News from around the nation.

UK holds off joining Trump's Board of Peace over Putin concerns; MA Haitian community braces for TPS ruling, possible deportations; $2M grant expands WI shelter, recovery services; Ohio ethics complaint calls for review of senator s energy ties.

Transcript

The Public News Service Thursday afternoon update.

I'm Mike Clifford.

Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper has said the UK will not yet be signing up to President Donald Trump's Board of Peace over concerns about Russian leader Vladimir Putin's possible participation.

Cooper told the BBC the UK had been invited to join the board but won't view one of the signatories today at a ceremony at the World Economic Forum in Davos.

Meantime, Haitian immigrants in Massachusetts say the Trump administration's move to end their temporary protected status not only endangers their lives, but the state's long term health care industry.

Their TPS status is set to expire on February 3rd, which could leave an estimated 5000 Haitians at risk of deportation.

Reverend Mirlan de Rose with the Everett Haitian Community Center says these are residents who have lived here for decades that have no pathway to citizenship.

Now they're worried their work permits will be canceled.

It appears that every single option that people could have is blocked.

There's no way out.

No compassion.

The Trump administration argues Haiti no longer meets conditions for a TPS designation, although the State Department warns people not to travel there due to terrorist activity and civil unrest.

A court decision regarding TPS is expected February 2nd, just one day before it expires.

I'm Catherine Carley.

And a two million dollar grant is helping Wisconsin shelters and recovery clinics expand their services and offer reprieve to some of the state's most vulnerable populations.

Faith-based nonprofit Bridge Street Mission in Wausau is one of the organizations getting grant money and will use $50,000 to open a woman's recovery center this summer.

Executive Director Craig Vincent says the center will fill a long-standing need for women experiencing homelessness, addiction and trauma which make up a significant number of their clients.

He explains other shelters don't always provide safe or appropriate environments for them.

There really wasn't anybody providing this kind of program for women who are solo and they're some of the most vulnerable.

The Wisconsin Housing and Economic Development Authority Foundation is distributing grants to improve the state's emergency shelters, transitional housing, and low-income residences.

I'm Judith Ruiz Branch reporting.

This story was produced with original reporting from Jonah Balekas for the Wisconsin Independent.

And a statewide coalition urging Ohio lawmakers to investigate allegations that a sitting state senator used his position to benefit private business interest tied to oil and gas waste disposal, raising concerns about ethics compliance and drinking water safety.

Washington County for Safe Drinking Water and more than a dozen organizations have formally asked the Joint Legislative Ethics Committee to review an ethics complaint filed against Senator Brian Chavez.

Hillary Woister is a member of the coalition.

Our drinking water is at risk.

No matter where you live in this state, this isn't a political issue, it's a public health issue. alleges conflicts of interest connected to legislation governing injection wells.

The Senator's office has pushed back strongly, characterizing the complaint as politically motivated.

This is Public News Service.

Athletes, fans and workers coming to Texas this summer for the World Cup will not be impacted by new visa restrictions.

That's according to the State Department, which stopped processing immigrant visas for residents from 75 countries this week.

Some of those countries are Russia, Ethiopia, Brazil and Thailand.

Immigration attorney Ellen Weintraut says the ban impacts people applying for green cards.

These are not tourist visa applications or any other non-immigrant visas.

It also does not seem to apply to people who are here in the United States applying for a green card with United States Citizenship and Immigration Services.

She adds limited information has been released about the change and it's not known how long suspensions will be in place or if additional countries will be added.

Seven World Cup matches are planned for NRG Stadium in Houston and nine matches including knockout games will be played at AT&T Stadium in Arlington.

I'm Freda Ross reporting.

And the federal agency responsible for providing natural disaster assistance to states will likely see its workforce slashed by thousands of jobs, according to new leaks from federal workers.

Advocates say Appalachian communities in Kentucky already facing longer wait times for FEMA reimbursement application processing would be negatively impacted by the cuts.

FEMA workers are typically the first to provide boots on the ground help to remote areas, including to provide essentials such as food, clothing, lodging assistance and baby formula, says Dana Kuhnlein with Reimagine Appalachia.

A lot of the folks that they're looking to lay off from FEMA are the people who help facilitate disaster recovery and emergency preparedness.

It's pretty concerning.

In 2025 alone, the state dealt with multiple major flooding events that triggered FEMA disaster declarations, along with a deadly tornado, landslides and mudslides.

This is Nadia Ramlagon for Kentucky News Connection.

Finally, Colorado's ever-increasing wildfire risk is making home insurance difficult to get or overly expensive, especially for homes built in or near forests and other natural areas.

Colorado Insurance Commissioner Mike Conway hopes a law passed last year will help lower costs.

House Bill 251182 requires insurance companies to be transparent about how their models create wildfire risk scores used to set premiums or to decline coverage altogether.

The new law also requires insurers to offer savings options based on homeowners' fire mitigation efforts.

The problem was that we couldn't at the same time assure homeowners that the mitigation work that they were doing, whether it was at the individual property level or if it was in the community at large, was actually being accounted for in those models.

This story was produced with original reporting from Ben Cathy for the Daily Yonder.

I'm Eric Galatas.

This is Mike Clifford for Public News Service.

Member and listener supported.

Find our trust indicators at publicnewsservice.org.