Author

Ariana Figueroa

Ariana Figueroa

Ariana covers the nation's capital for States Newsroom. Her areas of coverage include politics and policy, lobbying, elections and campaign finance.

The Capitol dome in Washington, D.C.

U.S. House approves bill banning transgender student athletes in girls sports

By: - April 20, 2023

WASHINGTON — U.S. House Republicans voted Thursday to prohibit transgender student athletes from competing on girls sports teams consistent with their gender identity, at the same time multiple GOP-dominated states are making similar moves. The bill, H.R. 734, which would apply to K-12 schools as well as colleges that receive federal funding, passed on a […]

U.S. judge rules insurers don’t have to cover many free preventive health services

By: , and - March 30, 2023

WASHINGTON — Health insurance companies may no longer need to cover a wide swath of preventive health care services that were required by the 2010 Affordable Care Act, under a federal judge’s ruling issued Thursday in Texas. The decision could affect millions of Americans’ access to no-cost preventive health care — including pregnancy-related care, cancer […]

The U.S. Capitol grounds on March 21, 2023, in Washington, D.C.

GOP bill establishing a federal parental bill of rights passed in U.S. House

By: - March 24, 2023

WASHINGTON — U.S. House Republicans on Friday passed a bill designed to empower parents to inspect books and other teaching materials in local public schools, but Democrats sharply criticized the measure, saying it would censor teachers and ban books. The legislation, called the Parents Bill of Rights, passed on a 213-208 vote. It would codify […]

Voters fill out advanced ballots

GOP state officials at U.S. House hearing push back against federal election oversight

By: - March 10, 2023

WASHINGTON — Republican election officials from Florida, Ohio and Louisiana on Friday detailed to lawmakers on a U.S. House Administration panel the success of their states’ handling of the 2022 midterm elections, and said they can run their own elections without federal intervention. The chair of the Elections Subcommittee, Florida GOP freshman Rep. Laurel Lee, […]

Rebekah Bruesehoff, a transgender student athlete, speaks at a news conference on LGBTQ rights, March 8, 2023, at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C.

National ban on transgender athletes in girls’ sports passed by U.S. House panel

By: - March 9, 2023

WASHINGTON — The U.S. House Education and Workforce Committee early Thursday passed a bill on a party-line vote that would block transgender girls from competing in school sports consistent with their gender identity, a reflection of a broader push in multiple states to curb the rights of transgender student athletes. The bill, H.R. 734, introduced […]

Black student loan borrowers at risk as U.S. Supreme Court weighs forgiveness plan

By: - February 26, 2023

WASHINGTON — As the Biden administration prepares to defend its student debt cancellation program before the U.S. Supreme Court on Feb. 28, data shows that Black borrowers have the most to lose should a majority conservative court strike down the policy. Black borrowers hold a disproportionate share of student loan debt, and many likely were […]

Migrants Huddle In Camps And Shelters In Tijuana Waiting To Cross Into U.S.

Biden administration proposes major new limits on asylum at the border

By: - February 21, 2023

WASHINGTON — The Biden administration is rolling out a proposed rule that for two years would bar migrants from applying for asylum at the Southern border if they have not first asked for protection in a country they traveled through. The administration is seeking to limit asylum requests at the U.S.-Mexico border as a pandemic-era […]

Norfolk Southern contractors remove a burned tank car from the crash site

Federal government to send medical experts to site of Ohio train derailment

By: - February 17, 2023

WASHINGTON — The federal government is sending medical personnel and toxicologists to conduct public health testing following the derailment of a train carrying hazardous materials that released into a small town near the Ohio-Pennsylvania border. A team from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention will be […]

An injectable drug is loaded into a syringe while prescription medication is strewn about haphazardly

Funding needed to curb fentanyl smuggling at ports of entry, administration officials say

By: - February 15, 2023

WASHINGTON — Biden administration officials at a U.S. Senate hearing Wednesday on the deadly illicit drug fentanyl said they need more money for better screening technology at ports of entry at the Southern border. They also said the U.S. needs to keep pressure on China due to its role in the sale of chemicals used […]

Police vehicles appear outside Michigan State University following a mass shooting

Biden renews a call for action on gun control following Michigan State mass shooting

By: - February 14, 2023

WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden at an annual meeting with county leaders on Tuesday said there is much more work to be done on gun control legislation —  such as banning assault-style weapons, which are typically used in most mass shootings. The call again for gun control came after a school shooting at Michigan State […]

a chair and desk

U.S. House GOP preps for debates on ‘parents’ rights,’ school vouchers and transgender athletes

By: - February 8, 2023

WASHINGTON — U.S. House Republicans laid the groundwork for some top legislative priorities during a Wednesday hearing that examined public funding for charter schools and voucher programs, as well as increasing parents’ oversight of school curriculum. The Republican chair of the Education and the Workforce Committee, North Carolina Rep. Virginia Foxx, provided a forum for […]

Security fencing is erected Feb. 7, 2023, around the U.S. Capitol in advance of the State of the Union speech by President Joe Biden

Biden in State of the Union speech to call for bipartisan action on fentanyl crisis

By: - February 7, 2023

WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden on Tuesday night is expected in his State of the Union address to call on Congress to work with the administration to address in a bipartisan manner the fentanyl crisis, administration officials said on a call with reporters. Biden will call for expanded access to opioid-related addiction treatment and announce […]