Good morning, it’s Tuesday, July 8, 2025. In today’s edition, how Trump’s big beautiful bill hits the states; California refuses to comply with trans athlete order; U.S. Rep. Nunn reconsiders Iowa Gov bid:
Top Stories
HEALTH CARE: State lawmakers are bracing for major changes to health care delivery under the budget reconciliation bill President Trump signed last week that could cost millions their insurance coverage. The measure requires certain adults to work as a condition of Medicaid eligibility.
It also freezes provider taxes that help finance Medicaid and caps “state-directed payments” that Medicaid managed care plans pay to providers. And it eliminates the 90% federal match for Medicaid expansion under the Affordable Care Act. (Pluribus News)
That last provision means Medicaid expansion efforts are almost certainly dead in the ten states that have yet to approve it. And several red states approved “trigger” mechanisms to end Medicaid expansion if the federal match ever disappeared.
SAFETY NET: The budget reconciliation bill will also shift responsibility for funding some food stamp programs to the states, based on how accurately state and local officials determine who is eligible for those programs. States with higher error rates will be required to shoulder more of the cost of benefits. The bill cuts funding for state food stamp programs in half beginning in Fiscal Year 2027. (Pluribus News)
IMMIGRATION: California and 17 other states are backing a lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of federal immigration enforcement raids in Los Angeles. Advocacy groups last week filed suit accusing ICE agents of violating individual rights by detaining people based on the color of their skin. (Los Angeles Times)
LGBTQ RIGHTS: California’s Department of Education will refuse to comply with a federal order to rescind sports prizes awarded to transgender athletes and to ban those athletes from student sports. California has had a law on the books allowing athletes to participate in sports events that align with their gender identity since 2013. (Sacramento Bee)
AID IN DYING: Maine lawmakers have approved legislation shortening the mandatory 17-day waiting period before a physician provides end-of-life medication. Patients who choose end-of-life care will now have to wait a minimum of seven days before they can receive medication. (Maine Public Radio)
STADIUMS: Kansas lawmakers approved a one-year extension for a bond package aimed at wooing the Kansas City Chiefs and Royals across state lines. The Chiefs have offered several rounds of proposals to the state Commerce Department as they consider where to locate practice and playing facilities. (State Affairs)
In Politics & Business
IOWA: U.S. Rep. Zach Nunn (R) is reconsidering his decision not to run for governor in 2026. Nunn is rethinking after Attorney General Brenna Bird (R) unexpectedly decided against running to replace retiring Gov. Kim Reynolds (R). Nunn holds one of the most competitive congressional districts in the country. (Des Moines Register)
SOUTH CAROLINA: Sen. Stephen Goldfinch (R) will run for attorney general next year. Goldfinch is the first Republican to enter the race to replace incumbent Alan Wilson (R), who is running for governor. (SC Daily Gazette)
ILLINOIS: Senate President Don Harmon (D) has formally appealed a state Board of Elections fundraising review that alleged he received $4 million more than campaign finance law allowed. Harmon faces fines of up to $9.8 million. He has denied wrongdoing or violating any rules. (Forest Park Review)
PEOPLE: Alabama Sen. Tom Butler (R), 81, will announce his retirement today. Butler has served in the legislature since winning election to the House in 1982, with a brief hiatus between 2010 and 2018. (AL.com)
By The Numbers
748: The new area code for Colorado’s Western Slope, covering towns from Grand Junction to Aspen and Vail. New phone numbers will start being issued once numbers in the 970 area code are completely exhausted. (Colorado Public Radio)
$565,000: The median price of a single family home in New Hampshire in June, a 4.6% increase over last year. June marked the 65th consecutive month New Hampshire has seen a year-over-year increase in the median home price. (New Hampshire Union Leader)
$221,695: The amount 70 registered lobbyists reported spending on the West Virginia legislature during the state’s 60-day legislative session. That’s down 39% from the amount spent during the 2024 legislative session. (WVNews)
Off The Wall
Lawyers representing MyPillow CEO Mike Lindell have been ordered to pay $3,000 each after they used AI to prepare an error-ridden court filing that cited nonexistent cases and misquoted existing case law. The lawyers initially claimed the filing was a draft, but a later version still included substantive errors — including some that didn’t appear in the first draft. (Colorado Sun)
The Government of Singapore’s Investment Corporation owns more than 540,000 acres of land in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula, making the city-state the single largest owner of foreign agricultural land in the state. Though it’s not clear how much of a profit Singapore is making, the land is valuable timber-harvesting area. (Bridge MI)
Quote of the Day
“I said, ‘Andrew, are you that level of arrogance? I’m the sitting mayor of the city of New York and you expect me to step aside when you just lost to Zohran by 12 points.”
— New York City Mayor Eric Adams, running for re-election as an independent, on his conversation with former Gov. Andrew Cuomo, also running as an independent, after Assemblyman Zohran Mamdani (D) won the Democratic primary. Adams and Cuomo both asked each other to drop out of the race. (State of Politics)