states taking action

But a staggering 44 states have argued that these platforms are, in fact, gambling and should be subjected to state gaming laws and taxes.

“The substance of the sports event contracts offered on Kalshi’s (exchange) is sports gambling, regardless of whether Kalshi calls them swaps,” the appeals panel wrote Friday, adding that “Kalshi’s attempts to distinguish its sports event contracts from sportsbooks betting are unpersuasive.”

The judges also said it was “disingenuous” for Kalshi to argue in court that its products weren’t sports-betting when it previously used that phrasing in marketing materials.

The following essays, like the chapters in the book from which they are drawn, Fight Back: How States Can Counter Authoritarianism (New Press, forthcoming 2027), suggest why this situation is not irreversible. They demonstrate that state and local governments have constitutional and legal powers that can be harnessed as a force to challenge repressive federal actions and to advance a more substantive and meaningful kind of freedom and equality — terms that can be understood, and conditions that can be enjoyed by conservatives and liberals alike.

“Preserving the Chesapeake Bay is crucial to the long-term success of our state’s economy, culture and identity,” said Moore. “The Bay’s rivers and streams support our local environment, seafood, tourism and recreational businesses, and our administration is committed to improving its water quality and protecting the Bay as a precious heirloom to pass down to future generations in a better condition than we received it.”

“For years, communities have fought to end the use of paraquat, a weedkiller associated with negative impacts to human health and wildlife,” said California Secretary for Environmental Protection Yana Garcia in a statement. “California will keep moving toward pest management practices that protect health and our ecosystems.”

Millions of pounds of paraquat pesticide are sprayed annually on almonds, grapes, cotton and other crops, primarily in the San Joaquin Valley.

It is California’s first major pesticide phaseout since 2019, when regulators announced the state was ending virtually all uses of chlorpyrifos, a pesticide linked to neurological issues.

Gov. Katie Hobbs announced Wednesday that more than $1 billion in medical debt has been erased for nearly 671,000 residents through a partnership with the national nonprofit Undue Medical Debt.

The initiative, which uses no state funds, targets Arizonans who owe at least 5% of their annual income in medical bills or earn at or below 400% of the federal poverty level.

The nonprofit purchases bundled medical debt portfolios from hospitals and collection agencies for a fraction of their face value.

Letters notifying more than 200,000 additional recipients will begin arriving this week. There is no application process. In fact, those eligible do not need to take any action.

“We are restoring hope, dignity and peace of mind for hundreds of thousands of Arizonans,” Hobbs said in a statement.

Medical debt in Arizona was previously estimated at $2.4 billion.

“I've heard heartbreaking stories from women and families who were preparing to welcome a healthy baby into their family, only to receive devastating news later in their pregnancy. Instead of being able to rely on the doctors they knew and trusted at home, they were forced to travel hundreds of miles and pay out of their pockets while navigating unimaginable grief,” said Governor Healey. “That should never happen in Massachusetts. This law continues our efforts to have the strongest abortion protections in the country because in Massachusetts, we believe health care decisions should be made between women and their doctors.”

Walz's directive prohibits state executive branch employees from using non-public data or confidential information to make wagers through the markets.

The governor says that a person's position in government "should not and cannot give them an unfair financial advantage."

Allegations of government insider trading have been made against officials in the military and the Trump White House.

“The ScholarShare Investment Board has a responsibility to ensure California families have access to strong, affordable, and well-diversified investment options,” said California State Treasurer and Chair of the SIB Fiona Ma, CPA. “This update reflects the Board’s careful, data-driven review of performance, fees, and long-term risk, resulting in an investment choice that strengthens ScholarShare 529’s competitiveness while supporting California’s broader efforts to reduce reliance on fossil fuels, all while maintaining rigorous fiduciary standards.”

A coalition of states is suing the Federal Emergency Management Agency and the Department of Homeland Security, accusing the Trump administration of withholding hundreds of millions of dollars in disaster-preparedness and homeland security grants to force states to adopt its policies on elections and immigration. 

The complaint challenges new conditions imposed on the funding that would require states to verify voter citizenship through a federal database, move toward hand-marked paper ballots, conduct federally prescribed election audits and cooperate with federal immigration enforcement. 

The lawsuit was filed by a group of 25 states and the District of Columbia.

New York officials sued prediction market platform Kalshi for potentially billions of dollars on Friday, calling it an “illegal, unlicensed gambling operation” that includes sports wagering as the state seeks to halt its operations and force the company to forfeit its profits.

New York joins a growing number of states filing lawsuits against Kalshi and other companies in a dispute with President Donald Trump’s administration over who regulates the fast-growing prediction market. Kalshi and other platforms argue they are federally licensed and regulated, and states have no authority to govern them.