Publications on Domestic Policy

This section features selected Pew Research Center reports (since 2005) on domestic policy topics, such as education and health care. Individual project websites contain more reports on this topic. In particular, for information about immigrants and labor markets, please see Pew Hispanic Center; for attitudes regarding the economy and business favorability, see Pew Research Center for the People & the Press; and for attitudes about personal finance and class, see Pew Social & Demographic Trends.

Mixed Views of Economic Policies and Health Care Reform Persist
8 Oct 09Most Americans remain optimistic that Barack Obama’s policies will help the economy, but see no clear signs of recovery yet; many key provisions of health care reform remain popular but support for the overall package has slipped.
Pew Research Center for the People & the Press

The Changing Pathways of Hispanic Youths into Adulthood
7 Oct 09Even as their share of the young adult population has risen dramatically, young Latino adults in the United States have become more likely to be in school or the work force now than their counterparts were in previous generations.
Pew Hispanic Center

Latinos and Education: Explaining the Attainment Gap
7 Oct 09Almost all Latino young adults say a college education is important, but only half say they themselves plan to get a degree. The reason for the disparity: Immigrants, who feel financial pressures to support a family, are half as likely as native-born Latinos to plan on graduating.
Pew Hispanic Center

Health Care Debate Seen as "Rude and Disrespectful"
Debate Continues to Dominate Public Interest
16 Sep 09Health care reform has been the dominant news story since late July, but it now has a 29-point advantage over the second most closely followed story. But most Americans say the tone of the debate has been negative.
Pew Research Center for the People & the Press

Public Souring on Washington
Democratic Party Favorability Falls Sharply
19 Aug 09More say the president and GOP leaders are not working together, as Obama's approval inches lower and the Democratic Party's favorability falls sharply. Opinion about the economy remains negative with personal financial assessments becoming more bearish.
Pew Research Center for the People & the Press

Obama's Advisory Council on Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships
18 Aug 09A new report by the Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life examines President Obama’s faith-based advisory council, including descriptions of their goals and profiles of members.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

Measuring Media: Faith-Based Initiative
12 Aug 09While Obama adopted much of the program put into place by Bush, it has generated little of the contentious press coverage sparked by his predecessor's effort.
Project for Excellence in Journalism

Opinion of State Governments Drops With the Economy, Budget Gaps
New Administration Changes Partisan Views of Federal Government
11 Aug 09The falloff in favorable views has been greater in states with the largest budget gaps. Also, the new administration has shifted partisan views of the federal government dramatically.
Pew Research Center for the People & the Press

Few See U.S. Health Care as 'Best in the World'
24 Jul 09Most Americans rate the nation's health care as no better than average when compared with health care in other industrialized countries. Conservative Republicans are most likely to give the U.S. system high marks.
Pew Research Center for the People & the Press

Recession Pounds States' Budgets
15 Jun 09Stateline.org's legislative review finds state budgets in such dire straits that they are closing prisons in Colorado and Kansas, raising taxes on the rich in New York and even taxing bourbon in Kentucky -- and the worst is yet to come.
Special to the Pew Research Center

Independents Take Center Stage in the Obama Era
Trends in Political Values and Core Attitudes: 1987-2009
21 May 09Centrism has emerged as a dominant factor in public opinion as the Obama administration begins. Republicans and Democrats are even more divided than in the past, while the growing political middle is steadfastly mixed in its beliefs about government, the free market and other values that underlie views on contemporary issues and policies. Both political parties have lost adherents since the election and an increasing number of Americans identify as independents.
Pew Research Center for the People & the Press

A Clash of Rights? Gay Marriage and the Free Exercise of Religion
20 May 09Although churches and other religious organizations, including charities and schools, have typically been exempt from state and local laws prohibiting discrimination based on sexual orientation, it remains unclear how these institutions might be affected by new laws that require equal treatment for same-sex marriages.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

Through Boom and Bust: Minorities, Immigrants and Homeownership
12 May 09The ups and downs in the U.S. housing market over the past decade and a half have generated both greater gains and larger losses for minority groups than for whites.
Pew Hispanic Center

Pig Flu and Politics Clog the Blogs
8 May 09Bloggers last week debated whether the worldwide swine flu outbreak was a serious public health menace or a case of excessive media hype. And Arlen Specter’s change of parties stirred a partisan debate over the state of the GOP.
Project for Excellence in Journalism

The Rapid Growth and Changing Complexion of Suburban Public Schools
31 Mar 09Public school enrollment in the nation's suburbs has shot up by 3.4 million in the past decade and a half, with the primary driver of this trend being a near doubling of the Latino share of the student population.
Pew Hispanic Center

Americans Favor Carbon Cap, Gays in the Military and Renewing U.S.-Cuba Ties
Policy Update
25 Mar 09New polling finds public favors setting limits on carbon emissions, allowing gays to serve openly in the military and re-establishing diplomatic relations with Cuba.
Pew Research Center for the People & the Press

Most Support Health Care Overhaul -- But it’s Not 1993
Stable Views of Stem Cell Research
19 Mar 09While the public still favors government-guaranteed health insurance for all citizens, there is currently less support for rebuilding the system than there was at the beginning of the Clinton administration. Opinion about stem-cell research remains stable after lifting of the ban.
Pew Research Center for the People & the Press

Public Has Split Verdict on Increased Level of Unmarried Motherhood
19 Mar 09There is a stronger consensus in public opinion about the social cost of out-of-wedlock births than there is about the morality of these births.
Social & Demographic Trends

Obama's Approval Rating Slips Amid Division Over Economic Proposals
GOP Congressional Leaders’ Ratings Hit New Low
16 Mar 09Most people think the new president is doing as much as he can to fix the economy, but the public expresses mixed views of his many major proposals to fix the economy. The public overwhelmingly supports Obama’s plan to remove most combat troops from Iraq by the end of August but a much narrower majority supports his planned troop buildup in Afghanistan.
Pew Research Center for the People & the Press

With Crisis As Catalyst, State Governors Push Big Changes
20 Feb 09Governors are using the economic crisis to sell big changes in how state and local jurisdictions operate, promising overhauls that could alter the face of government around the country.
Special to the Pew Research Center

No Place Like Home -- Even if the Value Is in the Tank
19 Feb 09Not even a housing-led recession can shake Americans' faith in the blessings of homeownership.
Social & Demographic Trends

Policy Issues Overshadow Personal Stories in Obama's First Weeks
Broad Public Awareness of Coming Digital TV Transition
4 Feb 09The public focused much more on President Obama’s stimulus plans than on his successful bid to keep his Blackberry. Also, fully eight-in-ten say they have heard a lot about the coming switch to digital TV.
Pew Research Center for the People & the Press

Economy Is a Tough Subject for the Nation's Public Schools
21 Jan 09States traditionally have been reluctant to cut school funding during hard times, but in the current severe downturn schools are not immune.
Special to the Pew Research Center

Gains Seen On Minority Discrimination -- But Little Else
Americans Assess Progress on National Problems
7 Jan 09As Obama prepares to take office, majorities say the country is losing ground on many key issues, especially economic ones.
Pew Research Center for the People & the Press

How the Media Cover Health
24 Nov 08At a time when health care is a major public policy issue, a new report from the Kaiser Family Foundation and the Project for Excellence in Journalism examines the extent to which health news has been a part of the national news agenda including coverage of the 2008 presidential primary campaign.
Project for Excellence in Journalism

Depressed Economy Wallops States
24 Oct 08With calendar 2008 nearing an end, Stateline.org's annual state-by-state review of major accomplishments finds lawmakers girding for big spending cuts in 2009 and beyond.
Special to the Pew Research Center

One-in-Five and Growing Fast: A Profile of Hispanic Public School Students
26 Aug 08The number of Latino students in public schools nearly doubled from 1990 to 2006, accounting for 60% of the total growth in school enrollments. Projections now show there will be more school-age Hispanic children than school-age non-Hispanic white children by 2050.
Pew Hispanic Center

Hispanics and Health Care in the United States: Access, Information and Knowledge
A Joint Pew Hispanic Center and Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Research Report
13 Aug 08A Pew Hispanic Center/Robert Wood Johnson Foundation study finds that more than one-fourth of Hispanic adults in the U.S. lack a usual health care provider, but when asked about why that is so, a plurality (41%) say the principal reason is that they are seldom sick.
Pew Hispanic Center

Social Issues Crowd State Ballots
24 Jul 08In a special to the Pew Research Center, a Stateline.org report finds more proposals that would appeal to conservative voters than to liberals are showing up in 2008, but no consensus on whether ballot measures tend to drive enough voters to the polls to give an advantage to a presidential candidate.
Special to the Pew Research Center

State Legislative Roundup: Sour Economy Limits Options In '08
2 Jul 08In a special to the Pew Research Center, Stateline.org provides its annual look at legislative accomplishments. It finds lawmakers shying away from major expansions of public health programs or preschool classes, short on highway funding and predicting even worse financial woes ahead.
Special to the Pew Research Center

Explaining the English Language Learner Achievement Gap
26 Jun 08A new analysis finds that lagging scores of students designated as English language learners can be partly explained by their concentration in low-performing schools.
Pew Hispanic Center

Interest in Floods Increases, Still Lower than for '93 Deluge
Government's Response to Floods Faulted
25 Jun 08The public is largely satisfied with the amount of media coverage the Midwest floods have received, but there is much less satisfaction with the federal government's response to the disaster.
Pew Research Center for the People & the Press

Handguns: Public Rejects a Ban -- but Supports Controls
14 May 08Nearly three-quarters of Republicans (73%) oppose a ban on handgun sales, a view shared by 59% of independents and just half of Democrats.
Pew Research Center for the People & the Press

Two Perspectives on Gay Marriage
5 May 08To explore the issues raised by same-sex marriage, the Pew Forum interviewed former Sen. Rick Santorum, who opposes gay marriage, and journalist Jonathan Rauch, who argues in its favor.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

States Push Food Stamps for the Needy
14 Apr 08As the economy sputters, states are taking extraordinary measures to help people keep food on the table, and a federal program is their primary tool.
Stateline.org

Help from Hugo Chavez: Free Heating Oil for Needy U.S. Families
14 Apr 08Close to 200,000 poor families in 15 cold-weather states can thank Venezuela's controversial president for helping them heat their homes this winter.
Stateline.org

An Overview of the Same-Sex Marriage Debate
10 Apr 08The controversy ignited by the Massachusetts High Court ruling allowing gay and lesbian couples to marry continues to rage in state courts and legislatures as well as in churches across the nation.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

On the Court's Docket: Child Rape and the Death Penalty
7 Apr 08Is capital punishment for child rapists constitutional? On April 16, the Supreme Court will hear arguments pro and con. A legal expert discusses possible outcomes and implications of the case.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

Govs Press For More Money on Real ID, Medicaid
25 Feb 08Meeting in Washington, the states’ chief executives made clear their unhappiness with federal standards for driver’s licenses and costly new Medicaid rules.
Stateline.org

Govs' Talks Target Clean Coal, Carbon Tax
24 Feb 08Governors have few doubts that global warming is a looming threat, but have some major differences about how to address the problem.
Stateline.org

Bush Budget Gives States Little to Cheer About
5 Feb 08President Bush’s $3 trillion fiscal 2009 budget comes at a time when many states face a budget shortfall; new restrictions on health insurance for children, Medicaid and other programs may add to their burdens.
Stateline.org

States Take Sides in Stem Cell Debate
31 Jan 08A Stateline.org backgrounder covers various aspects of the stem cell debate, including an interactive feature illustrating the main techniques used in creating pluripotent cells, a summary of ethical questions raised by scientific advances and a description of the evolution of related state policies.
Stateline.org

Look Out Below! America's Infrastructure Is Crumbling
22 Jan 08"Much of America is held together by Scotch tape, bailing wire and prayers," says one expert of the state of the country's dams, bridges, roadways and sewer lines.
Stateline.org

Do State Tests Make the Grade?
17 Jan 08It’s hard to overestimate the importance of standardized tests in public schools today, but differences in state standards and the reluctance of some states to spend money for high-quality, challenging tests have caused a great disparity from state to state.
Stateline.org

States Vie For Stem-Cell Scientists
15 Jan 08As the pace of stem-cell research quickens, seven big states are financing the science in hopes of attracting the world's best scientists.
Stateline.org

Report: Teachers Earn Less than Peers
9 Jan 08In 40 states, public school teachers fail to make as much as workers in comparable professions, such as reporters and insurance underwriters, according to a new report by the Education Research Center.
Stateline.org

In Search of Solutions: How People use the Internet, Libraries, and Government Agencies to Find Help
31 Dec 07A new survey challenges the assumption that libraries are no longer relevant, although the internet is now the most consulted information source.
Pew Internet & American Life Project

A Changing Racial and Ethnic Mix in U.S. Public Schools
White Students are Less Isolated but Blacks and Hispanics Are More So
30 Aug 07A new analysis of public school enrollment data by the Pew Hispanic Center finds that in the dozen years from 1993-94 to 2005-06, white students became significantly less isolated from minority students while, at the same time, black and Hispanic students became slightly more isolated from white students.
Pew Hispanic Center

States Seek to Dampen Text Book Sticker Shock
Returning College Students May Get Some Pocketbook Protection at Campus Bookstores
29 Aug 07Returning college students may get some pocketbook relief at campus bookstores as states and university officials take aim at some publisher and faculty practices blamed for raising prices.
Stateline.org

Beyond Foster Care
States Extend Help to 18-Year-Olds Facing Bleak Futures on Their Own
23 Aug 07States are trying to extend help to the growing number of "emancipated" parentless 18-year-olds who face bleak futures on their own.
Stateline.org

Florida is Test Bed for Medicaid Overhaul
18 Jul 07Halfway through a two-year test run, Florida's nationally acclaimed pilot program to introduce competition to its Medicaid program has met mixed success.
Stateline.org

Embryonic Stem Cell Research Divides States
President Bush's second veto of federal funding puts the issue squarely in states' hands
21 Jun 07President Bush's decision to again veto legislation allowing federal funding puts the issue squarely in states' hands – and some states are already vying to lure scientists and investors.
Stateline.org

Mixed Grades for a Federal Education Law
No Child Left Behind Builds No Consensus Among the Public About Either Its Strong or Weak Points
13 Jun 07As Congress prepares to debate reauthorization of the No Child Left Behind Act, Americans express mixed views about the nation's signature education law. Among those who have heard about the law, 34% say it has made schools better; 26% say it has made them worse; and 32% say it has had no impact.
Pew Research Center for the People & the Press

Legal Backgrounder: The Supreme Court Charts a New Direction on Abortion Jurisprudence in Gonzales v. Carhart
11 Jun 07A Pew Forum legal backgrounder examines the new direction in jurisprudence charted by the Supreme Court's April 2007 ruling that the Federal Partial Birth Abortion Ban Act does not violate the constitutional right to abortion.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

Have National Guard Deployments in Iraq Eroded States' Disaster Response Capability?
Kansas' Problems in Helping Tornado Victims Less Severe than Initially Claimed
10 May 07The tornado that tore apart Greensburg, Kan., dramatized what could happen when a state's equipment is thousands of miles away in Iraq. But it now seems that Kansas' problems in rushing aid to the disaster scene weren't as acute as the governor first implied.
Stateline.org

Surge in Support for Social Safety Net
Sympathy for the Poor and for Government Aid Programs Returns to 1980s Levels
2 May 07Support for government programs to help disadvantaged Americans, as well as sympathy for the plight of the poor, have surged since 1994 and returned to levels last seen in 1990 prior to welfare reform, with gains occurring among virtually every major social, political and demographic group.
Pew Research Center for the People & the Press

Abortion Ruling Sets New State Battle Lines
30 Apr 07Prompted by the U.S. Supreme Court's approval of a federal ban on partial-birth abortion, activists on both sides of the abortion battle are aiming their sights at state capitols, where new campaigns already are under way.
Stateline.org

States Wax Fluorescent
26 Apr 07Lawmakers in at least seven states want to ban ordinary light bulbs in favor of longer-lasting, energy-efficient compact fluorescents.
Stateline.org

Va. Tech Shootings Produce Little Boost for Gun Control
Public Also Divided About Causes of Massacre
23 Apr 07Six-in-ten Americans say it is more important to control gun ownership, while 32% give priority to protecting Americans' right to own guns. But a 55% majority opposes a ban on the sale of handguns.
Pew Research Center for the People & the Press

High Court Decision Could Raise Abortion's Profile in Campaign
19 Apr 07Although the court did not entirely eliminate the health exception, Wednesday's 5-4 Supreme Court decision upholding a federal law banning a controversial abortion procedure probably made the waiver less meaningful. This will almost certainly energize both sides in the abortion debate and put pressure on presidential contenders to take clearer positions on the issue.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

After the Tragedy: Va. Tech Shootings Revive Debate over Gun Control
17 Apr 07The rampage at the Blacksburg, Va., campus touched a nerve over gun safety on college campuses, including among Virginia lawmakers who had recently sparred over a firearms ban.
Stateline.org

Vouchers See Mixed Success This Session
9 Apr 07After a string of successes, voucher advocates see setbacks in this year's legislative session.
Stateline.org

The NRA's Image Improves as Support for Gun Control Slips
4 Apr 07Surveys taken before the Virginia Tech shootings showed that Americans had become less disposed to support gun control measures than they were in the years surrounding the Columbine school shootings in 1999.
Pew Research Center for the People & the Press

Quick Cancer Vaccine Mandate Stirs Controversy
2 Apr 07The new cervical cancer vaccine has ignited debate over teen sex, lobbying and the role of states in mandating vaccines as well as some medical concerns.
Stateline.org

Trends in Attitudes Toward Religion and Social Issues: 1987-2007
22 Mar 07As the '08 elections approach, what are the views of Republicans, Democrats and the general public on "social values" issues? And how have they changed over time?
Pew Research Center for the People & the Press

Trends in Political Values and Core Attitudes: 1987-2007
Political Landscape More Favorable To Democrats
22 Mar 07Increased public support for the social safety net, signs of growing public concern about income inequality, and a diminished appetite for assertive national security policies have improved the political landscape for the Democrats as the 2008 presidential campaign gets underway.
Pew Research Center for the People & the Press

Death Penalty on Hold
Role of Doctors in Lethal Injections Is Forcing Reexamination of Capital Punishment in Many States
21 Mar 07After 897 executions by lethal injection over the past 25 years, the role of doctors in carrying out the death penalty is surfacing as the latest ethical issue to force a re-examination of capital punishment in the United States.
Stateline.org

Same-Sex Marriage in California: Legal and Political Prospects
28 Feb 07Experts debate a pending state Supreme Court decision and the larger societal issues involved.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

War Support Slips, Fewer See Positive Outcome
New Poll Also Finds Growing Pessimism about Deficit, Rich-Poor Gap
15 Feb 07Two-thirds of the public now says that the U.S. military effort in Iraq is not going well, reflecting a sharp increase in the last year. And most say the country is also losing ground in problem areas from the federal budget to corruption to the environment.
Pew Research Center for the People & the Press

How Many Kids Will Congress Cover?
15 Feb 07The federally assisted State Children's Health Insurance Program (S-CHIP) has substantially reduced the number of American children without health coverage; advocates in Congress and governors of both parties, see the program as the foundation for universal health coverage. But the Bush administration is calling for cutbacks.
Stateline.org

Lake Wobegon, U.S.A.
Where All the Children Are Above Average - At Least by Their Schools' Ways of Counting
31 Jan 07Huge discrepancies exist between student scores on state-designed tests and on national tests.
Stateline.org

Bush Builds on States' Agenda
24 Jan 07It's too soon to know how far the new Congress might go in accepting the president's State of the Union proposals on health care, energy, immigration and education, but states aren't waiting to find out - they've taken the lead on these domestic issues.
Stateline.org

Broad Support for Political Compromise in Washington
But Many Are Hesitant to Yield on Contentious Issues
22 Jan 07A large majority of the American public thinks the country is more politically polarized than in the past, and an even greater number expresses a strong desire for political compromise. Fully three-quarters say they like political leaders who are willing to compromise, compared with 21% who see this as a negative trait.
Pew Research Center for the People & the Press

Lethal Injection on Trial
Already on hold in 12 states, the death penalty faces further attacks in courts and legislatures this year
17 Jan 07Already effectively on hold in 12 states, the death penalty will come under further attack in state legislatures and courts this year. In particular, lethal injection, once seen as a more humane alternative to the gas chamber, electric chair, firing squad or gallows now faces serious challenges.
Stateline.org

Are You a Citizen? Prove It
8 Jan 07Worries about voter fraud, terrorism and illegal immigration are driving a surge in stiff new identification requirements. To weed out those who aren't citizens, all Americans increasingly need a paper trail to qualify for some of the perks of citizenship -- from driver's licenses to Medicaid help.
Stateline.org

Seeking Health Online
Most of the millions of Americans who turn to the web for health information are pleased by what they find - though few check the quality check of what they find
1 Nov 06Most of the millions of Americans who turn to the web for health information are pleased by what they find -- though few check the quality of the information.
Pew Internet & American Life Project

U.S. Supreme Court to Hear Partial Birth Abortion Cases
1 Nov 06Revisiting a set of issues it last considered in 2000, a U.S. Supreme Court that has since become more conservative will hear oral arguments next week in two partial birth abortion cases. The changes in the court's composition raise the possibility of a different outcome this time.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

The Changing Landscape of American Public Education
New Students, New Schools
5 Oct 06Public school enrollment in the U.S. has risen sharply since the early 1990s, with Hispanic students accounting for about two-thirds of the increase. The growth has triggered a surge in new school construction, but two-thirds of the new facilities are not serving Hispanic students.
Pew Hispanic Center

41.9 Million and Counting
A Statistical View of Hispanics at Mid-Decade
28 Sep 06A statistical view of Hispanics at mid-decade
Pew Hispanic Center

Working After Retirement: The Gap Between Expectations and Reality
21 Sep 06A new Pew Social Trends survey finds a yawning gap between the expectations of today's workers, more than three-quarters of whom believe they will work for pay even after they retire, and current retirees, just 12% of whom are actually working for pay right now.
Pew Research Center

In the States, Maximum Activity on Minimum Wages
Minimum-Wage Hikes Sweep States
21 Sep 06An interactive look at how this hot issue is playing out across the country
Stateline.org

In Statehouses, 2006 is Year of Surpluses, Social Issues
14 Sep 06Minimum wage hikes and new rights of self-defense for crime victims have been popular with state lawmakers this year. Also, with a budget climate that's been the sunniest in six years, lawmakers have splurged on a host of new projects.
Stateline.org

The Devil's New Playground: The Shopping Mall
14 Sep 06Has the repeal of Sunday blue laws given the Devil a new playground? A pair of economists think so.
Pew Research Center

Emergency Contraception and Moral Misgivings
FDA ruling puts pharmacists in crossfire
6 Sep 06The FDA's recent decision to let women over age 18 buy the morning-after pill without a doctor's prescription won't end heated disputes in state capitols over emergency contraception and thrusts pharmacists - more than ever - into the middle of the fray.
Stateline.org

Parental Pressure on Students: Not Enough in America; Too Much in Asia
24 Aug 06Americans think parents here are too lax; Asians think parents there are too tough.
Pew Global Attitudes Project

Does Immigration Hurt U.S. Workers?
24 Aug 06One of the questions at the heart of the immigration policy debate is whether the influx of workers from abroad hurts the employment prospects of U.S.-born workers. But it's a question with no simple answers, according to our analysis of state level employment data.
Pew Hispanic Center

The Death Penalty Today: Defend It, Mend It or End It?
21 Jul 06In recent years, the nation has debated the proper application, morality and constitutionality of the death penalty. In this Pew Forum event transcript, four legal experts candidly debate the death penalty.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

No Clamor for Amendment From Flag-Waving Public
28 Jun 06About two-in-three Americans fly the flag. Nearly three-in-four say flag burning should be illegal. Roughly half say it should be unconstitutional. But despite these protective instincts, there's been no public clamor demanding that Congress take steps to defend Old Glory against burners and desecrators.
Pew Research Center

States Probe Limits of Abortion Policy
While Public Attention Is Focused on the Supreme Court, the Real Action May Be in State Capitols
22 Jun 06The U.S. Supreme Court may loom largest in the legal history of abortion in the United States, but state capitols from the 1800s to today have been the crucibles of America's evolving abortion policies. Stateline.org highlights the pivotal role that states continue to play in setting abortion policy.
Stateline.org

Addicted to Gambling
State Governments Now Depend on the Proceeds to Finance their Budgets
23 May 06Although a handful of states are moving this year to ban certain types of electronic gambling machines, experts say tax-averse states are growing increasingly dependent on gambling revenues while ignoring the social cost of problem gamblers.
Stateline.org

Is Massachusetts a Model for Broader Health Coverage?
9 May 06The Bay State's ambitious plan to see that nearly all its citizens have health insurance depends on some unique local conditions, but policymakers in other states are eying components that could be duplicated elsewhere.
Stateline.org

Finding Answers Online In Sickness and In Health
2 May 06Americans rely on the internet for important health information now more than ever and many say it's their most important source of help when illness strikes.
Pew Internet & American Life Project

Maximum Support for Raising the Minimum
Most Americans Now Live in States That Have Raised the Wage Floor
19 Apr 06Republican or Democrat, rich or poor, north, east, south or west, the U.S. public says it's time for a big boost for the lowest paid.
Pew Research Center for the People & the Press

A Barometer of Modern Morals
Sex, Drugs, and the 1040
28 Mar 06Cheating on your taxes, cheating on your spouse and other questions of right and wrong
Pew Research Center

Diminishing Divide on Cultural Issues?
Opposition to Gay Marriage, Adoption and Military Service Declines
22 Mar 06Even as divisive policy debates continue, public acceptance of homosexual marriage, adoption and military has increased.
Pew Research Center for the People & the Press

Do Deficits Matter Anymore? Apparently Not to the Public
14 Mar 06The federal debt has escalated in recent years but runaway deficits no longer top the political agenda as in the 1990s, according to a new poll analysis.
Pew Research Center for the People & the Press

States, Flush with Cash, Still Face Tough Issues
13 Feb 06From Medicaid to immigration, state lawmakers grapple with contentious issues as elections loom.
Stateline.org

Supreme Court's Decision in Gonzales v. Oregon
High Court Rejects Federal Regulation of Physician-Assisted Suicide
31 Jan 06The Pew Forum analyzes the Supreme Court's January 17 decision that the 1970 Controlled Substances Act (CSA) does not give the U.S. attorney general the authority to prohibit Oregon doctors from prescribing lethal doses of drugs to certain terminally ill patients who want to end their own lives.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

State of Education: Who Makes the Grade?
26 Jan 06Stateline.org takes a look at the progress made by states on national reading and math tests since the mid-90s.
Stateline.org

Mapping the Political Landscape 2005
1 Sep 05The Center's report offers a richly textured portrait of the American electorate, including a new analysis of 2004 election returns that reveals the congruence between where people live and how they vote.
Pew Research Center