West Virginia lawmakers fought until the wee hours of the morning – and the final minutes of this year’s session March 14 over Raylee’s Law. Named for 8-year-old Raylee Browning, the bill would have prevented a parent from pulling a child out of public school to homeschool if social services is investigating abuse or neglect in the home.

One of the highest profile bills of the session, the measure boasted bipartisan support. But it faced fierce opposition from homeschool lobbyists, parents and some Republicans, calling it an attack on parental rights.

In Episode 22, you’ll hear from West Virginia Watch reporter Amelia Ferrell Knisely. She’s been reporting closely on this issue.

You’ll also hear from Republican West Virginia state Senator Amy Grady. She championed Raylee’s Law and worked across the aisle to try to get it passed.

She’s also a 4th grade public school teacher and serves as the chair of the West Virginia Senate Education Committee.

Finally, Evening Wrap newsletter author Danielle Gaines shares the top stories she’s watching.

Episode produced and edited by Mallory Cheng. Music for Stories From The States composed by David Singer. 

Click here for the full transcript.

Relevant reading from States Newsroom outlets and partners: 

Got questions? An episode idea? Email us at [email protected]

Photo: Del. Shawn Fluharty, D-Ohio, held up a poster of Raylee Browning, a child who died from abuse and neglect after her parents removed her from public school to homeschool her. Raylee’s Law would prevent parents from removing their child from school to homeschool them if a teacher has reported them for abuse. (Perry Bennett | West Virginia Legislative Photography)

At least 37 states offer some sort of financial incentives to businesses building data centers. The incentives aren’t just a drop in the bucket either. In Virginia, for instance, the state has notched up about $1.6 billion in data center tax breaks. 

Public opposition is on the rise, however, and some states such as Virginia and Ohio are reconsidering whether to keep offering the financial breaks. 

Stateline’s Madyson Fitzgerald breaks down the change in tune.

In Episode 21, you’ll also meet Max Moran, a sixth-generation farmer from Mason County, Kentucky. The area has been known for its tobacco market, but now it’s making headlines for its fight against a proposed hyperscale data center.

Moran, who also is a city commissioner of Germantown, Kentucky, helps lead “We Are Mason County,” a group pushing back against the proposed project. 

Finally, Evening Wrap newsletter author Danielle Gaines shares the top stories she’s watching.

Episode produced and edited by Mallory Cheng. Music for Stories From The States composed by David Singer.

Click here for the full transcript: 

Relevant reading from States Newsroom outlets and partners: 

Got questions? An episode idea? Email us at [email protected]

Photo: Attendees gather at a Maysville-Mason County Joint Planning Commission on September 3, 2025, including members of “We Are Mason County” who expressed their concerns about a data center project. (Photo courtesy of Max Moran)

States legislators have advanced a record number of bills attacking LGBTQ rights over the past few years. Many bills include, but aren’t limited to, restrictions on access to health care, forced outings in schools or barriers to accurate IDs.

In February, the Kansas legislature passed a new law that invalidated driver’s licenses and criminalizes bathroom use for transgender residents. Trans people in Kansas are worried about living in the state. 

In Episode 20, we’ll hear from Kansas Reflector editor-in-chief, Sherman Smith. He and his team have been covering the controversial legislation, which was fast-tracked by the legislature’s GOP majority.  

We’ll also look at how the American Civil Liberties Union is responding. The ACLU is tracking almost 500 anti-LBGTQ bills across the country. The Trans Legislation Tracker also notes that over 20 anti-trans bills have been passed in state legislatures. 

We’ll hear from Harper Seldin, a senior staff attorney for the ACLU's LGBTQ & HIV Rights Project who has been on the ground fighting these bills, including in Kansas.  

Finally, Evening Wrap newsletter author Danielle Gaines shares the top stories she’s watching.

Episode produced and edited by Mallory Cheng. Music for Stories From The States composed by David Singer.

Click here for the full transcript. 

Relevant reading from States Newsroom outlets and partners: 

Got questions? An episode idea? Email us at [email protected]

Photo: A group of trans activists pose for pictures on Feb. 6, 2026, at the Kansas Statehouse, advocating against a bathroom bill that eventually passed. (Photo by Sherman Smith/Kansas Reflector)

Executions in the United States have been on the decline over the past few decades, yet 27 states still enforce the death penalty – and many are imposing it more often. 

One very recent case in Alabama illustrates the complicated and emotional debates unfolding around the death penalty. 

In 2025, Alabama executed five people, and the state was set for its first execution of 2026 this month. Charles “Sonny” Burton, 75, had been convicted of felony capital murder in 1992, even though he didn’t pull the trigger, and was scheduled to die March 12. 

However, Burton’s fate quickly changed this week when Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey commuted Burton’s death sentence to life in prison. Alabama Reflector senior reporter Ralph Chapoco will have the latest. 

This episode also examines a death penalty abolition movement in Indiana as well as developments in Arizona and Utah. 

In Episode 19, host Chris Fitzsimon catches listeners up on breaking news in Alabama, where the governor this week commuted the death sentence of a prisoner to life in prison. 

He’ll also talk with Kim Dillman, an opponent of the death penalty whose family history may make her position surprising. In 1994, her uncle Eric Wrinkles shot and killed her parents, Tony and Natalie, and her aunt Debbie, in a brutal mass murder in Evansville, Indiana. 

Kim and her brother and cousins were in the house where the murder occurred. Wrinkles was convicted and sentenced to death for the murders. He was executed by lethal injection in 2009. 

Since Wrinkles’ conviction and execution, Dillard has become a vocal opponent of the death penalty. She is involved with the Indiana Abolition Coalition, which advocates to end the practice. 

Finally, Evening Wrap newsletter author Danielle Gaines shares the top stories she’s watching.

Episode produced and edited by Mallory Cheng. Music for Stories From The States composed by David Singer.

Click here for the full transcript.

Relevant reading from States Newsroom outlets and partners: 

Photo: The chair used for firing squad executions is shown in the execution chamber at the Utah State Correctional Facility. (Photo courtesy of the Utah State Department of Corrections)

Since the 2022 Dobbs decision by the U.S. Supreme Court, state governments decide how they’ll regulate abortion. This includes which organizations receive reproductive health funding. 

Crisis pregnancy centers, religiously affiliated organizations that advertise free pregnancy tests and ultrasounds but dissuade women from pursuing abortions, are seeing an influx of taxpayer dollars. At the same time, officials are pulling funding from Planned Parenthood and other health clinics across the country.

States Newsroom conducted a 50-state investigation examining state and federal budgets, as well as the tax records of hundreds of crisis pregnancy centers around the country. 

In Episode 18, you’ll hear from States Newsroom reproductive rights reporter Sofia Resnick, who will break down how this is playing out and how public money is being spent. 

You’ll also hear from Dr. Kristin Lyerly, an OB-GYN based in Sheboygan, Wisconsin. Since 2013, Lyerly has worked in rural Minnesota, Arizona and a Wisconsin Planned Parenthood clinic. She’ll share her firsthand experiences at the center of the fight over abortion access.

Finally, Evening Wrap newsletter author Danielle Gaines shares the top stories she’s watching.

Episode produced and edited by Mallory Cheng. Music for Stories From The States composed by David Singer. 

Click here for the full transcript.

Relevant reading from States Newsroom outlets and partners: 

Got questions? An episode idea? Email us at [email protected]

Photo: Crisis pregnancy centers have been the beneficiary of at least a half-billion dollars since the U.S. Supreme Court ended federal abortion protections in June 2022, a States Newsroom investigation found. The centers discourage women from seeking abortion and contraception, which medical experts say compromises public health. (Illustration by David Jack Browning for States Newsroom)

For years, voucher and scholarship programs that used taxpayer dollars for private school tuition were limited to low-income or special needs students. 

Now, states like Arizona, Iowa and Texas have universal programs that allow any student to use public money for private school tuition. By the 2026-2027 school year, at least 17 states are expected to have that policy. 

There’s been a significant shift in the conversation about school choice in state legislation. Advocates say it gives parents options. Critics argue there’s not enough oversight over public dollars that billionaires are lobbying for.

In Episode 17, you’ll hear about the culture shift on school choice. Joining us will be Joshua Cowen, a professor of education policy at Michigan State University who wrote “The Privateers: How Billionaires Created a Culture War and Sold School Vouchers.” 

And we’ll look at South Carolina, where legislators are dealing with some unintended consequences of a school voucher law they wrote in 2025. They’re now debating whether homeschooled students should be included in the voucher system. 

South Carolina Daily Gazette reporter Skylar Laird, who has been covering this, will discuss her reporting.

Finally, Evening Wrap newsletter author Danielle Gaines shares the top stories she’s watching.

Episode produced and edited by Mallory Cheng. Music for Stories From The States composed by David Singer.

Click here for the full transcript: 

Relevant reading from States Newsroom outlets and partners: 

Photo: A sign held by a teacher at a rally at the Arizona Capitol on June 5, 2024, to advocate for restrictions on the state’s school voucher system, known as Empowerment Scholarship Accounts. (Photo by Jerod MacDonald-Evoy/Arizona Mirror)

Since President Donald Trump’s return to office, elections have been a priority for his administration. 

The FBI raid of an election warehouse in Fulton County, Georgia, seizing 2020 ballots. The Department of Justice demanding voter registration lists and other information from all states. Mail-in ballots at risk of not being postmarked. Trump’s threat of a federal takeover of state elections.

Trump has continued to push false claims that the 2020 election was stolen. The DOJ sued 21 states plus the District of Columbia in an attempt to gain access to state voter rolls.

But in Georgia and across the states, election officials and lawyers are trying to prevent the Trump administration from succeeding.

In Episode 16, you’ll hear from Fulton County Commissioner Rob Pitts. He sued the DOJ to get the county’s election records back and to find out why they were taken. 

You’ll hear from Elisabeth Frost, the Litigation Chair at Elias Law Group, who has been leading the effort to push back against lawsuits filed by the DOJ to access states’ sensitive voter data.

And Stateline reporter Jonathan Shorman, who covers democracy, will fill us in on potential problems with mail-in voting and how those ballots will be counted.

Finally, Evening Wrap newsletter author Danielle Gaines shares the top stories she’s watching.

Episode produced and edited by Mallory Cheng. Music for Stories From The States composed by David Singer. 

Click here for the full transcript: 

Relevant reading from States Newsroom outlets and partners: 

Photo: Fulton County Police officers stand by outside county election headquarters while FBI agents seize documents related to the 2020 election. (Ross Williams/Georgia Recorder)

President Donald Trump is still pushing Republican-led states to redistrict their congressional maps to help the GOP maintain control of the House of Representatives after the 2026 midterm elections.

It led to an unusual burst of mid-decade redistricting in some states, such as Texas and North Carolina that have passed new maps increasing a GOP advantage.

Democratic-led states California and Virginia are pushing for redraws of their congressional maps to counter them.

Meanwhile, Maryland state legislators are at an impasse on whether to change their maps, after a House-approved redistricting plan got stalled in the Senate. 

In Episode 15, Maryland Matters reporter Bryan Sears will break down on what’s going on in Annapolis. 

Over in Alabama, they’ve enacted new state Senate maps drawn by an unexpected mapmaker — a college freshman.

You’ll meet Daniel DiDonato, a student at the University of Alabama and a cartographer. 

Finally, Evening Wrap newsletter author Danielle Gaines shares the top stories she’s watching.

Episode produced and edited by Mallory Cheng. Music for Stories From The States composed by David Singer. 

Click here for the full transcript: 

Relevant reading from States Newsroom outlets and partners: 

Got questions? An episode idea? Email us at [email protected]

Photo: Daniel DiDonato, an 18-year-old student at the University of Alabama, working on a state Senate district map in a common study area in Martha Parham Hall in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. DiDonato created the map that a federal judge ordered to be implemented for Alabama's 2026 and 2030 elections after ruling that the Montgomery-area districts violated Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act. (Anna Barrett/Alabama Reflector)

For years, private prison companies have been a key partner to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement as the government carried out its immigration agenda. In 2025, they’ve been rapidly expanding, though they’re also facing pushback in several states. 

CoreCivic is one of the biggest private prison companies in the United States, whose pockets have gotten substantially deeper after President Donald Trump was reelected into office. 

With larger projected revenue, CoreCivic is expanding its operations. 

One place they’ve been eyeing is in Leavenworth, Kansas, where they’d like to reopen the Leavenworth Detention Center, which was closed in 2021. 

They’re meeting fierce opposition, though, as many former CoreCivic corrections officers and community members are speaking out against it.

In Episode 14, you’ll hear from William Rogers. He is a former employee of CoreCivic and has become a grassroots advocate speaking out against the Leavenworth Detention Center reopening. 

The company is also facing hundreds of lawsuits that accuse the company of failing to keep detainees safe.

Meanwhile, CoreCivic is facing hundreds of lawsuits across the country that accuse the company of failing to keep detainees safe. Most notably, Tennessee's largest state prison run by CoreCivic is drawing scrutiny from state officials who are questioning how the company handled a June 2025 riot at its Trousdale Turner Correctional Center.

Tennessee Lookout reporter Sam Stockard will help explain how entrenched CoreCivic is in the Volunteer State.

Finally, Evening Wrap newsletter author Danielle Gaines shares the top stories she’s watching.

Episode produced and edited by Mallory Cheng. Music for Stories From The States composed by David Singer.

Click here for the full transcript: 

Relevant reading from States Newsroom outlets and partners: 

Photo: William Rogers speaks about his experience at the facility. Rogers wore a graphic shirt with images of injuries sustained by corrections officers while employed by CoreCivic. (Natasha Torkzaban for Kansas Reflector)

For decades, government funding was withheld from historically Black public colleges and universities, such as Tennessee State University. 

States across the South have grappled with the question: What could be possible if those debts were repaid?

In Episode 13, we’ll hear from our colleagues at the Tennessee Lookout and WPLN News. 

Together, they produced The Debt, a reported project and podcast that traces Tennessee State University’s decades-long fight for fair funding. 

You’ll hear from journalists Emily Siner and Camellia Burris, whose reporting examined an overlooked Civil Rights lawsuit, a historic merger with a predominantly white university, a dramatic student hunger strike, and a lawmaker who discovered his father’s old research on underfunding. 

Episode produced and edited by Mallory Cheng. Music for Stories From The States composed by David Singer. A special thank you to Tennessee Lookout and WPLN News.

Relevant reading from States Newsroom outlets and partners: 

Got questions? An episode idea? Email us at [email protected]

Photo: Almost since its founding after Reconstruction, Tennessee State University has fought for funding. (Photo: John Partipilo/Tennessee Lookout)