News from around the nation.

When school meals stop, Missouri group steps in; Fair election maps could spur businesses in NC and CA's Channel Islands Fox, a conservation success story.

Transcript

The Public News Service Thursday afternoon update.

I'm Joe Ulery.

The House neared a final vote today on President Trump's massive tax cut and spending bill.

Trump and Speaker Johnson convinced GOP holdouts to support it before the July 4th deadline.

Fiscal conservatives opposed the Senate version, which adds one trillion more to the deficit than the House bill.

Democrat Hakeem Jeffries criticized the bill for cutting Medicaid and blasted Senator Lisa Murkowski for voting yes, despite her concerns.

School cafeterias may be closed for the summer, but help is still on the table for Missouri families.

Through LINC's Caring Communities Initiative, free meals are being served to kids younger than 18 at schools, churches, parks, and other familiar neighborhood sites.

The LINC Morning Star Meal Program is part of a statewide network run through the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services designed to reach children who would normally rely on free or reduced price meals during the school year.

Sean Akeridge heads up caring communities in Kansas City.

He says breakfast and lunch is provided to enrolled students and beyond.

Also students, children are able to participate in both the breakfast and lunch programs.

Every meal provided must meet the USDA nutritional guidelines supporting healthy summer growth for kids.

Crystal Blair reporting.

New York colleges may lose international students as Trump administration policies raise safety concerns.

Some nearly lost legal status when their records linked to an FBI database.

Visayo Okare is with the investigative journalism project, Documented.

Documented has been hearing from international applicants who are hesitant to apply to U.S. universities particularly because of the pause on international student interviews worldwide for U.S. visa specifically.

Experts warn the loss could hurt New York's economy and higher education system.

Fairly drawn election maps aren't just good for democracy.

They're also good for business.

Eric Tegethoff has more.

Federal judges are considering a case on gerrymandering in North Carolina in which organizations including the state NAACP alleged that lawmakers in the state drew voting district lines that diminished black power in last year's election.

David Bilstrom is the owner of the North Carolina based Flashing Red Light, which consults with businesses.

He says the absence of fair elections creates smaller markets and is counterproductive for businesses.

I see correlation between unfair elections and attacks on parties and people being members of parties and the moment you start attacking now you've constrained your ability to market.

Bilstrom says while businesses should be non-partisan to improve their bottom lines they can also promote civic engagement.

While the gerrymandering case moves forward some including Bilstrom want North Carolina lawmakers to consider creating an and Independent Redistricting Commission.

This is Joe Ulery for Public News Service, member and listener supported.

Find our trust indicators at publicnewsservice.org.

More than 1100 caregivers at Portland's Providence St. Vincent Medical Center have voted to unionize, joining the service employees International Union Local 49.

Hospital staffers, including certified nursing assistants, cooks, lab assistants, pharmacy techs, environmental workers, and patient representatives will soon begin collective bargaining with management over a new work contract.

New union member, Finn McCool, who works in the hospital's food service department, says changes to working conditions in the hospital were a major driver to organize.

There's a lot that makes St. Vincent a great place to work, but we've also seen just tons of changes over the years around staffing and benefits.

So my fellow caregivers really knew that jobs were only gonna get harder.

The St. Vincent caregivers will join with thousands of other unionized workers at Providence Hospitals in Oregon, Washington State and other parts of the country.

Providence officials released a statement recognizing the union and saying they were prepared to work with them towards a new contract.

McCool says the company made several changes to staffing and work policies without feedback from its employees.

He says changes to the employees' healthcare benefits caused a major upheaval.

Environmental and wildlife conservation in Montana took hits during this year's state legislative session, including vetoes from the governor on bills that received bipartisan support.

Among bills Governor Greg Gianforte vetoed was House Bill 477, which would have phased out some single-use styrofoam food containers in favor of those made from Montana agricultural byproducts.

The bill's sponsor, Democratic Representative Marilyn Marler of Missoula, says it's discouraging when such a bipartisan effort is vetoed.

Because it seems to me he did not listen to a wide variety of people, even in his own party.

I think that with this particular bill, it just didn't send the right message about what our values are.

Tourism and recreation are important and growing industries in the state, and Marler says people don't come here to see trash.

Constituents can see how their lawmakers voted on conservation this session on the Montana Conservation Voters 2025 legislative scorecard.

I'm Kathleen Shannon.

And a small fox that lives on six of the eight Channel Islands off the coast of Southern California is thriving after near extinction.

The Island Fox, found nowhere else on Earth, was listed as endangered in 2004, when only about 30 remained.

A multi-agency recovery effort that started in 1999 resulted in the fastest comeback of any terrestrial mammal under the Endangered Species Act.

Photographer Chuck Graham has traveled to the islands to chronicle their recovery and share the story.

It wouldn't have happened with all the work of the biologists and everything.

I mean, otherwise, if it wasn't successful, then it would have been a really big disappointment, but everything worked out.

Revered by the island's early indigenous people, the fox weighs just four pounds, smaller than the average house cat.

I'm Roz Brown.

This is Joe Ulery for Public News Service.

Member and listener supported.

Find our trust indicators at publicnewsservice.org.