The Latest

  • An automated metal food waste bin sits on the side of the road
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    Megan Quinn/Smart Cities Dive
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    Food waste collection for multifamily housing expands in D.C.

    The city's smart bin program will add another 20 collection locations. It’s part of an effort to increase multifamily composting efforts to meet D.C.'s zero waste goal to divert 80% of waste by 2040.

  • Person in blue suit at a podium surrounded by people beside and behind.
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    (2026). "Thune: Congress Has Important Work Ahead, Starting With Government Funding" [Video]. Retrieved from John Thune.
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    Surface Transportation Legislation

    House sends stopgap funding bill to White House with less transportation funding

    Public transit faces a 20% cut and passenger rail an 83% cut in the reconciliation bill, which funds the federal government until Dec. 11.

    Updated Sept. 2, 2026
  • A person wearing a suit and red tie sitting at a table adjusts glasses.
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    Anna Moneymaker via Getty Images
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    Congress delays OMB grant overhaul in temporary spending bill

    The stopgap spending bill pauses the proposed rewrite of the Uniform Guidance through Dec. 11, but the fight over federal control of grantmaking is far from over.

    Updated Sept. 2, 2026
  • A line of vehicles passing a sign that reads "Begin toll zone."
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    Michael M. Santiago via Getty Images
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    New York’s congestion pricing program has not affected air quality, study finds

    The study addresses fears that the program would increase pollution if drivers tried to avoid the toll.

  • A bustling downtown skyline featuring an iconic blue bridge and clear skies.
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    Getty Images
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    For affordable housing fund, Cleveland embraces private partnerships

    The city launched a fund to build up to 3,000 affordable housing units using leftover American Rescue Plan Act money.

  • Two people wearing suits sit at a table with U.S. and Texas flags behind them and other people sitting around them.
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    Courtesy of Office of the Texas Governor
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    Water cybersecurity gets federal boost in 10 cities and Texas

    The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is putting nearly $12 million behind water-system cybersecurity and resilience as the White House connects Texas utilities with free cyber defense resources.

  • A silver elevated train over a city street with a tall building in the background.
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    Chip Somodevilla via Getty Images
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    Chicago-area transit agencies start operating under new regional authority

    The state restructured the six-county Northern Illinois transit system last year and provided $1.5 billion for transportation and transit-oriented development.

  • A digital sign outdoors announces absentee ballots are available.
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    Ayman Haykal via Getty Images
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    Weather, wayfinding, wait times: How government digital signage can keep things fresh

    Governments are diligent about keeping digital signs updated, but opportunities to take full advantage of the signage remains, a Kitcast report found.

  • Microsoft, Mount Pleasant, Wis., data center noise, lawsuit, low-level hum, dBA monitors
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    Courtesy of Microsoft
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    Data center noise lawsuits test limits of local ordinances

    A low-level hum coming from a Microsoft data center that’s hard to measure is a nuisance that’s hurting property values, Mount Pleasant, Wisconsin, residents allege.

  • Aerial view of homes in a dense neighborhood.
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    Getty Images
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    Social housing program gets city task force sign-off in Portland, Maine

    The task force encouraged the city to establish pilot programs aimed at complementing the “tools that we already have” to address affordable housing, a city councilmember said.

  • A strip in the middle of a city roadway with plants and a large grill over an opening.
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    Retrieved from Flickr.
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    Stormwater ‘sponges’ take root in Queens, New York, to curb flooding

    As part of its larger green infrastructure program, the city is repurposing existing hardscape to capture millions of gallons of stormwater before it overwhelms sewers.

  • A green, blue and white SUV lettered "Prokel Mobility" on a road in front of a multistory building.
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    Courtesy of ProKel Mobility
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    As transit ridership more than doubles in North Miami Beach, first- and last-mile service expands

    Transit provider ProKel Mobility helped the community redesign its bus routes to connect with surrounding transit networks.

  • A winding road with a few cars through a hilly landscape.
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    Getty Images
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    DOT proposes streamlining land leases along roads, railroads for utility use

    Revenues from the leases could fund repairs and upgrades for roads, bridges, tunnels and railroads along the corridors, according to a U.S. Department of Transportation proposal.

  • Camera on a pole with a solar panel above it
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    Chip Somodevilla via Getty Images
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    States move to rein in license plate surveillance as cities face growing scrutiny

    Arizona, Connecticut, Florida and South Dakota are pushing for statewide rules. The issues “are too great to be decided in isolation at the local level,” the Arizona attorney general’s office says.

  • Downtown Albuquerque, New Mexico.
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    Getty Images
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    New Mexico is short 58K homes. Streamlined permitting can help, study says.

    Reviewing housing projects on a case-by-case basis is slowing down production in localities, a report from the Mercatus Center at George Mason University suggests.

  • A seated person wearing a suit and glasses gestures while speaking into a microphone.
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    Chip Somodevilla via Getty Images
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    HUD fair housing funding changes blocked in court

    The agency must reinstate a prior structure for its latest funding round after a judge said explanations for its recent changes did not “add up.” HUD says it stands behind the legality of the changes.

    Updated Aug. 27, 2026
  • An aerial view of a large building.
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    Courtesy of Microsoft
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    Data Centers

    3 things cities should do before approving another data center

    Aurora, Illinois, and Anchorage, Alaska, offer a road map for developing rules that balance economic opportunity with resident concerns over water, power, infrastructure and quality of life.

  • Standing people with luggage lean against a low fence with dark gray buses lined up behind them.
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    Permission granted by Dan Zukowski
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    Greyhound’s 5-year turnaround: new buses, more routes, new customers

    The company is part of an intercity bus revival, with better intermodal terminals in major cities and an upgraded customer experience.

  • Brick buildings along a lake.
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    Getty Images
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    10 best cities for work, according to a job search site

    Indeed’s new report looks beyond salaries, highlighting how cities can balance wages and career opportunities with job access, flexibility and economic opportunity to attract workers.

  • A train on a bridge in front of brick apartment buildings.
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    Getty Images
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    Rents are rising faster in Chicago than other US cities. The mayor wants rental reform.

    The proposed reforms target “hidden junk fees” and establish an administrative body to handle rental complaints. Industry groups are pushing back.

  • Multicolor ribbons of confetti rain down on people.
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    Permission granted by Dan Zukowski
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    Tracking new transit openings in 2026

    More than a dozen new light rail, bus rapid transit, streetcar, subway and commuter rail extensions are due to go into service this year. Another light rail line in Illinois and bus rapid transit lines in Louisiana, California and Houston are underway.

  • A small aircraft with six propellers on the ground in front of restaurants and entertainment venues.
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    Courtesy of Archer Aviation/AEG
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    Air taxi vertiport coming to downtown LA sports complex

    Archer Aviation, the official air taxi provider for the 2028 Olympic Games in Southern California, adds the venue to its network of flight facilities in the region.

  • Back of officer with shirt that says POLICE ICE
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    Getty Images
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    Q&A

    ICE is using shock gloves. Local police shouldn’t, a policing expert says.

    Municipal agencies should scrutinize the technology’s capabilities, limitations and costs before following ICE’s lead in using it, a criminal justice professor and former police officer says.

  • A person with glasses and in a suit and tie speaks into a microphone and gestures with his hand.
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    Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images via Getty Images
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    HUD homelessness tool kit downplays housing-first models, emphasizes addiction treatment

    “Housing is essential, but housing alone is not enough,” U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development Secretary Scott Turner said.

  • Two emergency service controllers look at live camera feeds for a building.
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    Getty Images
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    Mapping, digital twins boost emergency services, building management in Frisco, Texas

    The city created an indoor mapping system to help responders during school emergencies, but the system has since expanded to help asset management and more, an IT expert says.