Data center records can be kept secret and more news from the states

Good morning. Thanks for joining us for our Thursday edition of Daybreak. We’re starting off with a look at spreading wildfires in Western states.

Firefighting crews in Utah are getting a hand from the National Guard as wildfires across the state and nation continue to stretch resources thin. Following the destruction in Washington state, Montana residents have also had heightened interest in finding ways to protect themselves.

A new community fund in Idaho is helping farmworkers fight heat and wildfire smoke. Wildfire smoke, like that lingering across much of the state, can create a myriad of health conditions.

Later today, Alabama plans to conduct its first execution of 2026, putting to death a man convicted in the murder and sexual assault of a 5-year-old girl in Russell County in December 2021. The state has vigorously pursued the death penalty in recent years, executing two people in 2023, six in 2024 and five in 2025.

There’s more news for you below. Thanks again for stopping by.

National: A new federal rule will end Medicaid coverage for gender-affirming hormone therapies and procedures for kids under age 18. The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services announced a rule that prohibits state Medicaid plans from covering gender-affirming procedures for minors and using federal Medicaid dollars for such care. 

Virginia: Dominion Energy asked the State Corporation Commission to recover an additional $922 million in fuel costs, citing extreme power demands as well as a national rise in gas prices as reasons for the escalation beyond its original calculations.

Alaska: Republican Gov. Mike Dunleavy introduced a new natural gas pipeline bill that he characterized as a compromise between conflicting philosophies on oil and gas taxes that he wants lawmakers to pass during the ongoing special session.

Colorado: The Colorado State Shooting Association is seeking a preliminary injunction against a new state firearm purchasing law, as the group pursues a broader court challenge to the law’s constitutionality.

Washington: A new analysis from the state Department of Revenue shows the state’s high-earner income tax will be paid by thousands of additional households and produce hundreds of millions of dollars more than previously assumed — if voters don’t ditch it this fall.

Minnesota: More than 1.1 million residents voted in Tuesday’s primary election, or a quarter of eligible voters, setting the record for most votes cast in a primary, Democratic Secretary of State Steve Simon announced.

See the rest of the news of the day from all 50 states, plus our D.C. Bureau and Stateline, on News From The States.

Social media giant Meta gets to keep records for its projected $50 billion data center secret after Louisiana utility regulators overturned a judge’s order to make them public, Louisiana Illuminator reports. 

The Louisiana Public Service Commission voted 3-1 to overrule its administrative judge’s order that required Meta to disclose how it calculated publicized job projections and electricity needs for its Hyperion artificial intelligence data center campus in Richland Parish. 

The vote fell along party lines, with Republicans Jean-Paul Coussan, Mike Francis and Eric Skrmetta reversing the judge’s order and Democrat Davante Lewis in support of it. A second Democrat, Foster Campbell, was absent.

Meta has contracted with Entergy to provide electricity for the data center, starting with three natural gas-powered turbines the utility will build for the facility. Meta has since announced it intends to expand Hyperion, which will require another seven power-generating units. But the finer details of the deal have been shrouded under the secrecy of nondisclosure agreements that state and local officials, including Republican Gov. Jeff Landry, have signed.

Several months ago, David Morrow, who works at Naval Station Norfolk in Virginia, got word that he was about to be deployed. He needed to quickly find a home for his dog, Lola, whom he picked up from an animal shelter in August 2025, while he was away, Virginia Mercury reports.

After searching for a while, he came across the website Operation Foster. The nonprofit specializes in placing the pets of military personnel into temporary foster homes while the service members are deployed or are seeking treatment for conditions like post-traumatic stress disorder. Operation Foster falls under the umbrella of the PACT Act, which is part of veterans’ healthcare benefits. 

Operation Foster has fostered and reunited more than 3,500 pets nationwide, said Giselle Boretto Fetterman, the organization’s development director.