Explore how Southern states are addressing housing affordability through zoning reform, corporate housing policies, and AI rent-setting legislation.

State leaders reported meaningful reductions in violent crime, overdose deaths, and homelessness, and announced major investments in law enforcement, mental health, and crisis response.

New Jersey, Utah, Virginia, and Washington discuss their different "Aligning Health and Safety" approaches and some of the challenges they’ve experienced. 

What options are available for states to provide property tax relief? What policies have been enacted or are being considered in the region’s legislatures? Those questions and more were the subject of informational sessions held for South Dakota legislators in early February.

An innovative framework for states to implement fair chance licensing laws.

Cam Ward draws on decades of public service to show why justice works best when leaders, data and systems collaborate. As director of the Alabama Bureau of Pardons and Paroles, he highlights how the CSG Justice Center provides trusted guidance and practical strategies that turn evidence into action — helping states reduce recidivism, strengthen reentry systems, and build safer, healthier communities.

Research-driven strategies for states to prevent violence, expand opportunity, and reduce justice system involvement for youth

The Latest From Reentry 2030 States 25 Reentry Wins in 2025: How States Are Removing Barriers to Reentry Success  January 2026 Last year tested the resilience of reentry systems nationwide. Amid budget cuts, staffing shortages, and growing service demands, partners across the 7 states in our Reentry 2030 initiative stayed focused on whole-of-government solutions that reduce barriers to reentry success for people leaving incarceration.   Their persistence and cross-system coordination turned a challenging year into one marked […]

As we mark America’s 250th anniversary in 2026, CSG is proud to celebrate not only our nation’s founding ideals but the people who bring those ideals to life every day in state capitols and communitie...

Your Front Row Seat to State Policy

The fourth installment of the nonpartisan CSG 50-State Scan research series, “Building Healthy Communities, Strengthening States: How States are Meeting Today's Public Health Challenges," is a strategic overview of the public health landscape that provides state and territorial officials with actionable insights and emerging trends to guide effective policy decisions.

CSG South Senior Policy Analyst Tom Opdyke delivered a virtual presentation, “Data Centers: Energy Projections and Economic Drivers in the South,” covering the number of data centers across the region, their energy use, state tax incentives, and recent legislative actions shaping the industry.

Public servants make many sacrifices to serve their communities. Campaigns can strain their personal finances, while the heightened visibility of public life can take a toll on their mental health. Increasingly, however, state officials must weigh their desire to serve against the growing threats to their personal safety — like doxxing, which is when personal information is maliciously posted online — an unfortunate calculation that is reshaping their decision to hold public office.

CSG Midwest is offering a series of web-based learning opportunities designed for legislators, legislative staff and other policy leaders. These webinars kick off on Nov. 13 with a look at policy options to improve school safety and conclude on Dec. 17 with a focus on farm succession planning and the impacts of state laws and programs.

How do policy officer training requirements differ across southern states? Each state’s Peace Officer Standards and Training (POST) board or an equivalent accreditation body governs police officer training and certification requirements for all police agencies, including state troopers, city/county police departments, Sheriff’s Offices, and special police.

Artificial intelligence could transform education more than any previous technology—but only if schools proactively engage with it, said Jason Neiffer, Executive Director of the Montana Digital Academy and creator of the nation’s first AI help desk for educators.

Expanding First Response Commission The national Expanding First Response Commission launched in February 2023 with 21 leaders from across the...

In recent years, false reports have been increasingly used to target, intimidate or harm public officials. Since 2013, 15 states have enacted legislation to expand the scope of existing false reportin...

Counties should use this toolkit to consider their readiness as pre-work to revisit, grow, or implement any initiative, including Stepping Up.

From Lesson Plans to Building Plans: Addressing the School Workforce Shortage Through Housing took place in... Read More

Chief Innovation Officer Dave Cole said the cost is about $1 per user, per month, and has already helped employees save hours of time by helping with various tasks.

Supervision was meant to help people stay out of prison, but too often it sends them back for breaking rules, not laws.

Across the nation, legislators are taking steps to reduce the usage of cellphones and other electronic devices in schools. States are seeing increased

In April, Congress passed a budget resolution launching the reconciliation process — a fast-track tool with major implications for states. Lawmakers are now set to craft a sweeping package focused on ...

New Mexico launched a pilot program in 2024 to divert people with mental health needs and misdemeanor charges out of the justice system and into care.

Many states have already acknowledged the importance of an interdisciplinary, inter-agency approach to public sector AI governance with the creation of statewide task forces and commissions to develop...

Presented by CSG South in collaboration with the State Exchange on Employment and Disability (SEED) About... Read More

The state is on course to stand up a taxpayer-funded nuclear power incentive fund, following a Texas Senate vote on Tuesday. If it passes, the proposal would dedicate an estimated $350 million toward ...

The initiative is part of California's larger initiative to integrate more generative AI tools in state government.

The platform is the first of its kind to break down care delivery county by county and help understand how well treatment is working.

A Pennsylvania Senate Committee unanimously approved a pair of bills during a meeting on Tuesday, including a proposal that would ban TikTok from being downloaded on state-owned networks and devices.

Twenty-five legislators from nine Midwestern states and the Canadian province of Saskatchewan took a deep-dive into the future of artificial...

Indiana’s energy landscape has transformed over the past decade, and the state is seeing significant growth in demand, largely driven by data centers, electrification, and increased domestic manufactu...

North Dakota has published a new website that collects data from across the state and federal governments.

People returning to their communities after incarceration face significant health challenges, including high rates of mental illness and substance use disorder. They also encounter substantial barrier...