The Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) faces several pressing and interrelated challenges, with low staffing levels affecting how the department responds to such challenges. This report provides recommendations for the LAPD to help the department improve staffing levels, the complaint and discipline system, morale, and simplify its organizational structure. Researchers found that LAPD sworn staffing has declined steadily since 2018. Hiring has not been able to keep pace with the personnel losses; overall department morale is low and has been affected by a variety of factors; and the complaint system, which is the process for adjudicating a complaint (e.g., sustained, unfounded, or another outcome), is a significant point of contention in the department. The report provides several recommendations to address these issues, including increasing recruit class sizes, hiring civilian personnel to fill critical positions currently staffed by sworn officers, improving supervisors’ ability to handle non-disciplinary cases through guidance and training, and implementing culture and policy shifts to improve in-person communication by command staff.

This explorative qualitative research on prison violence investigates potentially violent situations between incarcerated men. Through in-depth interviews with 22 incarcerated men from three Dutch prisons and two formerly incarcerated men, researchers offer insight into the situational circumstances of prison violence. The findings reveal three distinct categories of situations where violence can occur: when incarcerated individuals perceive threats to their (1) status, (2) safety, and (3) shared interests (or goals). Status pertains to perceived symbolic threats to reputation, safety involves perceived risk of physical and psychological harm, and shared interests relate to perceived threats to collective resources, privileges and values. This study underscores the significance of considering situational circumstances and the interpretation of situations by incarcerated individuals when seeking to understand or explain prison violence.

Since the peak of violent crime in the early 1990s, New York City has experienced an increase in violent crime since 2019. In the 67th precinct in Brooklyn in particular, there were 34.5 shootings per 100,000 people in 2022. There are several community-led, government-led, and law enforcement-led initiatives in the precinct and surrounding areas to address violent crime and gun violence. This report examines gun violence and gun violence prevention and intervention initiatives in the precinct and surrounding neighborhoods. Researchers found that community organizations employ a holistic approach to violence prevention that addresses root causes of violence using a multifaceted approach to mitigate and address violence and diffuse tension between communities and law enforcement. Researchers also found that community members had negative views of criminal legal system actors and generally lacked awareness of community-based organizations involved in violence prevention work. Lastly, several barriers exist to community-led anti–gun violence, including limited funding, a lack of support for staff, a lack of visibility in the community, and a lack of housing for people in crisis. The report offers several recommendations to reduce gun violence in the precinct, including relying on evidence to target research, funding, and initiatives to the areas most in need, leveraging and growing the existing strengths of communities, and developing funding opportunities for gun violence prevention and intervention programs that encourage collaboration and visibility in the community.

Persistent high levels of absenteeism are slowing students’ academic recovery after the disruptions to schooling brought on by the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. Even several years after the end of the COVID-19 pandemic, heightened levels of chronic absenteeism continue to be one of district leaders’ top concerns. Through surveys and interviews with a nationally representative sample of K-12 public school districts, researchers found that four in ten identified reducing chronic absenteeism in their schools among their top three most pressing challenges for their schools during the 2024–2025 school year, including 8% who ranked this issue as their top challenge. Districts’ concern about chronic absenteeism is on par with their concern about raising math and reading achievement. Key findings from the report include that chronic absenteeism in the 2024–2025 school year remained above pre-pandemic levels. In roughly half of urban school districts, more than 30% of students were chronically absent—a far higher share of students than in rural or suburban school districts. One-quarter of youths in K–12 districts do not think being chronically absent from school is a problem. Youths’ most commonly reported reason for missing school was sickness. District leaders report using a combination of strategies, including family messaging and partnering with community organizations, to combat absenteeism.

Over 40 million Americans are college stop-outs, meaning they have some college credit but left college before earning a degree. Stopped-out students earn less and are more likely to be unemployed than those who have a postsecondary degree. The Re-Enrollment and Completion Team (REACT) intervention aims to help such students reenroll and complete associate’s degrees. REACT targets students who are within 15 credits of earning an associate’s degree but are not currently enrolled in college. The program has three primary components: communication, support services, and tuition waivers. The REACT intervention launched in spring and summer 2025 in four colleges across Florida (Florida SouthWestern State College, Northwest Florida State College, Hillsborough College, and Palm Beach State College). These colleges represent rural, suburban, and urban areas and range in size from about 5,000 to 25,000 students. Each college will offer REACT to randomly assigned eligible students through spring 2027. In a planned evaluation, researchers will measure the program’s impacts on reenrollment and degree completion and study the program’s costs and implementation. Initial findings will be published in late 2027, and updated findings will be available by early 2029.

Microschools, sometimes referred to as learning pods, have class sizes of usually fewer than 15 students of varying ages, and the schedule and curriculum is tailored to fit the needs of each class. This model of schooling can operate in either public, private or charter schools or separately on its own. This analysis discusses prominent aspects about both currently operating and prospective, pre-launch microschools, exploring traits, priorities, and backgrounds relating to founders, families, and microschool models. In a survey administered by the National Microschooling Center of 400 microschools across 41 states, more than 60% of founders reported they were not currently licensed educators. Eighty-four percent reported their schools were not accredited. Among prospective founders, 48% are licensed educators (though only 14% currently work in public schools), 32% come from non-education fields, and 23% are parents building schools for their children. Most microschools (55%) operate under homeschool laws, while others function as private schools (37%), charters (6%), or fall into unique state categories (3%), according to the analysis. Often described as “homeschool hybrids” or “small-scale learning communities,” microschools often serve around 16 students or fewer, and tend to cater to families with average or above-average incomes in their area. In some states, microschools have been authorized to receive public funds through voucher programs. Some critics note that, like private schools, microschools may charge tuition, potentially excluding lower-income families and contributing to educational disparities. According to the National Microschooling Center, these schools often operate in commercial spaces (41%), private residences (28%), or houses of worship (25%). The center also found the movement is diversifying: 37% of prospective founders are people of color, compared with 27% of current operators.

Working for a parent’s employer leads to a 24% increase in earnings at a young worker’s first job compared to those hired without a parental connection. Three years later, individuals who began their careers where their parents work earned 20% more than their peers who did not. This study aims to reveal how workers can benefit from their parents’ employment connections. Researchers found that children of parents in the top 40% of earners experienced earnings gains more than two times greater than those with parents in the bottom 40%. The increase in earnings largely stemmed from parents providing access to higher-paying blue-collar jobs for their children, who otherwise likely would have worked in the unskilled service sector. Lastly, nearly a third (31%) of individuals whose parents were in the top 10% of earners worked for a parent’s employer at some point between ages 16 and 30, compared to 25% in the bottom 10% of earners.

Pipe tobacco and some large cigars are taxed at lower rates than cigarettes, roll-your-own tobacco, and small cigars. As a result, the federal government is not collecting the revenue it would if taxes were the same for these smoking tobacco products. After the enactment of the Children’s Health Insurance Program Reauthorization Act (CHIPRA) of 2009, large tax rate differences among similar smoking tobacco products led to market shifts among these products. Specifically, CHIPRA increased tax rate differences between roll-your-own and pipe tobacco and small cigars and some large cigars, creating opportunities for tax avoidance and leading manufacturers and consumers to substitute lower-taxed tobacco products for higher-taxed ones. The U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) found that federal revenue from tobacco excise taxes has decreased from about $14 billion in Fiscal Year 2014 to $9 billion in Fiscal Year 2024 as sales of smoking tobacco products have declined. In addition, the extent to which the increased use of e-cigarettes and oral nicotine pouches has affected the market for traditional smoking tobacco products is unknown. The GAO also estimated that if the tax rate for pipe tobacco were the same as other tobacco rates, the federal government could collect at least $1.5 billion in additional revenue for both products from Fiscal Year 2025 through Fiscal Year 2029.

State legislatures tackled a wide variety of energy policy priorities in 2024. The National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL) tracked more than 3,500 energy-related bills across the 50 states and territories. According to NCSL’s State Energy Legislation Database, approximately 580 (17%) of these bills were enacted into law. State legislatures made major efforts to improve and modernize the electric grid. State legislative trends from 2024 also highlight policy challenges, including how to increase supply to meet growing demand from large load sources, such as data centers, ensure energy resilience even under extreme conditions, and protect the grid from both natural disasters and human-caused threats. The NCSL also tracked legislative trends relating to the nuclear, coal, oil, and gas sectors, including policies to support long-term sustainability of the fossil fuel sector as a major and reliable energy source for states. These state legislative trends reflect the different goals and objectives of state legislatures across the United States, and the equally varied approaches they are taking to support a modern and robust energy system that meets each respective state’s long-term energy needs. Lastly, emerging trends included geothermal energy, data centers and increasing load growth, and building electrification efforts.

Florida Statutes directs OPPAGA to conduct an annual study on the commercial sexual exploitation (CSE) of children in Florida. This review reports on the number of children whom the Department of Children and Families (DCF) identified as victims of CSE, describes specialized services provided to CSE victims, and presents short- and long-term child welfare, juvenile justice, and education outcomes. In 2024, DCF verified 373 children as victims of commercial sexual exploitation; most victims were at least 15 years old and female. Since 2015, over 3,000 victims have been verified. At-risk homes, safe houses, safe foster homes, behavioral qualified residential treatment programs, and residential treatment centers are placements that can serve CSE victims, although stakeholders noted a need for more safe houses, safe foster homes, and residential treatment centers. Stakeholders also identified substance use treatment, survivor mentorship, and transportation as gaps in services for CSE victims. In addition, although victim compensation is an available service, few victims apply and no compensation was awarded in 2024. Consistent with prior OPPAGA findings, CSE victims continue to have high rates of juvenile justice involvement in the year following their verification, and enrollment in school in the year following verification remains high. However, the percentage of CSE victims with a new verified CSE finding in the year following verification has declined.

Glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) receptor agonists are a type of drug that mimics a hormone in the body, which helps to lower blood sugar and support weight loss. GLP-1 medications are typically administered as an injection to treat type 2 diabetes. This report describes the percentage of adults with diagnosed diabetes who were taking an injectable GLP-1 medication at the time of interview by selected characteristics, based on data from the 2024 National Health Interview Survey. Survey respondents were assumed to be using a GLP-1 injectable if they had diabetes and reported use of an injectable medication other than insulin to lower blood sugar or lose weight. Key findings from the report include that in 2024, the percentage of adults with diagnosed diabetes who used GLP-1 injectables was 26.5%; use increased with age between adults ages 18–34 (25.3%) to 50–64 (33.3%) and then decreased among those aged 65 and older (20.8%). Hispanic (31.3%), Black non-Hispanic (26.5%), and White non-Hispanic (26.2%) adults with diagnosed diabetes were more likely than Asian non-Hispanic adults with diagnosed diabetes (12.1%) to use GLP-1 injectables. GLP-1 injectable use was higher among those with greater body mass index. Among adults with diagnosed diabetes, those who took insulin (31.3%) or oral glucose-lowering medications (28.1%) were more likely to use GLP-1 injectables compared with those who did not take those diabetic medications (24.5% and 22.2%, respectively).