Six minutes of news from around the nation.

The US Supreme Court decided to weaken the landmark Voting Rights Act; Florida lawmakers defy ban on partisan gerrymandering; NYS advocates oppose Gov. Hochul’s new immigration proposal; Medicaid rules mean fewer services for Nebraska dialysis patients.

TRANSCRIPT

The Public News Service Daily Newscast, April the 30th, 2026.

I'm Mike Clifford.

In a 6-3 partisan split, the U.S. Supreme Court issued a decision that weakens the landmark Voting Rights Act.

House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries responded to the ruling in the Louisiana case, saying, Today's decision is designed to undermine the ability of communities of color all over this country to elect their candidates of choice.

CNBC notes the decision strikes down a majority black district in Louisiana and could precipitate the elimination of other majority black districts represented by Democrats elsewhere in the country.

Meantime, Florida Republicans lost no time taking action just hours after the Supreme Court gutted the Voting Rights Act.

They pushed through a new congressional map Wednesday, a move that could give the GOP a significant advantage in the November midterms.

Democrats and good government groups in Florida say the new map violates the state's own constitution.

State Representative Christine Hunchofsky spoke on the House floor against the proposal.

This map flies directly against the face of the people of Florida who said they wanted fair districts.

And the people of Florida were not included in this discussion.

The Fair District's amendments were passed by 63 percent of Florida voters in 2010.

But the maps lawmakers just approved were drawn by Governor Ron DeSantis' office, not by the legislature.

DeSantis predicted the U.S. Supreme Court would weaken the Voting Rights Act to support his map, and hours before the vote, it did.

I'm Tramiel Gomes.

Next to New York, where immigrant rights supporters oppose Governor Kathy Hochul's new immigration proposal.

It calls for local and state law enforcement to work with immigration and customs enforcement if there's probable cause a person committed a crime.

Some groups worry officers might turn over New Yorkers based on discriminatory bias and racial profiling.

Luba Cortez with Make the Road New York says this can turn a traffic stop into a deportation.

An example of that could be a car seat that was not maybe buckled properly.

And then he can assume that there's like child neglect.

But things can spiral out of control, and so that's a deep concern we have, that it leaves a lot of room for them to make assumptions.

Governor Hochul says the proposal would ensure federal agents can track down people accused of violent and serious crimes, but data show the majority of people swept up in immigration arrests since federal crackdowns began have no criminal record.

New reports show the governor is considering only ending cooperation between ICE and local officers in civil cases, but leaving broad discretion about how to collaborate on criminal cases.

I'm Edwin J. Viera.

Advocates say lawmakers are considering bills that would better address immigrant safety concerns.

The New York for All Act would end agreements, which allows local law enforcement to work with ICE.

The Dignity Not Detention Act prohibits any person or entity in the state from owning or operating an immigrant facility.

This is Public News Service.

New Medicaid rules in the Trump administration budget bill are making it much harder for dialysis patients to get the care they need to stay alive.

A clinic in Chadron, Nebraska, was forced to stop offering dialysis, meaning some people have to drive hundreds of miles to get care.

Carol Franks, whose family has a long history of kidney disease, says receiving regular dialysis treatments is hard enough for people who are otherwise healthy and mobile.

But reporting by the American Independent shows that new Medicaid eligibility requirements in the Trump administration budget bill make qualifying for dialysis and actually receiving it much harder and more expensive.

Can you imagine, you know, if you have low income, you have a family to take care of.

What if you're faced with having to deal with doing volunteer work to qualify for Medicaid?

I don't know who wrote that thing.

The Trump administration has said by rewriting Medicaid eligibility guidelines, it's trying to reduce financial waste and fraud.

I'm Mark Moran.

This story with original reporting by Rebecca Sager with the American Independent.

We head next to San Francisco, where the school board got an earful this week from parents and community groups concerned the district is failing to disclose data on discipline, namely suspensions, detentions and referrals for black students.

The school system is required to publish that data every two years under its Safe and Supportive Schools Resolution, which banned suspension for willful defiance and adopted restorative justice policies.

Rachel Jones with the nonprofit Coleman Advocates says the district is dragging its feet.

They're supposed to track and publicly report referral and informal exclusionary practices that result in the loss of instructional time.

But they have not done that.

Groups that fight for equity in education say that black students in the city's public schools are still getting suspended at four times the district average.

I'm Suzanne Potter.

Finally, tomorrow is May Day.

People across Washington state will gather to celebrate the contributions of the labor movement.

May Day events will happen in many cities tomorrow, including Seattle, Yakima and Spokane.

Brenda Morgan is an executive board member with Service Employees International Union 775, otherwise known as the Caregivers Union.

And she says all are welcome.

This is community members coming together.

This is people that want to voice their concern.

This is people raising awareness of what our labor movement has done for us as workers.

Don't keep quiet.

Come out, join us.

Morgan says it's thanks to the union that she and other caregivers now make a living wage, have health insurance and more job security.

She adds Washington's labor movement has a lot to celebrate tomorrow, including the passage of the Domestic Workers' Bill of Rights and the Millionaire's Tax.

I'm Isobel Charle.

The first May Day led to the Haymarket affair in Chicago, which inspired generations of labor leaders.

This is Mike Clifford for Public News Service.

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