At least a dozen states are proposing separate, higher electricity rates for data centers. This effort stems from concerns over how these centers, which can use as much power as a small city, are increasing utility bills for nearby residents. Statelines’ Kevin Hardy reports: 

Delaware legislation that would charge data centers higher rates advanced out of committee last week. On Tuesday, a Florida state Senate committee approved a bill that would create new rate structures for data centers. … (L)egislation from [Oklahoma] state Rep. Brad Boles will seek to protect other ratepayers from the costs of data centers. Boles, the Republican chair of the state Energy and Natural Resources Oversight Committee, said his in-the-works measure would ensure data centers pay their fair share. 

Landry turns to smaller FEMA for winter storm recovery

Gov. Jeff Landry is asking the Trump administration for more federal funds in the aftermath of the deadly winter storm that ravaged north Louisiana. President Donald Trump has approved emergency declarations for 12 states. But he has not issued any major disaster declarations, which provide more substantial, longer-term federal aid. The Louisiana Illuminator’s Julie O’Donoghue reports: 

The governor is also asking for extra money for infrastructure upgrades in the listed parishes to protect them from losses during future winter storms, according to a copy of the disaster declaration request the Governor’s Office of Homeland Security and Emergency Preparedness provided. “I have determined that this winter storm is of such severity and magnitude that effective recovery is beyond the capabilities of the state and local governments and that supplemental federal assistance is necessary,” Landry wrote in his request to the Trump administration.

States are encountering a smaller Federal Emergency Management Agency in their recovery efforts. 


America’s mounting health care affordability crisis

Enrollment in Affordable Care Act health insurance coverage has decreased by more than one million people so far this year. The decline comes as federal subsidies, which kept health insurance affordable for people who buy coverage through the federal Marketplace, expired at the end of 2025. Jennifer Sullivan of the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities explains why America’s health care affordability crisis will get worse: 

For new coverage to become effective, people must pay their share of the first month’s premium. If people don’t make that payment, their coverage won’t start. People who had coverage in 2025 and were automatically re-enrolled have a 90-day grace period to pay their share of their premium before their coverage is terminated. For these reasons, the number of people actually enrolled is likely to fall compared to the number who selected plans. 

Skyrocketing premiums appear here to stay after Capitol Hill negotiations to extend the subsidies collapsed this week. 


Hospitals in bind over ICE’s use of Medicaid data

A recent court ruling allows U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to continue using Medicaid data to locate and deport undocumented immigrants. KFF’s Phil Galewitz and Amanda Seitz explain how the move is putting hospitals in a difficult position:

“If hospitals tell people that their Emergency Medicaid information will be shared with ICE, it is foreseeable that many immigrants would simply stop getting emergency medical treatment,” said Leonardo Cuello, a research professor at Georgetown University’s Center for Children and Families. “Half of the Emergency Medicaid cases are for the delivery of U.S. citizen babies. Do we want these mothers avoiding the hospital when they go into labor?”

The January ruling only allows ICE to access Medicaid information for people who are in the U.S. unlawfully. But it’s unclear how that distinction is being carried out: 

HHS spokesperson Rich Danker said in an email that CMS — which oversees Medicaid, a joint state-federal program — is sharing data with ICE after the judge’s ruling. But he would not answer how the agency is ensuring it is sharing information only on people who are not lawfully present, as the judge required.

Emergency Medicaid, which reimburses hospitals for treating undocumented immigrants, accounted for about 0.4% of total federal spending on Medicaid in 2023. Undocumented immigrants are ineligible for standard Medicaid coverage. 


Number of the Day

15% – Change in average annual car insurance costs in Louisiana from 2024 to 2025. The average annual cost for car insurance in the state in 2025 was $2,370. (Source: Insurify via Axios)