Good morning, it’s Wednesday, June 3, 2026. In today’s edition, Hilton, Becerra lead in California, Iowa GOP frontrunner upset; states scramble to adapt to Medicaid rules; Colorado to limit sports betting:
Top Stories
MEDICAID: The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services issued an interim final rule this week setting a national framework for states to administer work requirements for Medicaid recipients. The rule sent states scrambling to overhaul work requirement plans under stricter limitations than many policymakers and advocates had anticipated. The rule mandates enrollees prove medical conditions that prevent them from working, a measure that goes beyond the law adopted by Congress. (Pluribus News)
HEALTHCARE: Massachusetts lawmakers are considering adding pharmacy benefit manager reform to a primary care reform bill making its way through the state Senate. House lawmakers say they are considering transparency issues. Legislation that’s already been introduced would ensure that 340B providers get discounted drug prices without interference from drug makers or distributors. (State Affairs)
GAMBLING: Colorado Gov. Jared Polis (D) has signed legislation setting daily deposit limits, banning certain phone app push notifications and barring the use of credit cards to place bets on sports betting sites. The bill limits gamblers to six deposits in a 24-hour period. It also requires the state to issue a report on the gambling industry’s impact on consumers. (Colorado Public Radio)
A judge in Carson City, Nev., has granted the Nevada Gaming Control Board’s motion for a preliminary injunction blocking prediction market company Polymarket from operating in the state. (Las Vegas Review-Journal)
ENERGY: New York Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie (D) said lawmakers will approve legislation placing a one-year moratorium on data center construction. Lawmakers have to rush the bill ahead of the end of legislative session on Friday. Gov. Kathy Hochul (D) hasn’t commented on a moratorium. (State of Politics)
MORE: Seven Democratic-controlled states have sued the Trump administration over its plans to block a wind farm off the coast of New York. The lawsuit seeks to overturn a deal the administration reached with TotalEnergies, the French company building the farm, that would have the government pay TotalEnergies $928 million to abandon construction. The suit is led by New York Attorney General Letitia James (D). (New York Times)
REDISTRICTING: A Florida appeals court has refused to fast-track a legal battle over new congressional district lines to the state Supreme Court. The decision is potentially the final blow in Democratic efforts to beat back the Republican-led redistricting plan. (State Affairs) The U.S. Supreme Court issued an unsigned order allowing Alabama to use new congressional district maps that will eliminate one of two Black-majority seats. The state plans an Aug. 11 special primary. (AL.com)
TAXES: Florida lawmakers have approved a proposed constitutional amendment to cut billions in property taxes. The amendment will appear on the November ballot. The proposal would double homestead exemptions for non-school taxes to $150,000 in 2027, and raise the exemption to $250,000 in 2028. (State Affairs)
In Politics & Business
CALIFORNIA: Conservative commentator Steve Hilton (R) leads the all-party primary in early returns with 28% of the vote, followed by former HHS Secretary Xavier Becerra (D) at 25% and billionaire Tom Steyer (D) at 20%. About 58% of the expected vote is in. (State Affairs, Los Angeles Times)
A reminder: California takes forever to count its ballots.
IOWA: Investment executive Zach Lahn (R) pulled off the surprise upset in the race for the Republican nomination for governor, edging out U.S. Rep. Randy Feenstra (R) by a margin of about 1,600 votes out of about 213,000 cast. Lahn, a political newcomer, will face state Auditor Rob Sand (D) in November. (Des Moines Register)
President Trump had endorsed Feenstra earlier this week. Lahn had the MAHA movement behind his campaign.
NEW MEXICO: Former Interior Secretary Deb Haaland (D) took 72% of the vote to win the Democratic gubernatorial nomination. On the GOP side, former Rio Rancho Mayor Gregg Hull (R) took 47%, beating out businessman Doug Turner (R), who took 37% of the vote. (Santa Fe New Mexican)
SOUTH DAKOTA: Businessman Toby Doeden (R) claimed 31% of the vote on Tuesday, while Gov. Larry Rhoden (R) took 25%. Both will advance to a July 28 runoff. The winner will face former state Sen. Dan Ahlers (D), who ran unopposed for the Democratic nomination. (South Dakota Searchlight)
MINNESOTA: House Speaker Lisa Demuth (R) will run in the August primary seeking the GOP nomination for governor, reversing her earlier position that she would not run if she didn’t receive the party’s endorsement at its annual convention. Demuth lost the endorsement to businessman Kendall Qualls (R). (MPR News)
By The Numbers
294: The number of hospitals at immediate risk of closure in the next two to three years, according to a new report from the Center for Healthcare Quality and Payment Reform. In most states, more than 25% of rural hospitals are at risk of closing. (Becker’s Hospital Review)
$25 million: The amount the artist Wyland is seeking from FIFA, soccer’s governing body, after the group painted over a giant mural depicting life-size swimming whales to promote the upcoming World Cup. Wyland’s mural stood for almost 30 years before workers painted over it earlier this year. (Associated Press)
Off The Wall
Voters in Bayville, N.Y., will face a mayoral election with no candidates this year. Mayor Steve Minicozzi announced in April he wouldn’t seek re-election. No one else filed to run. The position can be time-consuming, and it comes with compensation of just $5,000 a year. (UPI)
A Washington State man is under arrest after he allegedly stole a semi-truck full of cattle and then sent the victim a ransom note demanding $20,000 to return the animals. The man was arrested after he returned to the scene of the alleged crime to speak with investigators. Apparently his wife owns the truck, but it wasn’t clear why he accosted the driver. (KFLD)
Vatican theologians voted unanimously to advance the cause for beatification and canonization for Sister Blandina Segale, who traveled to Santa Fe in the 1870s to establish hospitals and public schools. Supporters of Sister Blandina, known as “The Fastest Nun in the West,” say they have evidence of 58 miracles she performed during her lifetime. (Santa Fe New Mexican)
Quote of the Day
“Is the buggy lobby … real? I hear they’re very powerful.”
— Tennessee Rep. Kip Copley (R), on legislation barring towns and cities from regulating shopping carts or imposing fines on businesses for abandoned carts on public property. (State Affairs)