Anya Sostek

Recent Articles

• Prohibiting the Punch Card
• Oct 1, 2001
• Voting modernization was losing its momentum, but several states and counties are on a roll with it now.

• Freight Expectations
• Sep 1, 2001
• With the right mix of infrastructure,investment and geography, some local economies are getting a big lift from air cargo.

• Three Georgia Counties Test a Legal Standard
• Sep 1, 2001
• A pilot program is under way in Georgia that uses the programming tool XML to simplify online filing of court documents. XML is a document- encoding technology that allows users to create their own rules and document types.

• Going Seamless
• Aug 1, 2001
• Getting a reservation online for a park can be a snap ... if you know whether that particular park is run by the local, state or federal government.

• Auditors Make Peer Contact Easier
• Aug 1, 2001
• When it comes to networking, California county auditors and controllers are way out there. A sophisticated online system links auditors, accountants and other financial officers, giving them access to reams of information about their peers and other staff members across the state.

• Iowa Uses Language to Widen its Welcome Mat
• Jul 1, 2001
• Willkommen zu den virtuellen Büros des Gouverneurs Thomas Vilsack.

• Knocked off His Pedestal
• Jul 1, 2001
• Whatever Jabez Lamar Monroe Curry did to deserve a statue in Statuary Hall at the U.S. Capitol, it's not going to be enough to keep him there. The state of Alabama recently passed a resolution to remove Curry from the Hall, replacing him with the significantly better-known Helen Keller.

• Finding the Funds for Runoff Costs
• Jun 1, 2001
• A financing idea from the 1970s is taking current stormwater management by, well, storm.

• Happiness is ... Changing the Mayor's Mind
• Jun 1, 2001
• Even Peanuts creator Charles M. Schulz couldn't have scripted this scenario

• Throwing out a Tax Dodge
• May 1, 2001
• Thanks to a legislative change in tax policy, Mississippi will be able to staunch tax losses on out-of-state gambler income next year.

• The Rise of eDegrees
• May 1, 2001
• Virtually every state's higher education system has climbed aboard the distance-learning bandwagon. But their reasons and approaches vary enormously.

• Wheeling Water to Ease a Dry Spell
• Apr 1, 2001
• In 1999, when severe drought struck central Kentucky, localities realized they needed a way to move available water resources across and around a six-county region.

• The Critter Cams
• Apr 1, 2001
• It used to be that if you wanted to see the elephant seals at California's Ano Nuevo State Reserve, you just had to take your chances. Of the 100,000 people who tried to make reservations each year, only 50,000 were admitted.

• A California County Broadens its Lien-Buying Base
• Mar 1, 2001
• The difference was dramatic: In its January online auction, Kern County, California, sold 88 percent of the 351 tax-defaulted properties up for sale. The properties sold for an average of more than $34,000 and over 140 bidders took part in the process.

• Setting Limits on Server Farms
• Jan 1, 2001
• Nestled in the economic glow of the new economy are data centers-- massive warehouses filled with computers and other telecommunications networking equipment. Otherwise known as server farms or tech hotels, these structures are causing development headaches for local governments across the country.