About Stateline
What is Stateline?
Stateline is an editorially independent, nonpartisan, nonprofit news service of the Pew Charitable Trusts that provides daily reporting and analysis on trends in state policy. Stateline’s unparalleled coverage across the 50 states, and insight into policy developments on a range of issues, make it an important resource for policymakers and staff at all levels of government. Since its founding in 1998, Stateline has maintained a commitment to the highest standards of journalistic excellence and integrity. Its team of veteran journalists combines original reporting with a roundup of the latest news from sources around the country.
Use our stories and graphics
All Stateline stories and graphics may be republished in print or online by anyone for free. All we ask is that you follow a few rules:
• All stories must be attributed to Stateline
• Any use of Stateline material — in print or online — must include the following disclosure statement: “Stateline is a nonpartisan, nonprofit news service of the Pew Charitable Trusts that provides daily reporting and analysis on trends in state policy.”
• Stateline material may not be edited or changed, except for style reasons or to shorten for length
• Any use online must include a link back to our website
• Stateline material may not be republished wholesale or automatically without permission
Stateline content is published daily at Stateline.org and can be found on LexisNexis, Factiva and news outlets served by McClatchy-Tribune Information Services. Subscribe to our daily and weekly e-mails.
Our Staff
Executive Editor
Sandy Johnson is the executive editor of Stateline, a daily news service of The Pew Charitable Trusts. Stateline provides timely and analytical reporting to policymakers and the public.
Johnson guides a team of journalists in conceptualization, research, and writing for both daily features and special series. She oversees coverage of a diverse range of issues and ensures Stateline serves as a unique and trusted resource for state-focused news and information.
Johnson is an award-winning veteran journalist who has held several top management positions with national news organizations. Prior to joining Pew she served as executive editor at Face the Facts USA, a project of George Washington University and as managing editor for politics at the Center for Public Integrity, the nation’s oldest investigative journalism website. Johnson was also executive editor for state news at AARP Bulletin, which has the largest magazine subscription base in the nation with 28 million readers. While at the Associated Press, Johnson was the Washington bureau chief and directed their national political coverage for 22 years. She was a Pulitzer Prize finalist for public service in 2001 for her direction of AP’s election night journalism in the contested 2000 presidential election.
Johnson holds bachelor’s degrees in political science and journalism from South Dakota State University.
Scott S. Greenberger
Editor
Scott S. Greenberger is the editor of Stateline, the daily news service of The Pew Charitable Trusts. Greenberger guides a team of veteran journalists who report on state politics and policy in the 50 states and the District of Columbia.
Before joining Pew, Greenberger was a staff writer at The Boston Globe, where he covered education, served as City Hall bureau chief, and was the primary policy reporter in the Globe’s State House bureau. He wrote extensively about city and state politics, budgets, health care, crime, housing, and economic development. Previously, Greenberger was a reporter at the Austin American-Statesman, where he covered a wide range of city and state issues and traveled with then-Texas Governor George W. Bush on the presidential campaign trail. He is also the co-author, with former Senator Tom Daschle, of The New York Times bestseller Critical: What We Can Do About the Health Care Crisis, published in 2008.
Greenberger graduated cum laude with a bachelor’s degree in history from Yale University and earned a master’s degree in international relations from the Elliott School at George Washington University.
Before joining Pew, Greenberger was a staff writer at The Boston Globe, where he covered education, served as City Hall bureau chief, and was the primary policy reporter in the Globe’s State House bureau. He wrote extensively about city and state politics, budgets, health care, crime, housing, and economic development. Previously, Greenberger was a reporter at the Austin American-Statesman, where he covered a wide range of city and state issues and traveled with then-Texas Governor George W. Bush on the presidential campaign trail. He is also the co-author, with former Senator Tom Daschle, of The New York Times bestseller Critical: What We Can Do About the Health Care Crisis, published in 2008.
Greenberger graduated cum laude with a bachelor’s degree in history from Yale University and earned a master’s degree in international relations from the Elliott School at George Washington University.
Diane Fancher
Special Projects Editor
Diane Brozek Fancher has extensive writing, editing and newsroom management experience at major newspapers, including The Philadelphia Inquirer, The Baltimore Sun and The Hartford Courant. She also ran Detroit Monthly, an award-winning city magazine and The Scientist, an international science journal. She was most recently editorial director at the investigative news organization, the Center for Public Integrity, in Washington. Diane is a graduate of the University of Connecticut, and did graduate studies at Connecticut’s Fairfield University and the University of Michigan.
Maggie Clark
Staff Writer
Maggie Clark covers the public safety beat for Stateline. Maggie joined Stateline in September 2011 as a Pew Leadership Year fellow. Previously, she wrote about food safety legislation and small farms for News21, a national investigative reporting fellowship program. She earned her bachelor's degree in international affairs at Florida State University and a master’s degree in journalism from the University of Maryland College Park, where she covered the Maryland legislature for the school’s Capital News Service. She also has written for CQ Researcher and had her work featured in The Washington Post, FoxNews.com, and WAMU.org.
Stephen C. Fehr
Staff Writer
Stephen C. Fehr covers state finances and public pensions for Stateline. Stephen joined Stateline in June 2008 from The Washington Post, where he edited Virginia government and politics coverage. As a reporter at The Post, he covered transportation, development and District of Columbia finances. Before joining The Post, Fehr was a Washington correspondent and Kansas statehouse correspondent for The Kansas City Star. He graduated from the University of Missouri-Columbia. Stephen is a native of Missouri who grew up in the Los Angeles area.
Jake Grovum
Staff Writer
Jake Grovum covers social policy for Stateline. Jake started his career covering politics for the St. Paul Pioneer Press in the Twin Cities, and later covered the Minnesota Legislature with the Minneapolis Star Tribune. After graduating from the University of Minnesota in 2009, Jake accepted a Pulliam Fellowship at the Indianapolis Star covering politics and general news. In December 2009, he joined the Stateline staff as an intern and freelancer. Before re-joining the Stateline staff in 2012, Jake spent two years covering the Minnesota Legislature for Politics in Minnesota and Capitol Report.
Jim Malewitz
Staff Writer
Jim Malewitz covers the energy and environment beat for Stateline. Jim joined Stateline in September 2011 as a Pew Leadership Year fellow after a summer reporting for The Gazette and KCRG-TV in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. He received his master’s degree in journalism from The University of Iowa, where he was a founding staff member of The Iowa Center for Public Affairs Journalism (IowaWatch.org). At IowaWatch he reported, edited, assisted in daily operations and conducted research on nonprofit journalism. Jim graduated in 2009 from Grinnell College, where he studied political science and global development.
Melissa Maynard
Staff Writer
Melissa Maynard covers state management and labor unions for Stateline. Melissa joined the Pew Center on the States in 2008, first as a research associate and now as a staff writer at Stateline. Previously, Melissa was a project reporter at Governing magazine. Her work has also been featured in The Washington Post, Newsweek, Atlanta magazine, Hour Detroit, the Columbia Missourian and the Jackson Citizen Patriot. A native of Michigan, Melissa graduated from the University of Missouri School of Journalism, where she also earned a Master of Arts in Journalism and served as editor of Vox magazine.
Michael Ollove
Staff Writer
Michael
Ollove was a long-time journalist at The Baltimore Sun, first as an enterprise
reporter and then an enterprise/narrative editor. A number of stories or series
he edited won national awards, including National Headliners, Mike Berger,
Excellence in Urban Journalism, Society of Professional Journalism, Associated
Press Sports Editors and Livingston for Young Journalists.
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Elaine S. Povich
Staff Writer
Elaine S. Povich is an award-winning reporter who covers tax and budget issues for Stateline. Povich has reported from Washington for Newsday, the Chicago Tribune and UPI. She also covered taxes and government finances as a freelancer for The Fiscal Times, Governing, AOLGovernment, Kiplinger and AARP Bulletin. She has written three books and is an adjunct professor of journalism at Maryland.
Pamela M. Prah
Staff Writer
Pamela M. Prah covers economic policy for Stateline. Pam is a veteran Washington reporter with some 20 years reporting experience, including stints at Kiplinger, The Bureau of National Affairs, McGraw-Hill and Congressional Quarterly. She has covered legislative, regulatory and political developments affecting states, business, organized labor and education. Her reporting has been cited in The Washington Post, The Wall Street Journal and C-SPAN. She has a master’s degree in government from Johns Hopkins University and a journalism degree from Ohio University. She also is an adjunct journalism professor at American University.
Christine Vestal
Staff Writer
Christine Vestal covers the health care beat for Stateline. Christine has 30 years of experience in the news business. She started her career at McGraw-Hill as managing editor of energy and environmental newsletters. She then launched her own company, publishing newsletters on telecommunications. After selling her business to the Financial Times newsletter group, Christine became publisher of their energy, finance and telecom group. Before joining Stateline, Christine was editorial director for a group of award-winning newsletters on leadership and management issues.
Daniel C. Vock
Staff Writer
Daniel C. Vock covers transportation, politics and immigration for Stateline. Dan began covering state government as the Illinois statehouse reporter for the Chicago Daily Law Bulletin, and, since 2005, as a staff writer for Stateline. His thoughtful analysis and thorough reporting earned him awards for daily news coverage, magazine writing and investigative work. Daniel wrote the 2010 Stateline series “Behind on Bills: The high cost of states' hidden debts.” He has a master’s degree in public affairs reporting from the University of Illinois Springfield and a bachelor’s degree in English and German from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.