“Preempting LGBTQ+ Rights: How States Undermine Local Leadership and Innovation on LGBTQ+ Equality,” is a 2026 update of a previous report, published as a partnership between A Better Balance, Equality Federation, and the Local Solutions Support Center.
Read MoreThis page houses amicus briefs and is meant to be used as a guide for insight into state preemption topics.
Read MoreBy the middle of the 2026 legislative session, Local Solutions Support Center (LSSC) tracked nearly 850 abusive preemption bills across states currently in legislative session.
Read MoreThis post by Alina Schnake-Mahl, ScD, MPH and Leah Schinasi, MSPH, PhD focuses on state lawmakers pushing abusive preemption measures about heat protection, or neglecting to pass heat protection policies.
Read MoreThis post by Jamila Michener, PhD explores how Minnesota has curtailed harmful preemption and enabled positive preemption, laying the institutional groundwork for the grassroots power.
Read MoreThis white paper tells the powerful and timely story of how abusive preemption has paved the way for the rise of federal authoritarianism – and how preemption is now being used to implement that agenda.
Read MoreThis post by Ruqaiijah Yearby discusses how recent state efforts to prohibit DEI practices often exceed the state’s authority and conflict with long-standing legal interpretations of equality that seek to address racial discrimination.
Read MoreThis post by Mary Bogle explores how Americans are looking for bold new solutions to entrenched problems like poverty and income inequality. High quality experiments on GI fit squarely into this space.
Read MoreThis post by Sandhya Kajeepeta explores how state preemption is fueling a racialized housing crisis, and Good Cause laws are at risk
Read MoreThis post by Cristine Soto DeBerry explores connections between Trump’s militarized crackdowns on cities and attempts to preempt progressive prosecutors.
Read MoreState lawmakers pushed more than 800 abusive preemption bills across 48 states in 2025. Many of the preemption hotspots the LSSC team tracked - from immigration to anti-DEI efforts - align with the Trump administration’s rhetoric. In fact, it’s impossible to tell the story of preemption in 2025 without considering the impact of the new administration on policy making and people.
Read MoreSince 2012, a growing number of states and municipalities have taken action to protect LGBTQ+ youth from the dangerous and discredited practice of conversion “therapy.” But in recent years, amid escalating political attacks on LGBTQ+ people across virtually every aspect of life, there are also growing attacks on these protections—including through abusive preemption tactics.
Read MoreAs many 2025 state legislative sessions come to a close, abusive preemption once again threatens local control of a number of issues. Across the country, states continue to advance legislation that interferes with the ability of local governments to tailor local solutions for local needs.
Read MoreThe Local Solutions Support Center has updated its resource offering brief summaries of peer-reviewed empirical studies and select additional research demonstrating the impact of these laws.
Read MoreLocal Solutions Support Center (LSSC) is tracking nearly 600 abusive preemption bills so far this year - a significantly higher number of bills than our team identified in all of 2024. The new federal landscape is emboldening state lawmakers to advance harmful preemption bills - with a particular focus on anti-immigrant, anti-LGBTQ+, and anti-DEI legislation.
Read MoreA look at recent legislative sessions and how state lawmakers across the country are feeling emboldened to continue abusing preemption to intentionally harm LGBTQ+ youth and deprive them of safe and nurturing educational environments.
Read MoreA look at how the Local Solutions Support Center has tracked abusive preemption bills – in 25 states – that attack local authority on immigration policies in the 2025 legislative session.
Read MoreJust seven weeks into 2025, we’re already seeing more of the same concerning activity as it relates to abusive preemption. Some of the most egregious examples of preemption bills have been introduced in Tennessee and Texas. Here’s a deep dive into both states.
Read MoreThanks to the relentless work of advocates, activists, and policymakers across our ecosystem, we have a growing sense of the tactics we can use to counter abusive preemption and call out its true purpose. LSSC’s new report can serve as action-oriented inspiration for both the well-tenured and emerging leaders whose creativity and passion pushes our fight forward.
Read MoreThe fourth edition of The Local Power & Politics Review explores how abusive preemption legislation has permeated so many areas of American policy. The new edition covers a wide range of issue areas – from abortion access to local environmental action to LGBTQ+ equality to prosecutorial discretion.
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