By the middle of the 2026 legislative session, Local Solutions Support Center (LSSC) tracked nearly 850 abusive preemption bills across states currently in legislative session.

This 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.

Thanks 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.

The 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.

Our new report, Preemption’s Role in Undermining American Democracy: 2024 Legislative Session Overview, tracks the 411 abusive preemption bills LSSC identified nationwide this year across 16 different issue spaces. This report explores the major areas of everyday life where lawmakers and corporations are advancing preemption in an effort to undermine democracy.

In a new paper from A Better Balance, Local Solutions Support Center, and Equality Federation, we trace the local roots of LGBTQ+ equality in the United States and highlight the different types of abusive preemption that target local authority to protect LGBTQ+ individuals.

LSSC’s latest report, Protecting Local Democracy: 2023 Legislative Session Overview, explores all the preemption trends that played out in states across the country this past year. The report also highlights what issues advocates are most concerned about as we head into 2024.

The scope of abusive preemption bills is widening – from Death Star preemption; to efforts to undermine the power of reform-oriented prosecutors; to discriminating against transgender youth; to making it harder for local officials to successfully conduct elections. LSSC’s mid-session report explores the top trends we’re tracking so far this session, as well as a few promising victories that advocates are securing.

This resource from ChangeLab Solutions and the Local Solutions Support Center (LSSC), newly updated for 2023, provides advocates with the research and data they need to document the harmful consequences of preemption and advocate for repealing inequitable preemption laws.

Despite the growing threat of abusive preemption, LSSC and our partners across the country secured important wins in 2022 – in state houses, in the courts, and in organizing spaces. We learned lessons and developed best practices that are already strengthening our work as the national hub countering abusive preemption and strengthening democracy as we head into 2023. This new report highlights some of the Local Solutions Support Center’s key activities to support the field and push back against abusive preemption in 2022.

The third edition of The Local Power & Politics Review features a series of articles that explore how abusive preemption legislation has impacted states across the country. The new edition covers a wide range of issue areas – from public health policy to local environmental action to public schools to public safety to elections.

In a new paper from Local Solutions Support Center, Curricular Preemption: The New Front of an Old Culture War, we discuss the growing trend of curricular preemption and its impact on local school districts.

This resource provides advocates with the research and data they need to document the harmful consequences of preemption and advocate for repealing inequitable preemption laws.

The second edition features a series of articles that explore how some states preempted local authority across a host of issues during the pandemic.

A new white paper from LSSC explores in more detail how some state legislatures are using preemption to undermine local control of police budgeting, accountability, and management.

This new report highlights how state lawmakers in the Midwest have abused preemption to impede progress on a variety of issues that would improve the economic security and well-being of residents. 

14 authors were tasked with working as advocate-researcher co-authors to produce short articles highlighting recent research findings, emerging issues, and data and research needs across seven policy fields.

A new report, Preempting Progress, examines how state interference in local policymaking prevents people of color, women, and low-income workers from making ends meet in the South.

This groundbreaking new framework lays out a vision for rebalancing state and local relations, and provides model constitutional language to encourage legal reform.

In this white paper, we document how Juul has flooded statehouses with lobbyists to advance T-21 legislation – bills to raise the purchase age of tobacco to 21, but that include poison pill measures preempting local governments from further regulating tobacco products.