State of the States TEXAS
Plus” marker on a student’s diploma means the student completed coursework that earns them a workforce-ready certification.
OHIO
NEW BORDER CRACKDOWN The Coast Guard deployed more resources to the U.S. southern border on the Rio Grande River. A surge operation, known
as “Operation River Wall,” added more boats on a 260- mile stretch of the river in southeastern Texas that makes up part of the U.S.-Mexico border. The move, according to the Coast Guard, also puts more tactical teams and other resources in the area to combat drug smuggling. Since the start of the
Trump administration, the Coast Guard has tripled its presence and patrols along the southern border.
IOWA
SCHOOL BOND PLEA Des Moines Public Schools are asking voters this month to support a bond referendum that would allocate $265 million to school renovations. Dubbed the “Reimagining
Education” plan, DMPS hopes to boost student engagement by catering to specific interests. For high school students,
the district wants to create interest-based “signature” schools where students can gain workforce-ready certifications for careers they want to enter. Some schools will focus on STEM — science, technology, engineering, and math — classes, while others will focus on performing arts. An additional “Diploma
30 NEWSMAX | DECEMBER 2025
3RD GRADE BIRTH VIDEO A Republican lawmaker introduced a bill that would require public schools to show a video about fetal development to students starting in the third grade. “This legislation does not deal with abortion at all,” said state Rep. Melanie Miller. “This deals with the science of human development. We’re hoping that we can change the culture to be celebrating life instead of destroying life.” Planned Parenthood
called the video “inaccurate, misleading, and manipulative.” Abortion is legal in Ohio up
until 22 weeks of pregnancy. Ohio voters passed a ballot measure in 2023 that added protections to abortion care and reproductive rights to the state’s constitution.
ARIZONA
GRANTS AID HOMELESS The Department of Veteran Services is offering $750,000 in grants aimed at innovative solutions to end veteran homelessness. The initiative focuses on
removing obstacles that often hinder veterans’ access to stable housing, including the need for medical detox, family housing shortages, and pet restrictions.
“A veteran shouldn’t
have to leave their pet to obtain housing,” said John Scott, the department’s director. “If they need medical
detox, they should be able to get it at the time they need it, so they can enter into supportive housing and a therapeutic environment.”
TENNESSEE
ACTIVIST JOINS LIBRARY Conservative activist and former collegiate swimmer Riley Gaines has been appointed to the Sumner County Library Board, according to Commissioner Jeremy Mansfield. Gaines, 25, is a former
collegiate swimmer for the University of Kentucky and is known for campaigning against the participation of trans women in women’s sports. In August, the board
rejected a ban on transgender- themed books for the second time this year. Gaines posted on social
media, “Tennessee banned tax dollars from funding woke gender ideology, but my own county’s library board is ignoring it. These books (and others) were challenged by concerned parents in February, but to no avail. Remove this filth from our libraries!”
GEORGIA
FINANCES JUST PEACHY The state is sitting on a massive cash cushion, with more than $14.6 billion in reserves, according to the State Accounting Ofice.
That total
includes about $9 billion in undesignated funds and $5.6 billion in
the state’s rainy-day account, giving lawmakers plenty to debate when they return to the Capitol in January. The state’s surplus isn’t new.
Last year’s total reached $16.5 billion, allowing lawmakers to cut income tax rates and send out more than $2 billion in refund checks to taxpayers. It’s unclear whether
similar refunds are possible this year. Economists say Georgia could soon feel the effects of new tariffs and must also make up for expected federal cuts to Medicaid.
WISCONSIN
BILL ROILS ABORTION DEBATE A new bill would exempt certain lifesaving medical procedures from falling under “abortion.” The bill exempts early
inductions or cesarean sections performed in cases of ectopic, anembryonic, or molar pregnancies from being considered abortion, so long as the physician conducting them makes “reasonable medical efforts” to save both parent and unborn child from harm. It would also change the definition of “unborn child” from “a human being from the time of conception until it is born alive” to “a human being from the time of fertilization until birth.” Abortion as a political
issue hits deep in the heart of Wisconsin, where Marquette Law School polls since 2020 show 64% of all voters believe it should be legal in all or most cases. Republicans, who in 2015
passed the state’s current ban after 20 weeks of pregnancy, have sought to increase restrictions.
COAST GUARD/PHOTO BY PETTY OFFICER 2ND CLASS EDWARD WARGO / VETERAN/JANE TYSKA/DIGITAL FIRST MEDIA/EAST BAY TIMES VIA GETTY IMAGES
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