Having done a quick search for fun: US law actually uses "state" in a sense closer to the European and broader international sense. e.g. a "state actor" includ

Having done a quick search for fun: US law actually uses "state" in a sense closer to the European and broader international sense. e.g. a "state actor" includes both the states and the federal government, and is used to describe any entity bound by the restrictions of the Bill of Rights. (e.g. state actors are bound by the First Amendment, whereas private actors can restrict speech all they want)