Fact Sheet

­Types of Legal and Policy Tools to Protect Community Health at the Local Level: A Brief Introduction

Fact SheetMechanisms for Advancing Health EquityMechanisms for Advancing Public Health

July 23, 2025
by Jill Krueger

Knowledge of legal and policy tools that may be used to advance public health at the local level can increase the effectiveness of public health practitioners and community advocates in bringing about lasting systems change. This fact describes a number of legal and policy tools commonly used at the local level, together with one or more examples of how they might be used to advance public health and health equity.

View page

­Recent Executive Orders Threaten Climate Change and Public Health Goals­

Fact SheetEnvironment, Climate and Health

June 27, 2025
by Jill Krueger

The president has issued numerous executive orders since taking office. The lawfulness of the executive orders and executive actions has been challenged in lawsuits across a range of topics, with success in a substantial majority of cases. Nevertheless, implementation of these executive orders, and related executive actions, is already having harmful effects on public health, and could cause irrevocable harm. This resource discusses the potential impact of recent executive orders on climate change and public health goals.

View page

­Laws Requiring Private Well Sampling and Disclosure of Results to Residential Tenants­

Fact SheetEnvironment, Climate and Health

June 27, 2025
by Betsy Lawton

While larger public water systems are regulated by the federal Safe Drinking Water Act, smaller wells, including private wells serving individual homes and rental properties are not. As natural disasters caused or exacerbated by climate change are on the rise, the one in eight Americans that rely on private wells for drinking water, largely in rural communities, should be aware of the potential health risks that flooding, storms, and wildfires pose for their drinking water. This resource details some statewide laws that require landlords to test water quality and disclose those results to tenants.

View page

­Statewide Laws to Protect Workers from Extreme Heat­

Fact SheetEnvironment, Climate and HealthInjury Prevention and Safety

June 27, 2025
by Betsy Lawton

Law and policy play a critical role in shaping health outcomes especially when it comes to racial health equity. While legislative actions and trends matter, it is also important to understand the role of the courts in altering legal landscapes in ways that can positively or negatively impact racial health disparities. This fact sheet highlights four 2023 U.S. Supreme Court cases with examples of how each potentially impacts racial health equity. It also provides a further examination of two cases of the cases that can be classified as wins for racial health equity.

View page

­Demand Responsive Transportation to Increase Food Security­

Fact SheetFood Safety and SecurityMechanisms for Advancing Health Equity

June 27, 2025
by Kathleen Hoke

Local governments and community-based organizations seeking to improve public health through increasing access to nutritious food should consider the role of transportation policy. Demand Responsive Transit (DRT) is an alternative to public transportation that allows users to utilize smaller vans or buses without any fixed schedule or route. This resource includes case studies on DRT that could be applied in healthy food priority areas to increase access to healthy foods.

View page

­Food Policy Councils: Community-Based Collaboration to Inform Food Security Law and Policy­

Fact SheetFood Safety and SecurityMechanisms for Advancing Health Equity

June 27, 2025
by Kathleen Hoke

Law and policy play a critical role in shaping health outcomes especially when it comes to racial health equity. While legislative actions and trends matter, it is also important to understand the role of the courts in altering legal landscapes in ways that can positively or negatively impact racial health disparities. This fact sheet highlights four 2023 U.S. Supreme Court cases with examples of how each potentially impacts racial health equity. It also provides a further examination of two cases of the cases that can be classified as wins for racial health equity.

View page

­Local Cooling Requirements to Protect Individuals from the Health Effects of Extreme Heat in Living Spaces

Fact SheetEnvironment, Climate and Health

June 27, 2025
by Betsy Lawton

While many states require heating equipment to be installed or minimum temperatures maintained in rental dwelling units, few, if any, states have implemented similar requirements to provide cooling equipment to be installed or temperatures be maintained to prevent people from suffering the health effects of extreme heat where they live.  As temperatures rise due to climate change, local cities and counties are considering ordinances to do just that. This resource summarizes some key features of selected local ordinances.

View page

­Key Public Health Service Requirements of State and Local Health Departments in Tennessee

Fact SheetPublic Health AuthorityTennessee

June 27, 2025
by Emma Kaeser and Phyllis Jeden

Though state and local health departments are commonly given broad authority to serve their mandate to protect the health of the people in their jurisdictions, they are also tasked with many affirmative duties. This fact sheet lists some of these key public health service requirements of the Tennessee Department of Health and the state’s local health departments.

View page

­States Provide Education, Training, Technical Assistance, and Workforce Development on Energy Efficient Heat Pumps

Fact SheetEnvironment, Climate and HealthClimate Change, Health and Equity (CCHE)

June 27, 2025
by Jill Krueger

Heat pumps are more versatile and effective than they were decades ago, and release far fewer harmful substances into the air than standard heating and cooling systems. Yet outdated information based upon previous limitations of heat pumps still influences their use. Even in an environment where federal funding is uncertain, states can take substantial steps forward to protect health by encouraging the use of heat pumps.

View page

­Raw Milk Regulation

Fact SheetFood Safety and Security

June 5, 2025
by Kathleen Hoke

Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), has indicated that he may lift the FDA’s ban on the interstate sale of raw milk and introduce voluntary raw milk standards for states to adopt. To prepare for these potential federal regulatory changes, states should be aware of their authority to regulate the intrastate sale of raw milk and consider implementing regulations that further minimize consumer risk. This Fact Sheet provides a background on raw milk and potential federal regulatory changes, along with strategies for states to prepare for this change.

View page

­School Entry Vaccines

Fact SheetHealth in SchoolMaternal and Child Health

June 2, 2025
by Kathleen Hoke

School-entry vaccination requirements have proven to be one of the most effective public health tools for reducing childhood illness, preventing premature deaths, and controlling the spread of infectious diseases across populations. While recent shifts in federal leadership raise concerns about the future of national immunization efforts, the authority and responsibility to maintain vaccine mandates largely rest with state and local governments. This Fact Sheet outlines how states are well-positioned to uphold and adapt their vaccination policies to protect public health, regardless of federal changes.

View page

­Federal Regulation of Fluoride in Drinking Water

Fact SheetMaternal and Child HealthOral HealthMechanisms for Advancing Health EquityMechanisms for Advancing Public Health

June 2, 2025
by Kathleen Hoke

Despite the recognized health benefits and minimal risk of fluoridation, Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., the recently confirmed Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), has announced that “the Trump White House will advise all U.S. water systems to remove fluoride from public water." Removing drinking water fluoridation risks diminishing oral health overall and exacerbating existing oral health disparities. Children from low-income households are much more likely to have untreated cavities than children from higher income households. This Fact Sheet will discuss the federal government’s power to regulate fluoride in drinking water. It will also discuss the role of state and local government in this space

View page