We defend and advance local democracy.
Across the country, local governments are taking the lead on tackling our greatest challenges head-on, enacting laws to protect public health, improve workers’ rights, reduce inequity, respond to emerging environmental threats, advance technological innovation and other policy solutions. At the same time, the increased abuse of state preemption is removing or reducing the power of local governments to act on policies that would meet the needs and represent the values of their communities.
Local Solutions Support Center (LSSC) is a national hub that connects, coordinates and creates efforts to counter the increasing misuse of preemption and strengthen local democracy.
The Latest on Preemption
Updates from the Local Solutions Support Center
These trends are creating a new class of power brokers and oligarchs in the United States; while deepening the already painful inequities for others - particularly for BIPOC communities, LGBTQ+ people, immigrants, women, and working families.
As the epidemic of gun violence across the U.S. persists, a number of cities have tried to pass strong firearm regulations tailored to the needs of their communities. Unfortunately, many of these efforts have been unsuccessful due to state preemption.
Many of the state lawmakers pushing these abusive preemption measures or neglecting to pass heat protection policies aren't in session during the hottest months of the year, and when they do work, it's under the constant hum of air conditioning. But many workers in their states aren't as lucky.
State legislatures across the country are picking up the baton by introducing sweeping election preemption bills that would restrict how localities administer elections and how voters can cast their ballots.
By curtailing harmful preemption and enabling positive preemption, Minnesota has laid the institutional groundwork for the grassroots power.
As the federal government continues to violently and unlawfully enforce its anti-immigrant agenda, state legislatures across the country are following suit by introducing abusive preemption bills that aim to prevent localities from protecting immigrants – or punish ones that attempt to do so.
Resources About Preemption
LSSC and our partners have developed resources designed to help advocates end state overreach and strengthen the ability of local governments to pass policies that protect health and safety and promote equity. The information, strategies, and tools aggregated here were developed by and for attorneys, elected officials, advocates, and coalitions working to stop the increased misuse of state preemption.
View Resources by Type
Sort our resource library by our four core program areas: Legal, Communications, State Campaigns, and Research.
View Resources by Topic
Use these pages below to segment our resources – and partner resources – by topic area, from immigration to labor to technology.
