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Good morning, it’s Wednesday, July 15, 2026. In today’s edition, states object to federal grant award rules; Hawaii to raise teacher pay; abortion rights measure to appear on Idaho ballot:
Top Stories
FEDERALISM: Federal officials are proposing a rule that would allow executive branch agencies to cancel or refuse to award discretionary grants if they determine those grants are ineffective or do not further administration goals. The rule could threaten road, bridge, public health and childcare programs, among others. State officials have raised concerns over the rule, while Democratic attorneys general have repeatedly sued the administration to force them to award grant money. (Pluribus News)
EDUCATION: Washington Gov. Bob Ferguson (D) has proposed requiring high school seniors to fill out the Free Application for Federal Student Aid as a condition for graduation. The proposal would allow students to opt out. Superintendent of Public Instruction Chris Reykdal (D) has proposed adding a yearlong course on financial literacy and postsecondary readiness to graduation requirements. (Seattle Times)
MORE: Hawaii Gov. Josh Green (D) has signed legislation raising teacher pay, including annual longevity raises. Green also signed legislation lowering minimum meal costs that schools must recover, allowing the Department of Education to reduce prices of student meals. (Hawaii News Now)
TAXES: A year after the Republican reconciliation bill passed Congress, most of the 42 states that have income taxes have declined to incorporate parts of the law in their own tax codes. Florida, Georgia and Idaho have joined Democratic states like California and Maryland in rejecting corporate tax breaks. Only 10 states have gone along with federal deductions on tipped income. (ITEP)
HOUSING: Pennsylvania’s new state budget includes funding for a database of public housing units. The Senate Urban Affairs and Housing Committee and the state House have advanced separate but similar bills removing restrictions on alternative dwelling units. (State Affairs)
ENERGY: Republican governors of Montana, Wyoming and Missouri have signed on to President Trump’s Ratepayer Protection Pledge, a set of principles requiring data center developers to pay fair shares of energy and water costs and electric grid improvements. Spokespeople for Democratic governors said they had not been asked to sign the pledge. (Politico)
PJM, the nation’s largest electrical grid operator, released the results of an electricity auction that will add $6.3 billion in costs to households and businesses within the next three years, driven by data center power demands. (New York Times)
In Politics & Business
IDAHO: Supporters of abortion rights have submitted enough signatures to qualify a ballot measure this year that would bar the state from prohibiting or interfering with reproductive health care, including contraception, fertility treatment and miscarriage management. The measure would roll back abortion bans enacted in the wake of the Dobbs decision. (Idaho Statesman)
WISCONSIN: The state Elections Commission voted to refer two complaints to the Brown County District Attorney’s office alleging Elon Musk broke state laws against election bribery when he gave $1 million checks to voters ahead of the 2025 state Supreme Court race. Musk spent more than $20 million backing a conservative candidate who lost the race. (Wisconsin Examiner)
MORE: Lt. Gov. Sara Rodriguez (D) may have overstated donations to her campaign by at least $137,500, according to a State Affairs review of campaign filings. Democratic rivals said the accounting error, which Rodriguez blamed on her fired campaign manager, is disqualifying. (State Affairs)
INDIANA: Former Indianapolis Mayor Greg Ballard, running under the Lincoln Party banner, has submitted enough signatures to appear on the November ballot. Ballard raised more money since April than either Republican nominee Max Engling or Democratic nominee Beau Bayh. (State Affairs)
CRIME BLOTTER: Nevada Gov. Joe Lombardo (R) talked his way out of a red-light violation near the Las Vegas Strip in May. Body camera footage shows Lombardo identifying himself to a police officer, who then let him go. (Fox5)
MORE: The criminal trial of Montana Sen. Jason Ellsworth (R) began Tuesday over accusations of attempting to direct a state contract to a longtime friend. Ellsworth allegedly steered a $170,000 contract during his time as a legislative leader. No money ever changed hands. Ellsworth denies the allegations. (Montana Free Press)
By The Numbers
9%: The share of Americans who have a great deal or quite a lot of confidence in Congress. An annual Gallup poll has found Americans’ faith in institutions waning for the last 40 years. (Pluribus News)
14.8%: The return the California Public Employees Retirement System earned on its investments in the last year, one of the strongest returns in a decade. CalPERS CEO Marcie Frost said the agency now has 85% of the money needed to cover future pension benefits. (Sacramento Bee)
160,000: The number of attendees at Boston’s FIFA Fan Festival during the World Cup. Fans came from 108 countries, according to Massachusetts Gov. Maura Healey’s (D) office. (State Affairs)
Off The Wall
Sotheby’s has sold the world’s most expensive fossil, a 12-foot tall Tyrannosaurus rex unearthed in South Dakota in 2021. The skeleton, named Gus, sold at auction on Tuesday for $50.1 million after a ten-minute bidding war. (New York Times)
The Hillsborough County, Fla., School District is changing its grading policies after senior Vaibhav Bhaskar graduated with a record 11.99 GPA. Bhaskar achieved the record by winning bonuses for taking 20 AP classes and 24 college courses during his high school tenure. (UPI)
Quote of the Day
“We are prepared to go to war for Arizona and we’re going to win. We want Arizonans to know that we’re going to be okay.”
— Arizona House Speaker Steve Montenegro (R), on potential cuts in allocations from the Colorado River. Montenegro said upper basin states “have not done their part. They’re looking to penalize us for something they have not been able to do and we’re not just going to let that happen.” (State Affairs)