Press Release - Strengthening Workers’ Rights through Interstate Cooperation
A new report released today by State Futures and the NYU Wagner Labor Initiative lays out a bold, practical roadmap for how states can join forces to protect workers’ rights in the face of federal retreat on workers’ rights.
The Issue Brief, Strengthening Workers’ Rights and Labor Protections Through Interstate Cooperation, offers a playbook for how states can coordinate policy, enforcement and visibility - using tools like interstate compacts and tactics like joint enforcement, resource pooling, and coordinating legislation to amplify impact across borders.
Press Release
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contacts:
Gaby Goldstein, President, State Futures
Website: https://www.statefutures.org
Terri Gerstein, Director, NYU Wagner Labor Initiative
Website: https://wagner.nyu.edu/laborinitiative
Date: September 29, 2025
As Federal Labor Protections Diminish, New Report Charts Collaborative State Response
State Futures and NYU Wagner Labor Initiative release roadmap for interstate action on workers’ rights
WASHINGTON, D.C. – A new report released today by State Futures and the NYU Wagner Labor Initiative lays out a bold, practical roadmap for how states can join forces to protect workers’ rights in the face of federal retreat on workers’ rights.
The Issue Brief, Strengthening Workers’ Rights and Labor Protections Through Interstate Cooperation, offers a playbook for how states can coordinate policy, enforcement and visibility - using tools like interstate compacts and tactics like joint enforcement, resource pooling, and coordinating legislation to amplify impact across borders.
“This is a moment of crisis, but also one of opportunity,” said Gaby Goldstein, President of State Futures. “States don’t need permission to act. By sharing resources, harmonizing standards, coordinating legislation and holding low-road employers accountable across borders, states can reshape the labor landscape on behalf of working people despite the disintegration of federal protections.”
“At this time of federal rollbacks, states are a crucial defense against corporations that commit wage theft, provide dangerous workplaces, illegally retaliate, and otherwise exploit workers,” said Terri Gerstein, Director of the NYU Wagner Labor Initiative. “By taking joint action and collaborating, states can achieve greater impact and economies of scale—not only enforcing existing laws but also achieving genuine wins and advancing workers’ rights.”
The brief shares existing examples of state cooperation and outlines new proposals such as:
Regional mediation services to replace the dismantled Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service (FMCS);
Shared databases of labor violators to coordinate debarment and enforcement;
Augmented joint enforcement against corporations that violate laws in multiple states;
Joint “drop dates” for labor legislation across states to build visibility and momentum; and
Interstate Compacts to raise labor standards and align procurement
This brief follows a recent Labor Day op-ed by Goldstein and Gerstein in Talking Points Memo, calling for a multi-state surge of pro-worker policy as federal institutions retreat. The brief builds on that vision with specific strategies and tools that can be adapted by lawmakers, governors, attorneys general, and labor commissioners.
About State Futures
State Futures is a national nonprofit that supports a growing network of 600+ values-aligned state legislators and State Financial Officers, facilitating cross-state collaboration on issues like labor, health care, immigration, and elections. State Futures supports both rapid-response coordination and long term working groups that serve as hubs of policy expertise, strategy, and multi-state action. For more, visit https://www.statefutures.org.
About NYU Wagner Labor Initiative
The NYU Wagner Labor Initiative studies and catalyzes the often-untapped potential of government in relation to workers' rights. Based at NYU’s Robert F. Wagner Graduate School of Public Service, the Labor Initiative helps government work for workers, by serving as a hub of analysis, research, and implementation guidance, as well as idea generation and dissemination, related to the role of government in advancing and protecting workers’ rights, with a special focus on state and local government. For more, visit https://wagner.nyu.edu/laborinitiative
Media Contacts:
Gaby Goldstein, President, State Futures
Website: www.statefutures.org
Terri Gerstein, Director, NYU Wagner Labor Initiative
Website: https://wagner.nyu.edu/laborinitiative
New Op Ed: State Lawmakers Are Fighting for Communities + Rule of Law
In a new op ed for Talking Points Memo, State Futures President Gaby Goldstein argues that the arrest of 11 New York state legislators and the viral video of an Illinois lawmaker racing down a suburban street confronting masked federal agents capture something too often overlooked: while the federal government carries out a deeply unpopular agenda, state lawmakers are fighting back visibly and boldly. A hopeful story is unfolding as legislators defend communities with their voices and their bodies, uphold the rule of law, and embody a vision of government that protects rather than persecutes.The next step is to knit these efforts together so the energy in Illinois, New York, and beyond becomes a coordinated front.
Press Release - Issue Brief: Immigration + Rule of Law
Press Release
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Gaby Goldstein, President
Website: www.statefutures.org
Date: September 17, 2025
State Futures Releases Issue Brief: State Legislators Respond to Federal Immigration Policy
New Issue Brief tracks dozens of examples of state-level responses to federal overreach.
Washington, DC — State Futures today released a new Issue Brief spotlighting the surge of state-level action on immigration. The memo is packed with examples of bills, hearings, lawsuits, and communications from across the country. It’s a compendium for lawmakers, activists and journalists looking for ideas and examples of how states can assert authority in response to an emboldened federal immigration agenda.
“Last week, the Supreme Court greenlit racial profiling in immigration enforcement,” said Gaby Goldstein, Founder and President of State Futures. “If Washington cannot - or will not - protect communities and the rule of law, states must. Not timidly or in isolation, but creatively, aggressively, and collaboratively. The good news is, they already are - if you know where to look. There is a massive swell of state activity - but until now, concrete examples have been scattered and siloed. This Issue Brief pulls them together in one place: a clear framework, dozens of case studies, and a roadmap for how states can act.”
Highlights from the Issue Brief include:
Legislation: From New York’s “Avelo Airlines bill,” to bills in 3 states to withhold federal taxes if DC owes the state funds, to 7 states banning local ICE partnerships.
Oversight & Investigations: State lawmakers in Florida and New York forcing access to detention facilities, holding “people’s hearings,” and creating task forces.
Litigation: Legislators are serving as plaintiffs and witnesses in lawsuits against federal detention practices and facilities.
Strategic Communications: Cross-state press conferences, floor speeches, and social campaigns making the fight visible.
The Issue Brief comes on the heels of a cross-state policy convening hosted by State Futures, where legislators shared ideas and learnings, as well as a recent national mobilization call - co-hosted by State Futures with Public Citizen, Indivisible, MoveOn, and Stand Up America - that drew thousands of participants into a conversation about the crucial role of state electeds in protecting the rule of law.
About State Futures
State Futures is a national nonprofit that supports a network of 550+ values-aligned state policymakers, including legislators and State Financial Officers. Our network helps state leaders learn from each other, innovate together, and take coordinated action across states.
Media Contact:
Gaby Goldstein, President
www.statefutures.org
New Op Ed: A Labor Day Call for Action From the States
In this Labor Day op ed for Talking Points Memo, State Futures President Gaby Goldstein and NYU Wagner Labor Initiative Director Terri Gerstein argue that as the Trump administration and conservatives in Congress eviscerate workers’ rights, this is a moment for states to act — and not timidly or in isolation. States have extraordinary untapped power, especially if they choose to wield it together. As federal labor protections crumble, states must fill the void, thinking boldly, cooperatively and creatively about how to build a country that supports working people.
New Op Ed: Blue State Dems Are Having an Overdue Reckoning With Their Own Power
In this op ed for Talking Points Memo, State Futures President Gaby Goldstein explains that while immediate headlines are about redistricting, the more significant story is the growing willingness of blue states to use power more forcefully in an era of declining federal reliability and rising authoritarian threat. If gerrymandering is now back on the table, then the real opportunity lies in something broader: a more serious and strategic approach to wielding blue state power.