Capitol to Capitol | Dec. 16, 2025

Capitol to Capitol | Dec. 16, 2025

Questions? Please use the email icon at left to contact NCSL's State-Federal Affairs Division.

Administration Updates

Trump Signs Order Preempting State AI Regulations

The executive order aims to block states from crafting their own regulation for AI, saying the burgeoning industry is at risk of being stifled by a patchwork of onerous rules while in a battle with Chinese competitors for supremacy. It also establishes a Justice Department AI Litigation Task Force to sue states that legislate, regulate or enforce their AI laws and directs federal agencies to withhold broadband and other grant funds from states that fail to comply. The executive order circumvents Congress, which twice rejected preemption of state AI laws, first in the reconciliation vote and again in the National Defense Authorization Act. Read the order.

Farm Aid Package Announced

The $12 billion package will help farmers affected by tariffs and other economic challenges. Under the Farmer Bridge Assistance program, $11 billion will be allocated to producers of major row crops such as corn, soybeans, wheat, rice and cotton. The remaining funds will be allocated to farmers of fruits, vegetables and specialty crops. According to Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins, the aid will begin on Feb. 28, 2026. Read CNN's reporting.

Grant Program to Create Healthier, Family-Friendly Airports

The department announced $1 billion in new grants aimed at making airports more family- and health-friendly. The program will support a range of improvements such as nursing facilities for breastfeeding mothers, expanded family lanes at security checkpoints and exercise equipment in terminals. Airports across the country will be able to apply for funding, with priority given to projects that demonstrate significant benefits for passenger health. Read the announcement.

Transit Projects on the Horizon for States and D.C.

Transportation Secretary Sean P. Duffy announced a $2 billion investment in 165 transit projects across 45 states and Washington, D.C. The investment aims to upgrade bus infrastructure, ease traffic congestion and enhance travel efficiency and affordability. These projects will be funded through the Federal Transit Administration's Grants for Buses and Bus Facilities Program and the Low or No Emission Grant Program.

Drug to Treat and Prevent Screwworm Conditionally Approved

The Food and Drug Administration granted conditional approval for a pour-on drug used for the prevention and treatment of the parasitic New World Screwworm. To ensure meat from treated animals is free of residue, a 98-day withholding period is required. The treatment from Merck Animal Health, known as EXZOLT CATTLE-CA, is expected to be made available to veterinarians and producers in mid-January 2026.

Supreme Court Updates

Supreme Court Examines Use of IQ Tests in Capital Cases

The justices are considering how IQ tests and other evidence of mental disability must be weighed by state criminal courts in Hamm v. Smith. Under the Eighth Amendment, which prohibits cruel and unusual punishment, and Supreme Court precedent, individuals who are intellectually disabled cannot be executed. Joseph Smith, an Alabama man on death row, took several IQ tests over 40 years to show he could not be executed by the state; some tests resulted in scores under the intellectual disability threshold of 70, and some resulted in scores above 70. Alabama has challenged a ruling by the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals that Smith could not be executed. At oral argument, the justices seemed divided, with Justices Elena Kagan, Neil Gorsuch and Brett Kavanaugh proposing possible legal tests the lower court should have applied to determine mental capacity in capital cases with multiple IQ test results. The court will issue its decision next summer. Read the court transcript.

Links