Modernization
Libraries Eligible for Billions in Federal Funding to Improve Connectivity for Residents
The Emergency Connectivity Fund Program, announced by the Federal Communications Commission, will help libraries purchase laptops, Wi-Fi hot spots and more for patrons.
Cybersecurity
House Panel Passes Bill to Explore Bringing State and Local Cybersecurity Workers into CISA
The Homeland Security Committee cleared several bills to address cybersecurity following the attack on Colonial Pipeline.
Ideas
Paying People to Get Vaccinated Might Work – But Is It Ethical?
In the United States, incentives and disincentives are already used in health care.
Digital Government
The Cicadas Aren’t Coming. Billions are Already Here.
The 17-year cicadas are set to emerge from their underground lairs in multiple areas, with some cities and states finding creative ways to celebrate these large, noisy, clumsy insects.
Acquisition
With Biden's equity agenda in play, experts talk about making procurement more inclusive
Government procurement practitioners discussed equity and procurement at the Code for America summit, as leaders across the federal enterprise look to measure and expand inclusiveness in public spending.
Cybersecurity
Federal Agencies Say ‘No Evidence’ Hackers Affected Colonial’s Operational Technology
A leading GOP lawmaker is pressuring CISA to release data on the agency’s pipeline cybersecurity initiative.
Modernization
Funding is only part of the answer for UI modernization
State workforce agencies have funding for unemployment modernization and administration thanks to pandemic relief legislation but there are policy impediments, experts said.
Policy
Online, Mug Shots Are Forever. Some States Want to Change That.
People are innocent until proven guilty, but the public release of mug shots taken at the time of arrest can become a barrier to housing, employment and personal relationships.
Digital Government
3 Companies Settle Over Millions of Fake Comments on FCC’s Net Neutrality Rollback
Broadband companies funded an effort responsible for 8.5 million fraudulent comments supporting the repeal, according to a New York attorney general report.
Digital Government
Coalition Urges Congress to Boost Funding for Census Modernization
A group of Census experts and data users are asking appropriators to provide $2 billion in funding to the Census Bureau in fiscal 2022.
Cybersecurity
Feds Eliminate Fee for '.Gov' Web Addresses
Smaller localities in particular have said that the $400 annual cost was a barrier to adopting the government-specific URL.
Digital Government
Republican Men Are Vaccine-Hesitant, But There's Little Focus on Them
About 13% of American adults don’t want a COVID-19 vaccine, according to the Kaiser Family Foundation.
Ideas
COVID-19 Nomads Heed Pandemic Call of the Road
As some affluent, mobile professionals decamped from cities, states are dialing up the competition to attract them permanently.
Digital Government
New Treasury Office Will Oversee Covid Relief and Recovery Programs
Billions in state and local government aid is part of the office's portfolio.
Emerging Tech
Human Rights Organizations Call for Corporate Ban on Facial Recognition Tech
The organizations called facial recognition "inherently discriminatory and dangerous."
Cybersecurity
Single Sign-in For Government Services Expands to States, Localities
The federal government is looking to partner with state and local governments to grow its Login.gov service, which it says is secure and user friendly.
Modernization
How One State Will Work With the Feds On a Major Tech Overhaul
Wisconsin has turned to a federal team of tech experts as the state seeks to revamp its antiquated unemployment computer system.
Modernization
For State's COVID Contact Tracing Apps, Privacy Tops Utility
More than 28 million people in the United States have downloaded the mobile apps or activated exposure notifications on their smartphones
Cybersecurity
America’s Drinking Water Is Surprisingly Easy to Poison
The experts say the sorts of rudimentary vulnerabilities revealed in the breach are common among America’s 151,000 public water systems.
Policy