine Free Generation Bill is similar to bills that have been passed in 16 other cities and towns, and seeks to prevent nicotine-related public health issues for all future generations. 

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Michigan

Michigan lawmakers returned to the state capitol, but still have no agreement on a state budget for the next fiscal year. No votes have been planned and no budget is in place, leaving key decisions on school and road funding still unresolved. 

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Minnesota

A new $4 million, three-year initiative led by the Ramsey County Sheriff’s Office aims to increase public safety around the Capitol campus in St. Paul while offering more opportunities for community in public areas. The Ramsey County Sheriff’s Office will use $3 million in state funds to dedicate two deputies to patrol the 60-block area. The remaining $1 million will be used to offer economic development grants to new and existing businesses in the area. 

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Mississippi

The Mississippi House has amended two Senate bills to include provisions for legal sports betting – specifically, digital sports betting. The new provisions state that existing casinos could receive up to two “digital skins,” or licenses, to operate online sportsbooks or racebooks. 

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Missouri

Governor Mike Kehoe (R) signed legislation on Monday to prohibit local governments from barring discrimination against renters who use federal housing choice vouchers, known as Section 8 vouchers, to pay rent. The law overrides ordinances passed in Kansas City and several other cities that require landlords to accept Section 8 vouchers. 

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Nebraska

Nebraska’s Department of Revenue finished analyzing tax receipts for fiscal year 2024-2025, revealing that Nebraska’s net receipts for the year were down 1.4% from the forecast, equating to a $86 million drop in expected revenues. The shortfall cements the budget challenges state lawmakers will face next session. 

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Nevada

On Monday, Assemblymember Joe Dalia (D) submitted a bill draft request for the Homegrown Opportunity Act. The bill would convert unused commercial properties into 10,000 residential units and offer no-cost housing and essential services to aspiring entrepreneurs for two years. The legislation marks an effort to encourage people to launch and operate small businesses in Nevada and repay the state through success-based contributions over ten years. 

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New Hampshire

Governor Kelly Ayotte (R) has vetoed three bills, including those allowing segregation by biological sex, making it easier to censor material in public schools, and compelling parents to “opt in” for children to take risk behavior surveys. 

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New Jersey

A recently introduced piece of legislation, Senate Bill 4694/Assembly Bill 5957 would establish a state-level Community Reinvestment Act. The bill would require the state Department of Banking and Insurance to examine and rate lending institutions with regards to lending, investments, and services provided to low- and moderate-income consumers. 

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New Mexico

On Tuesday, the Republican Party of New Mexico held a press conference to address juvenile crime. Afterwards, Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham (D)’s office confirmed the possibility of a special session to further discuss juvenile crime and public safety in the state. 

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New York

The New York City Council passed a series of bills on Monday, including a measure to require third-party apps to pay grocery delivery workers $21.44 an hour to match the increase that food delivery workers received back in April. 

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North Carolina

Governor Josh Stein (D) has vetoed House Bill 193, which would have let people with concealed-carry permits bring firearms onto private property if they had permission from the school. 

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Ohio

Ohio House Republicans plan to override Governor Mike DeWine (R)’s vetoes on several school-related property tax provisions in the state budget. The vote is set to take place on July 21, with the Ohio Senate following that day or later that week. 

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Oklahoma

Oklahoma state senators will discuss 74 interim studies during the fall at the State Capitol. One hot topic is tax reform – specifically, ways to eliminate property taxes. 

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Oregon

Oregon lawmakers have passed two bills aimed at increasing the state’s grid as electricity demands rise and more frequent extreme weather events threaten energy security in the state. House Bill 2065 and 2066 establish a “first-in-the-nation” strategy to create a regulatory framework for building microgrids: smaller-scale power networks that can operate independently from the main grid. 

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Pennsylvania

Nine Pennsylvania State Representatives have proposed a bill to legalize adult-use recreational cannabis. Lawmakers attest that House Bill 20 would establish a stable, well-regulated cannabis market that would prioritize public safety and public health, protect children from exposure, promote social justice, and foster economic opportunity. 

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South Carolina

Representative Micah Caskey (R) is working on a bill that would allow pregnant people to have easier access to handicap accessible parking by granting them a temporary accessible parking placard. He plans to introduce the bill in January. 

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South Dakota

Two legislative groups will meet in Rapid City this week to discuss South Dakota’s criminal justice system and property taxes. The Initial Incarceration, Reentry Analysis, and Comparison of Relevant States Interim Committee is studying the makeup of the state prison population, comparing incarceration rates and sentencing laws in similar states, and identifying barriers to inmates’ reintegration into society. The other group, the Comprehensive Property Tax Task Force, aims to cut the average South Dakota homeowner’s property taxes by at least 50%

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Tennessee

Lawmakers amended a proposal to regulate hemp products, including banning synthetic hemp, banning advertising hemp products as cures or treatments for illnesses, and making it illegal to ship hemp products directly to the consumer. There will also be new labeling requirements to help law enforcement officers recognize legal versus illegal hemp products. 

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Texas

Texas House Speaker Dusti Burrows (R) has appointed nine lawmakers to a select committee on disaster preparedness and flooding, in response to the floods that devastated parts of Texas Hill Country on July 4. 

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Vermont

Governor Phil Scott (R) signed a new law on Wednesday designed to make housing development more accessible statewide. The law, known as the Community Housing Infrastructure Program, or CHIP, will allow rural communities across the state to leverage a TIF model, meaning they can rely on future local property tax revenue to cover the cost of housing projects over time and potentially unlock up to $2 billion in public infrastructure investment by 2035. 

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Virginia

Governor Glenn Youngkin (R) announced on Tuesday that Google will partner with his administration to provide free and low-cost artificial intelligence (AI) certification courses to Virginia residents as part of his office’s ongoing effort to connect citizens to new jobs amid changes to the state’s economy. 

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Washington

A state Republican lawmaker drafted a 2026 ballot measure imposing new rules to make Washington residents prove they are U.S. citizens before receiving a ballot. Under the proposed measure, a voter would need an enhanced driver’s license or enhanced identicard, or present another form of identification like a passport or birth certificate at a county auditor’s office when they first register. Existing voters would have their registrations canceled if they fail to produce such proof by the November 2027 election. 

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Wisconsin

Lawmakers introduced a bill to prevent the closure of two veterans’ homes in Wisconsin. The legislation would restore $1.9 million to the Veteran Housing and Recovery Program that was rejected during the biennial budget process. The VHR Program not only provides temporary housing, but also job training and support services to homeless military veterans, helping to increase their income and skills in order to reintegrate into society after serving. 

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