# state local (audio feeds) — RSS Amplifier Recent posts from the 2 feeds in the RSS Amplifier directory that cover state local. Page: Feed: --- ## [Off the grid, but here's a recent podcast](https://backroomdeals.substack.com/p/off-the-grid-but-heres-a-recent-podcast) _2026-08-19 · Backroom Deals Miranda Spivack · Miranda Spivack_ Take a listen: Geopolitics & Empire, And U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit (CT, NY, VT) ruled for recording visible police activity ## [Ignoring FOIA, gathering data on Americans, icing out the Pentagon reporters - an update on Trump Administration actions and inaction](https://backroomdeals.substack.com/p/ignoring-foia-gathering-data-on-americans) _2026-08-12 · Backroom Deals Miranda Spivack · Miranda Spivack_ Here is some new information about old stories ## [Disappearing messages should disappear](https://backroomdeals.substack.com/p/disappearing-messages-should-disappear) _2026-08-05 · Backroom Deals Miranda Spivack · Miranda Spivack_ State and local governments need to get a grip on this, and stop chats and messages from evaporating after only a few days ## [When everyone's federal taxes are supporting states and cities, why are they allowed to withhold public information from out-of-staters?](https://backroomdeals.substack.com/p/when-everyones-federal-taxes-are) _2026-07-29 · Backroom Deals Miranda Spivack · Miranda Spivack_ The Internet knows no such boundaries; why is this still happeing in 2026? (Photo credit: Al.com) ## [A lobbying firm works for and against an issue - and often doesn't have to reveal that to the public](https://backroomdeals.substack.com/p/a-lobbying-firm-works-for-and-against) _2026-07-22 · Backroom Deals Miranda Spivack · Miranda Spivack_ Yet another way more transparency might help our democracy ## [What happens when two branches of the same government agency follow different playbooks?](https://backroomdeals.substack.com/p/what-happens-when-two-branches-of) _2026-07-15 · Backroom Deals Miranda Spivack · Miranda Spivack_ Why would one set of planners provide documents and data and another group said absolutely not? A weird saga from Montgomery County, Md., that could happen anywhere. ## [Unmasking the surveillance state in the U.S.](https://backroomdeals.substack.com/p/unmasking-the-surveillance-state) _2026-07-08 · Backroom Deals Miranda Spivack · Miranda Spivack_ A setback but some cause for hope ## [Michael Steele talks with Miranda](https://backroomdeals.substack.com/p/michael-steele-talks-with-miranda) _2026-07-01 · Backroom Deals Miranda Spivack · Miranda Spivack_ For your listening pleasure while I am off the grid with my family ## [When the federal government lets you down, don't hesitate to go local](https://backroomdeals.substack.com/p/when-the-federal-government-lets) _2026-06-24 · Backroom Deals Miranda Spivack · Miranda Spivack_ Jeff Hagan of In the Public Interest helps me deconstruct state and local secrecy ## [How did police misconduct become a national secret?](https://backroomdeals.substack.com/p/how-did-police-misconduct-become) _2026-06-17 · Backroom Deals Miranda Spivack · Miranda Spivack_ State by state, the willingness of officials to protect officers who mess up is very varied. ## [Install Manifest V3 Extension (Sponsored)](https://crawlproof.com/a/MBqw9KjdZhL1) _2026-06-17 · **Sponsored**_ Get this Manifest V3 extension from the official TronBrowser Store listing. ## [When you seek help from your local government, officials erect information blockades](https://backroomdeals.substack.com/p/when-you-try-to-get-help-from-your) _2026-06-10 · Backroom Deals Miranda Spivack · Miranda Spivack_ But now, with the Trump administration taking a sledge hammer to the federal government, getting help locally is more important than ever ## [Why is the Trump administration building a database about people in the US?](https://backroomdeals.substack.com/p/why-is-the-trump-administration-building) _2026-06-03 · Backroom Deals Miranda Spivack · Miranda Spivack_ Could be a great tool for surveillance.; data from states also are being collected. ## [Florida can secretly designate terrorists](https://backroomdeals.substack.com/p/florida-can-secretly-designate-terrorists) _2026-05-27 · Backroom Deals Miranda Spivack · Miranda Spivack_ Will other states follow? Will the courts say it's legal? ## [When you contact the government, your communication is part of the public record](https://backroomdeals.substack.com/p/when-you-contact-the-government-your) _2026-05-20 · Backroom Deals Miranda Spivack · Miranda Spivack_ Governments should make clear that your emails, letters and survey responses are public documents that can be released without identifiers to protect privacy ## [Seeking reader feedback always!](https://backroomdeals.substack.com/p/seeking-reader-feedback-always) _2026-05-14 · Backroom Deals Miranda Spivack · Miranda Spivack_ Please be in touch! and support local news close to home ## [Governments keep tax-funded studies and surveys secret, but claim they back official conclusions](https://backroomdeals.substack.com/p/governments-withhold-tax-funded-studies) _2026-05-13 · Backroom Deals Miranda Spivack · Miranda Spivack_ But sometimes, there are errors and misrepresentations ## [When members of a public body use private devices, should their work be public?](https://backroomdeals.substack.com/p/when-members-of-a-public-body-use) _2026-05-06 · Backroom Deals Miranda Spivack · Miranda Spivack_ The Kentucky Supreme Court doesn't think so ## [Can Hegseth insist that reporters cover DoD only with government minders?](https://backroomdeals.substack.com/p/can-hegseth-insist-that-reporters) _2026-04-29 · Backroom Deals Miranda Spivack · Miranda Spivack_ He won on appeal but will it stick? ## [Bright spots (at least a few) in the state transparency darkness](https://backroomdeals.substack.com/p/bright-spots-at-least-a-few-in-the) _2026-04-22 · Backroom Deals Miranda Spivack · Miranda Spivack_ Victories now and then for transparency about schools, police and aerial photography ## [Yet another way corporate America keeps the public in the dark](https://backroomdeals.substack.com/p/yet-another-way-corporate-american) _2026-04-15 · Backroom Deals Miranda Spivack · Miranda Spivack_ And this happens when they are getting state and local tax breaks that you are subsidizing ## [Trade Smarter With IBKR (Sponsored)](https://crawlproof.com/a/9uY67yuCx8zh) _2026-04-15 · **Sponsored**_ Join Interactive Brokers through a referral and start investing with low-cost global access. ## [Who is in charge here?](https://backroomdeals.substack.com/p/who-is-in-charge-here) _2026-04-10 · Backroom Deals Miranda Spivack · Miranda Spivack_ Pete Hegseth continues to defy federal judge on Pentagon press access ## ['Friends' helped North Carolina 911's call centers withstand Hurricane Helene](https://soundcloud.com/statescoop/friends-helped-north-carolina-911s-call-centers-withstand-hurricane-helene) _2025-12-11 · StateScoop Radio_ Pokey Harris, executive director of the North Carolina 911 Board, says the redundancy built into the state's next-generation 911 system helped the state withstand outages during a major hurricane last year. [Listen](http://dts.podtrac.com/redirect.mp3/feeds.soundcloud.com/stream/2228022608-statescoop-friends-helped-north-carolina-911s-call-centers-withstand-hurricane-helene.mp3)