The Pew Charitable Trusts

At least six states - Georgia, Illinois, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey and Rhode Island - are projected to run out of federal money for the State Children's Health Insurance Program by May, and they're looking to Congress to fix the problem quickly. But they're also asking for a long-term solution so states won't have to ask Congress to retool S-CHIP's funding formulas every year.

Sudan's bloody crackdown on African tribesmen in the Darfur region has inspired six states to enact laws they hope will stem the attacks by cutting off financial backing for the Sudanese government. And lawmakers in at least 15 more states plan to propose similar bills when their legislatures convene in January.

Democrats kept their hold on governors' seats in Virginia and New Jersey, while California voters gave the cold shoulder to Republican Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's prized reform package. The outcome of the nation's only two gubernatorial races in 2005 preserves Democrats' 22 governorships, compared to 28 held by Republicans. See Stateline.org's quick guide to election results in the nine states with statewide elections, with sources to click for additional information.

Fifteen states want the U.S. Supreme Court to block the federal government's plan to bill them for a portion of costs for the new Medicare prescription drug benefit passed by Congress. The states call the law "an unprecedented intrusion into each state's sovereignty."

Most states by now have reached the light at the end of this decade's deep budget-crisis tunnel. Sure, the hurricanes knocked the state budgets of Louisiana and Mississippi for a loop, and Michigan is reeling from shrinkage in the U.S. auto industry. But how come New Jersey's budget is still in a bind?