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Apartment construction cools rents in some regions
Read more Stateline coverage of how communities across the country are trying to create more affordable housing. A historic rate of apartment building is starting to make a difference in Sun Belt rents, but most tenants are still paying way more than they did earlier in the decade and rents are still rising in many Northeast and […]
Junk food and drug use cut into life expectancy gains for states
After large drops during the pandemic, life expectancy in the United States should recover to 2019 levels this year nationally and in 26 states — but not as fast as it should compared with similar countries, according to a new study. Bad habits such as junk food, smoking and illicit drug use are preventing longer […]
Immigration drives nation’s population growth
A recent immigration surge brought newcomers to every state this year, helping to offset a continued drop in U.S. births while contributing to a national upswing of about 3.3 million new residents, according to new U.S. Census Bureau estimates. Texas and Florida continued to dominate state population growth, together adding more than 1 million people […]
Ruling by a conservative Supreme Court could help blue states resist Trump policies
A major U.S. Supreme Court decision this summer was hailed as a conservative court’s broadside against a Democratic administration, giving red states more backing to delay or overturn policies they don’t like, such as transgender protections and clean energy goals. But the ruling in the Loper Bright case, which granted courts more power to scrutinize […]
The next census will gather more racial, ethnic information
The U.S. Census Bureau and a growing number of states are starting to gather more detailed information about Americans’ race and ethnicity, a change some advocates of the process say will allow people to choose identities that more closely reflect how they see themselves. Crunching and sorting through those specific details — known as data […]
Manufacturing already has made a comeback
Before the COVID-19 pandemic, McLean County, Illinois, was known mostly as the home of State Farm Insurance in Bloomington and Illinois State University in Normal. Now, the area illustrates a trend that’s bringing more factories to small cities with lower costs of living: It has thousands of new jobs manufacturing Rivian electric vehicles and a […]
Overdose deaths are rising among Black and Indigenous Americans
The recent decline in overdose deaths hides a tremendous disparity by race: Deaths have fallen only among white people while continuing to rise among people of color, according to a new Stateline analysis of federal data. Health experts in nonwhite communities say they’re finding strategies that work in their areas, but that they still struggle for […]
Overdose deaths are down nationally, but up in many Western states
Despite an encouraging national dip in the past year, overdose deaths are still on the rise in many Western states as the epicenter of the nation’s continuing crisis shifts toward the Pacific Coast, where deadly fentanyl and also methamphetamine are finding more victims. Overdose deaths remain sharply higher since 2019. Many states are working on […]
Haitian immigrants find new footholds, and familiar backlash, in the Midwest, South
Fortified with work authorizations and a new freedom, Haitian immigrants are moving out of their longtime strongholds in Florida and New York, often finding good jobs while remaining wary of how they will be received in new places in the Midwest and South. This movement helps explain why Haitian immigrants in Springfield, Ohio, have become […]
Rent is eating up a greater share of tenants’ income in almost every state
There were 21 states where a majority of tenant households spent 30% or more of their incomes on rent and utilities last year, compared with just seven states in 2019. Nationwide, about 22 million renters are shouldering that percentage. Anyone paying more than 30% is considered “cost burdened,” according to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban […]
The nation’s last refuge for affordable homes is in Northeast Ohio
At 43, Sharon Reese is a housing market refugee — forced to return to her Ohio hometown after 18 years in Las Vegas, despite a successful career training dancers for nightclub acts. “If you don’t have between $600,000 and $800,000, you’re not buying a house out there,” Reese said. “Las Vegas has a lot of […]
Dark highways, fast cars, few sidewalks — and more pedestrian deaths
BERNALILLO COUNTY, N.M. — Bianca Quintana was just taking a walk in the early morning dark near her mother’s house on South Coors Boulevard. There, the city streets of Albuquerque give way to feed stores and irrigation ditches, and the sounds of chickens and crickets mingle with high-speed traffic noise. Quintana, a 31-year-old mother of […]