Good morning, it’s Friday, October 10, 2025. In today’s edition, California tax revenue soars on tech spike; judge blocks Guard deployment in Illinois; new polls in Virginia, New York City:
Top Stories
TAXES: California has collected $1.8 billion more in tax revenue than expected since the beginning of the fiscal year on July 1, a 7% bump mostly explained by the booming tech sector and rising pay in Silicon Valley. The higher-than-anticipated tax collections could help the state narrow its $17 billion budget gap projected for next year. (Pluribus News)
NATIONAL GUARD: U.S. District Court Judge April Perry has temporarily blocked the Trump administration from federalizing and deploying National Guard troops in Illinois. In an oral ruling Thursday, Perry said the administration’s “perception of events” around Chicago “are simply unreliable.” Another hearing is set for Oct. 22. (Chicago Sun-Times)
IMMIGRATION: Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds (R) has signed an executive order requiring all state agencies to use E-Verify and SAVE programs to verify the immigration status or citizenship status of those seeking an occupational or professional license. The order also applies to those agencies when they hire new workers themselves. (Des Moines Register)
ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE: Maryland lawmakers will consider legislation regulating AI systems next year. Proposals include plans to guard against misuse, invasion of privacy and the spread of misinformation. Legislation to ban AI systems from discrimination in job applications failed last session. (Baltimore Sun)
PUBLIC HEALTH: The Massachusetts Senate will take up legislation requiring free menstrual products at public schools, correctional facilities and shelters. Another bill set for a floor debate next week requires manufacturers to use labels with plain and conspicuous lists of ingredients. (State Affairs)
ELECTIONS: Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton (R) is siding with the state Republican Party, asking a federal judge to strike down parts of the state election code that allow for open primaries. Paxton’s office gave Secretary of State Jane Nelson (R) less than an hour’s notice that they would side against her agency in the lawsuit. (Texas Tribune)
WILDLIFE: California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) has signed legislation allowing hunters to kill nonnative swans in the midst of an explosion in the mute swan population in the Delta. The aggressive animals chase off native species from their habitats. (State Affairs)
In Politics & Business
VIRGINIA: A new survey from the Republican polling firm Cygnal finds ex-U.S. Rep. Abigail Spanberger (D) leading Lt. Gov. Winsome Earle-Sears (R) 49% to 45%. The Democratic-leaning firm Public Policy Polling finds Spanberger leading 52% to 43%. (WJLA, WJLA)
NEW YORK CITY: A new Quinnipiac University poll taken after Mayor Eric Adams (D) quit the race finds Assemb. Zohran Mamdani (D) leading the field with 46% of the vote, followed by former Gov. Andrew Cuomo (I) at 33% and activist Curtis Sliwa (R) at 15%. Mamdani leads Cuomo in every borough except Staten Island. (Quinnipiac)
OHIO: Gov. Mike DeWine (R) has not yet convened the state Redistricting Commission, which only has until Oct. 31 to pass a bipartisan plan to redraw state congressional district map lines. Senate President Rob McColley (R) predicted the commission’s first meeting will be announced within a week. (State Affairs)
CALIFORNIA: Billionaire Tom Steyer has pledged to spend $12 million on behalf of Proposition 50, the measure to redraw state political boundaries. The contribution makes Steyer the biggest backer of Gov. Newsom’s initiative, surpassing the $10 million given by George Soros. (Los Angeles Times)
CRIME BLOTTER: Top North Carolina leaders in both parties are calling on state Rep. Cecil Brockman (D) to resign after his arrest on indecent liberties and statutory rape charges. Brockman allegedly used his status as an elected official to get information about his victim while the victim was in the hospital. (NC Newsline)
By The Numbers
19%: The decline in international visitors arriving in the United States on student visas in August, compared with August 2024. Arrivals from India, which sends more students to the U.S. than any other country, declined by 45%. (Associated Press)
More than 9,000: The number of North Dakotans who work for the federal government. Those furloughed employees will be eligible to apply for a loan that will be backstopped by the Bank of North Dakota as the government shutdown continues. (Fargo Forum)
Off The Wall
California Gov. Newsom called Thursday an “hiss-torical” day when he signed legislation naming the giant garter snake as the official state snake. Newsom also signed a bill naming the bigberry manzanita the official state shrub. (Newsom’s office)
West Virginia Gov. Patrick Morrisey (R) is walking at least a mile a day to get in shape, he said at an event with Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. Kennedy said he chastised Morrisey for being overweight: “The first time I met him, I said, ‘Gov. Morrisey, you look like you ate Gov. Morrisey,” Kennedy told the crowd. (Associated Press)
Headline of the day: “Mystery cow roped by cowboy on horseback on Pennsylvania highway” (UPI)
Mystery Cow would be an excellent band name.
Quote of the Day
“Oklahomans would lose their mind if Pritzker in Illinois sent troops down to Oklahoma during the Biden administration.”
— Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt (R), chair of the National Governors Association, opposing the deployment of Texas National Guard troops to Illinois over the objections of Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker (D). (New York Times)