News from around the nation.

Acting AG Todd Blanche says IRS is “FOREVER” banned from investigating pending Trump taxes; Community groups work for peace in wake of San Diego mosque attack; Connecticut benefits cliff bill fails despite public support; West Virginia churches weigh in on SCOTUS Voting Rights Act decision.

Transcript

The Public News Service Wednesday afternoon update.

I'm Mike Clifford.

In a first-time-ever move, the Justice Department has granted President Trump, his family, and his businesses immunity from ongoing inquiries into their taxes.

A one-page document signed by the acting Attorney General Todd Blanche said that the government would be forever barred and precluded from prosecuting or pursuing pending tax claims against Mr.

Trump, his family, members, and businesses.

The New York Times notes the provision quietly inserted on Tuesday as a supplement to the remarkable deal that also created a $1.8 billion fund aimed at benefiting Trump's allies.

Some tax experts raised the possibility the move was illegal.

And community groups are redoubling their efforts to combat violence in the wake of the shooting Monday at a San Diego mosque.

Two teenagers opened fire on the Islamic Center of San Diego, killing three men before taking their own lives.

Police say they believe the young men were radicalized by hate groups online.

Ethan Quesada is program manager with the non-profit Nonviolent Peace Force.

His group holds regular trainings to help community organizations de-escalate violence and promote public safety.

Early warning, early response is a framework for preventing and mitigating violence, and it really leverages local knowledge to build proactive, community-wide responses to violence.

Over the past two years, Nonviolent Peace Force has worked with the group Catalyst San Diego, funded by a state grant called Stop the Hate to conduct trainings with local community groups.

I'm Suzanne Potter.

And the Supreme Court's weakening of the Voting Rights Act has implications for all West Virginia communities, according to Mountain State clergy members.

Arnadia Ramlagan reminds us, in a 63 ruling last month, justices determined Louisiana's creation of a second-majority black district to comply with the federal law was unconstitutional.

Critics argue the decision is a blow to decades of civil rights work, even in states that aren't immediately affected by the ruling.

Doug Dyson is executive director of the West Virginia Council of Churches.

We have seen jurymandering happen to the point where it's become entire racial groups have no voice.

Louisiana lawmakers will now have to redraw state maps, which are likely to be unfavorable for Democrats and less representative of Black voters.

There's been a push in some states to hand over map-drawing powers to independent commissions.

Next to Connecticut, where lawmakers fail to pass a benefits cliff mitigation bill this legislative session.

The benefits cliff refers to when a slight wage increase leads to a loss of public benefits equal to or greater than the wage increase.

Melvette Hill, with the Commission on Women, Children, Seniors, Equity and Opportunity, says the benefits cliff has many forms.

Whether it's through losing their child care benefits, there's a rent increase for their Section 8, or if they're losing TANF, temporary assistance for needed families, or SNAP.

Part of the bill called for a pilot program to eliminate the temporary family assistance program's asset limit and increase assistance to some households.

This is Public News Service.

In New York, the state's electric school bus mandate faces a likely delay.

A new proposal in the state budget pushes back the original transition start from July 2027 to 2032, when it was initially supposed to be completed.

Some school districts claimed the initial time frame wasn't achievable, and rural lawmakers worry rural districts would struggle to keep to the deadline.

Deb Peck-Kelleher with the Alliance for Clean Energy New York says the delay doesn't make sense.

It's a transition with the expectation school districts will purchase one or two, and then slowly, as they do their bus replacements in their normal schedule, they would replace their diesel buses with zero-emission buses.

Various provisions and programs were in place to ensure districts wouldn't face too many barriers with the transition.

One involved waivers for individual districts to push back their efforts, and the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority offered resources to help school leaders develop a plan.

Along with these, the state set aside $500 million to aid planning work.

I'm Edwin J. Viera.

And as Illinois appears to be moving forward in adopting more restorative justice practices for juvenile offenses, Youth advocates say it's going to take more than legislation to shift the system.

The Illinois House passed a bill last month that aims to reform the juvenile justice system by requiring both courts and states' attorneys to consider restorative justice participation prior to sentencing.

Michael Sang, professor at the University of Illinois Chicago Law School, stresses the need to engage all juvenile court personnel about the benefits of options like mediation programs.

I don't think any legislation is going to result in real progress without further education.

We've got to educate judges in Illinois about what restorative justice is and exactly what it does.

Seng says restorative justice focuses on repairing harm, addressing trauma, and providing an alternative to traditional sentencing.

I'm Judith Ruiz Branch reporting.

Finally, kids in North Carolina and elsewhere are counting down the days until summer break, but their parents might feel a sense of dread.

More than half say they don't have access to a structured summer experience for their child, with cost as the top barrier.

Elizabeth Anderson of the North Carolina Center for Afterschool Programs says when school is out, parents prioritize enrichment opportunities for their kids, including arts, active play, and career-centric activities.

These are all the things that parents say they want for their kids in summer programs, and the good news is that summer programs can deliver on that if a kid has access to them.

Cost and lack of access primarily affect low-income families, but Anderson says it's becoming more pressing for middle-class households, too.

I'm Mike Moen.

This is Mike Clifford for Public News Service.

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