Popular Government

For some North Carolina cities, counties, and school systems, the results of the 2000 census call for redistricting. Is your unit affected? If so, what must you do? And how do you take race into account?

Some hardworking people in North Carolina are becoming "hooked" on high-interest, short-term "payday" loans, taking them out back-to-back from the same lender or borrowing from one lender to pay off another. The author suggests four steps that policy makers, regulators, and mainstream banks could take to protect customers.

Do North Carolina local governments value citizen participation in budgeting, and if so, what do they do to encourage it? A recent survey of the state's cities and counties revealed a variety of views and practices.

North Carolina policy makers have affirmed the importance of preparing young people for their role as American citizens. Yet in a 1998 assessment, just 20 percent of the students in the Southeast demonstrated solid academic performance in civics. The author lays out three cost-effective strategies for promoting civic education in the state's schools.

Screening in hospital emergency departments might provide a clearer picture of the prevalence and the impact of domestic violence. Existing and past programs in Massachusetts and North Carolina are instructive about what makes screening successful.

A reader takes issue with a recent Popular Government article about the U.S. Supreme Court's recent decisions on states' immunity from private suit.