Virginia child advocates are calling on state lawmakers to improve school funding.

The concern grew when several bills focused on building up school mental health failed in their respective General Assembly committees. The state is ranked 48th for youth mental health by Mental Health America.

Cat Atkinson, mental health policy analyst at Voices for Virginia's Children, said given the ongoing youth mental health crisis, now is the time for action.

"Having mental health professionals in our schools creates a space where, one, our young people are able to be where they're comfortable," Atkinson recommended. "They have built relationships with staff and are able to be in their schools, and to be able to have their needs met in a place where they are consistently."

The mental health staff funding bills failed or were continued to the 2025 session due to high costs. Combined, the bills would have called for around $120 million to be spent in the 2025 and 2026 budgets.

Beyond money, a long-term workforce shortage is depriving schools of having proper mental health staff. A KFF report found 48% of schools nationally have insufficient access to licensed mental health professionals.

The funding inconsistencies affect more than just mental-health services. A 2023 report found not only are school divisions getting less funding than most other states, but Virginia is still using the Great Recession as a benchmark for cost-reduction measures.

Atkinson pointed out a lack of funding affects not just schools.

"The trickle-down effect of our state underfunding public schools places a burden on the local communities," Atkinson argued. "Which leaves the quality of our young people's education to depend entirely on the neighborhoods they reside in."

She added the current situation is not equitable because community resources across regions vary significantly, but noted there are other ways to get mental health care in schools.

In 2023, the General Assembly passed Senate Bill 1300, which requires teachers to get trauma-informed care training every three years. Gov. Glenn Youngkin's Right Help, Right Now plan would also bolster school and community mental health needs.


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One topic expected to make a big splash during Wyoming's general legislative session is property taxes at many levels.

First on the agenda for the Freedom Caucus, Wyoming's House majority faction, is a 25% property tax cut on homes up to $2 million in value, passed by both chambers in 2024. Gov. Mark Gordon vetoed it, calling the fix "temporary and very expensive," as the state would have to pay the backfill.

Hank Hoversland, executive director of the Wyoming Taxpayers Association, said another piece at play is a state constitutional amendment voters passed in November.

"That provides the legislature a vehicle to make a separate class for property taxation purposes, that is, residential real property," Hoversland explained. "Then, it also allows there to be a subclass for owner-occupied, single-family residences."

Though the amendment passed, Hoversland pointed out legislators need to take action this session in order to give the change legs.

At the industry level, Wyoming law includes a property tax exemption for "property used to eliminate, control or prevent air, water or land pollution." Senate File 61, sponsored by Sen. Cale Case, R-Lander, would clarify carbon dioxide shouldn't count as pollution so the state can tax incoming carbon capture projects.

Hoversland stressed energy companies pay a large portion of taxes in the state.

"Just this past tax year, minerals paid about 46% of property taxes, while the all-other category -- including industrial, commercial, residential and ag -- paid 54% total," Hoversland outlined.

Earlier this month, the state also certified the first Wyoming citizen's ballot initiative in 30 years, slated to appear on ballots in 2026. It proposes cutting residential property taxes by 50% for homeowners who have lived in Wyoming for at least one year.


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In this year's state budget, Gov. Brian Kemp is proposing a $500 million investment to tackle a critical issue for Savannah and surrounding areas - the water supply. The governor's budget includes a plan for a new Coastal Georgia Regional Water Supply Partnership. It would bring together the City of Savannah, Effingham County and Bryan County to address the growing demand for water.

At a Tuesday news conference, Savannah Mayor Van Johnson explained it couldn't come at a better time - as future forecasts show big investments are needed to continue to provide water to residents.

"There's demand now also in Bryan County that's grown exponentially. And so for us, we've been talking about water for well over 20 years," he said. "The Georgia EPD had decreased groundwater withdrawal levels due to environmental limit."

The mayor added that the state's Environmental Protection Division limits increase the demand for surface water, which can be three times more expensive to deliver than groundwater.

Johnson said the funds would help provide 100-million gallons of fresh water every day to the city's current and future utility customers. He added it will also help enhance the water distribution system, upgrade water treatment equipment, and expand capacity at the surface water intake at Abercorn Creek.

"If passed by the state legislature, Savannah will receive $146 million in a mix of grants and zero-interest loans to expand our IND surface water treatment plant," he continued.

The mayor is also asking the Chatham legislative delegation to actively support the proposal, as what he calls a "critical investment for Savannah and the surrounding region's sustainability and growth." The budget proposal is under review in Atlanta as part of the 2025 legislative session.


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A new bill aims to further reduce investments in fossil fuels by Oregon's Public Employee Retirement System.

The Pause Act would impose a five-year ban on new investments by the system in private fossil-fuel funds. Supporters believe this move will help lower emissions and keep wealth in Oregon communities.

Andrew Bogrand, volunteer communications director for the advocacy group Divest Oregon, helped draft the bill. The group found the system's fossil fuel investments have underperformed the market by $4 billion to $10 billion over the past decade.

"Private equity has taken advantage, in our view, of public pensions, and this would allow Treasury staff the time and space they need to kind of course correct," Bogrand explained.

Last year, former treasurer Tobias Read, now Secretary of State, introduced a plan to reduce the system's investments in fossil fuels by 60% by 2035, aiming for net-zero emissions by 2050. Bogrand noted the Pause Act aligns with that plan.

Oregon's Public Employee Retirement System covers pensions for more than 415,000 public employees across schools, local governments and 900 agencies. Divest Oregon said 60% of the system's funds are private investments, which is almost double the average U.S. pension fund.

Elizabeth Steiner, Oregon's newly-sworn in treasurer, manages the system's investments, totaling more than $100 billion. Steiner said moving away from fossil fuels is not just about reducing emissions, it is smart financially.

"The data are really clear that carbon-intensive investments are a risky proposition at this point," Steiner observed. "At some point in the not too distant future, they will not be profitable."

Steiner added it is too soon to say if she can support the Pause Act, but she is having productive conversations with Divest Oregon.


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