May 1, 2010
Narrow-Minded
Allowing skinny houses to be built on small lots can increase both
density and affordability.
New Hires and the Facebook Effect
The texting generation needs help adjusting to a government's online ethos.
Postal Mail, Post-Internet
Hoping to save money and paper, governments are giving a new service that replaces postal mail a try. Will it catch on?
November 30, 2009
Collaborating for Technology
The Gaines County, Texas, Web site is not going to win design prizes anytime soon. The home page features a grainy photo of the county...
The School of Tech
One state is working to leverage its stimulus money for education technology to do more than just plunk computers into classrooms.
Four Paths to IT Consolidation
One state's consolidation plans could fall to pieces if implemented in another state.
Can I Say No to an Electronic Health Record?
A majority of people want to 'own' their health data and choose who can access it.
Online at the Library
As government and the rest of the world go online, public libraries are becoming more and more important as a community resource.
Finding the Money for Health IT
The feds are providing a half-billion dollars to help states launch health information exchanges. It isn't nearly enough.
Social Media Sites' Handicap Hurdle
As governments turn to Facebook and its ilk, they aren't paying enough attention to the needs of the visually or hearing-impaired.
Accessibility and Web 2.0
Some governments don't think they're ignoring the visually or hearing impaired because they say the same information they post is available through other channels. But that dismisses the fact that these sites encourage conversation and should be easily accessible.
September 20, 2009
Technology Ideas That Might Not Be So Great
I was drawn to the bmighty site by a tweet on my Twitter account that mentioned the Top 10 Best Technology Ideas...That Really Aren't.&...
September 17, 2009
Speed Cameras: Are They All About the Revenue?
Drive at night on a certain section of Connecticut Avenue in Chevy Chase, Maryland, and you'll routinely see bright white lights flash. This is ...
For Health, the States Will Have IT
Soon, CIOs will have a critical role in managing the billions flowing from Washington.
Catching a Bus with a BlackBerry
Mobile apps and social media are being tweaked to serve transportation needs.
August 24, 2009
Twitter Arrives at Metro in DC
You know a technology has arrived when the media stories are not about whether a government entity should be using it, but how it currently ...
August 21, 2009
Bill Cosby on School Spending in Pennsylvania: "Don't We Like Children?"
Smack. Down. Typically, when a celebrity attends a hearing or other political event in Washington, D.C., members of Congress and surrounding staff members go ...
August 19, 2009
Don't Insult the Donuts
Once upon a time there was a "don't malign vegetables" movement. In Florida recently, it was doughnuts and other fried or sugary ...
The Wiki Way To Plan
More and more places, like San Jose, California, are using social media tools to try to engage citizens.
August 17, 2009
America's "Fast-Dying Cities" Pine for Resuscitation
When you're a dying Rust Belt city and you find yourself on a "top 10" list of the worst, it doesn't help ...
August 11, 2009
San Jose Goes to the People. Electronically.
You know what the city of San Jose, California, really needs? More street-level retail in the downtown area. And a convention center twice or three ...
August 5, 2009
Hacking Into Parking Meters
Uh oh. Those prepaid cards that San Francisco drivers use to feed the meter? Totally hackable. That's according to engineers and programmers who say ...
Real Relief
There's a good chance the feds will ease up on a burdensome, expensive mandate to secure driver's licenses.
Caution: Outsourcing Ahead
Another big statewide IT project hits speed bumps. So does the CIO.
July 31, 2009
Bandwidth on the Bayou
Slick Sam Slade showed up in Lafayette, Louisiana, in 2005, fast-talking his way through a mock TV commercial comparing an exotic sports car to a bicycle....
July 28, 2009
County Coroner Hopes "Beat the Reaper" Game Will Scare Kids Straight
Adults can talk, talk, talk about the stupid things teens shouldn't do. But how to get them to listen? Ben Blasdel, the coroner for ...
July 24, 2009
Law Enforcement Tattoo Crackdowns
Find out what's happening to law enforcement and police officers with tattoos.
July 17, 2009
Needed: 911 Fees?
Prepaid phones are a nice option for people who don't want a monthly wireless bill. But they're a scary prospect for the 911 emergency ...
July 17, 2009
Pennsylvania's YouTube Wars
Pennsylvania is getting into the fun and games of YouTube, something the Millennial set has been engaging in for ages now. Although the state's ...
July 15, 2009
The Future of the Internet is in Lafayette, Louisiana
What if you could hold a video conference from your home? What if your doctor could send your MRI electronically to another of your doctors ...
July 2, 2009
How Many Jobs Does a Playground Make?
"When it comes to jump-starting the economy, a playground isn't going to cut it," according to a story in the Virginian Pilot ...
Grab the Fee and Run
No phone charge is too small to escape a governor's grasp.
July 1, 2009
$4B in Stimulus Money for Broadband Ready, Biden Announces
Finally, $4 billion dollars in loans and grants will be available for expanding broadband access in underserved and un-served areas, Vice President Joe Biden announced Wednesday. ...
June 30, 2009
Virginia Fires Its Tech Chief, Readers Fire Off
A story in Friday's Richmond Times-Dispatch about how the "embattled" Virginia Information Technologies Agency (VITA) interim CIO met with and praised employees, ...
June 18, 2009
Keep the $3.65 - I Don't Need it Anymore
I truly cannot believe what it took to get a $3.65 refund from the Metro system in D.C., also known as WMATA, the Washington Metropolitan ...
June 3, 2009
Not Just Topless -- Bottomless and Sideless, Too
Update: In March we wrote about a topless coffee shop in Maine and the ordinance banning nudity that it inspired. Well, don't plan your ...
Wi-Fi and Social Justice
A failed wireless deal has San Francisco's CIO pondering tough moral questions.
May 22, 2009
Brainstorming on Transparency in Government
You got ideas? The White House wants to hear them. Remember that Memorandum on Transparency and Open Government President Obama issued in January? Well, the ...
May 14, 2009
It's an Emergency! Now What?
How will your local government inform citizens if there's an emergency? I ask because a week or two ago, sometime during the swine flu ...
May 11, 2009
Spending Transparency: Vital to the State of our Union
The following Thomas Jefferson quote is getting a lot of play these days in connection with transparency Web sites. Not that Jefferson was much of ...
Broadband -- at Any Price
Small cities are eyeing stimulus money to bring high-speed Internet to all.
May 1, 2009
States CIOs Talk Transparency
Two words are reverberating around
the halls of the Marriott in Baltimore this week where state CIOs are meeting: Transparency and recovery act money. Okay, ...
April 30, 2009
See-Thru Government
"A new level of transparency" is what President Obama says he wants as state and local governments spend economic-stimulus dollars. But what does that mean?...
April 30, 2009
Seeing the Sites
ALASKA/Checkbook Online
URL: fin.admin.state.ak.us/dof/checkbook_online
What it does: Provides Excel or PDF spreadsheets with spending by organization, vendor...
April 28, 2009
Getting in the GovLoop
People in thousands of government offices perform similar jobs. If only they could find a way to tap the expertise and wisdom of others via ...
April 23, 2009
Porn Available on Library Computers
That headline grabs you doesn't it? So did this one, when I read it yesterday morning: "San Jose Council votes down porn filters ...
April 14, 2009
Starry-eyed Politicians, Buy Your Domain Name Now
Planning to run for governor in 2010? Or 2014? Or 2018? Get your domain name now. Don't let a cybersquatter shake you down for the Web site ...
Powering Their Way Up
CIOs pushed to become cabinet-level appointees -- but it doesn't always work out.
April 1, 2009
More video from gov20camp
posted by Ellen Perlman I've added a second video to my post about Government 2.0 Camp (and a third below, as you can see). The ...
April 1, 2009
The 2016 Olympic Games Will Be Held in Ely, Minnesota
Ely, Minnesota, population nearing 4,000, is hoping to host the 2016 Olympic Games. Crews are starting now to drain Miners Lake to create the first in-ground Olympic ...
March 31, 2009
A Government "Unconference" Tackles Social Media
Gov2.0 camp was the most astounding example of the wisdom IN crowds I've ever witnessed. First thing in the morning on Friday, no one ...
March 26, 2009
Babble and Waffle
The Brits aren't any better at avoiding government jargon than we are. Hence the list of 200 of words the Local Government Association would like ...
March 13, 2009
This Small Town Ain't No Mayberry
Wait a minute. Topless coffee shops are allowed? Unless otherwise specified? I ask because a topless coffee shop opened in Vassalboro, Maine, and the only ...
March 3, 2009
Twitter and Widgets and Blogs, Oh My
Many states have created their own versions of recovery.gov, the federal Web site that tells taxpayers where their economic stimulus dollars are going. But ...
March 3, 2009
Technology: My, How Times Have Changed...And Will Again.
Once upon a time, people were skeptical about governments wasting their time creating Web sites. Remember those days? Yeah, me neither. Now we have Web ...
To Serve, Virtually
Packing multiple applications on a single server can save big bucks.
February 20, 2009
The Dirt on Soil
We here at Governing (I'm a little ashamed to admit now) sometimes have made fun of the fact that states choose an official state ...
The Wisdom of Crowds
A CIO looks to the public to take city data and turn them into quick, nimble and useful software programs.
January 27, 2009
Follow the "Recovery" Money
If you want to follow the stimulus package state by state, the Center for American Progress is one place to go. CAP released a map ...
January 26, 2009
Technology and Openness in an Obama Administration
President Barack Obama signed a memo last week on government transparency. Even before he has named a chief technology officer, he's directed that person ...
January 23, 2009
Not on Twitter Yet?
I was late to Twitter. Well, relatively. Didn't think I'd like it. Didn't really see the point. Didn't think anyone cared ...
January 22, 2009
Pentium 386 anyone?
Imagine the shock. Obama's technological whiz kids arrive at the White House only to find Stone Age software in the vaunted West Wing. The ...
January 16, 2009
The Technology Treadmill, Good or Bad? Discuss.
Here are some mindblowing stats for you. There are approximately one trillion unique URL's in Google and roughly two billion Google searches daily. One ...
January 14, 2009
Staring Down At Your Cell Phone While Driving a 2,000-pound Weapon? Illegal.
Who reads the newspaper while driving? I'm guessing not that many. Who texts while driving? More than the number who read newspapers, is my ...
January 9, 2009
Stop the Presses: The DMV is Annoying to Citizens
I was so ready to praise the District of Columbia's electronic prowess. Then, just like a crash test dummy, I hit the wall at ...
January 8, 2009
A Second Government in Second Life
It's taken months and months since Missouri did it, but another government has landed in Second Life, the online virtual world. And, get this, ...
January 6, 2009
Toll Trap: Why a Fee for E-ZPass is NOT a Good Idea
Maryland is thinking about charging a fee for E-ZPass users, whether they use the pass or not, according to a Baltimore Sun story. Not a ...
The Texas Ten-Step
When a state tries to merge data centers from all its agencies, it's in for a bumpy ride -- and a very long one.
December 31, 2008
The Fix-IT Man
It seems everyone wants a piece of John Conley -- even if it's virtual. As Colorado's deputy chief information officer, he's been asked to help...
December 30, 2008
Real ID - How real is it?
By Ellen Perlman
Speaking of bleak headlines, as Alan Greenblatt did here, how about this one: "Obama Administration to Inherit a real mess on Real ...
December 29, 2008
An Interstate Road Map for Bikes
By Ellen Perlman
An interstate bicycle system! That's what the plan is and I'm all for it. The American Association of State Highway ...
Bloggerly Love
Techies and their interactive tools may be the way to lure tourists to local fairs and state parks.
November 30, 2008
Policing by the Odds
When a full moon rises in Richmond, Virginia, police officers may feel their hackles rise, too. The presence of a full moon statistically correlates with...
Lighten Up on Language
It's awfully hard to get legislators or the public excited about an IT program when the words that describe it sound like gibberish.
October 31, 2008
Blown Out
Now that "going green" is mainstream, everyone knows the simplest thing to do save the planet: replace incandescent light bulbs with those spiral-shaped compact fluorescent...
October 24, 2008
The ABC's of Communication
Yesterday I received an email with this subject line: MI Report: How Access to New Drugs has Slowed the Growth in America's Disability Rates It ...
October 20, 2008
Great Places
"State Street, that Great Street?" It's not the only one. They also applaud that street called Broad. And toast Champagne to Annapolis' ...
October 15, 2008
What Are the Odds That Casinos Will Ruin Some Lives?
Clinicians in Pennsylvania are getting training in a new field: gambling addiction.
Casinos began opening in the state two years ago. Compulsive gamblers surely are ...
October 8, 2008
How Many Energy-Saving Tips Do YOU Have?
Looking for more tips to offer residents on how to conserve energy?
Take a look at these 50 simple tips from the Chicago Tribune. They came ...
October 8, 2008
Free Food! Take the Bus
What if someone told you that you could pocket more than $10,000 a year by making one change in behavior?
That's quite a tidy sum. Well, ...
The Snake Within
There are ways to spot an employee with an eye on bringing down the network.
September 30, 2008
Inside Information
Three students at Rogers High School in Spokane, Washington, were goofing off, chinning themselves on a water pipe. That is, until the pipe broke and...
September 23, 2008
Does Sarah Palin read Governing?
In January, Governing ran a story on how governments should be managing e-mail. That feature included this bit of information: ...elected leaders are devising ways ...
September 11, 2008
Step Away From the Copier and Put Your Hands in the Air
Carl Malamud of Sebastopol, California, is a lawbreaker, a miscreant, a reprobate. Get this. He downloads and photocopies state laws and regulations! Yes, you heard ...
September 10, 2008
Last One Out of the Data Center, Turn Off the Lights
"Planned obsolescence" is a term coined decades ago but one I haven't heard much lately. I'm reminded of it by a recent Wall ...
September 5, 2008
"Un-friending" a Predator
Who says attorneys general aren't cool?
Or phat or dope or awesome, or whatever the current word for cool is?
The office of Anne Milgram, ...
August 31, 2008
The Plugged-In Patient
Call it the Google lift or the Microsoft bump. This spring, these tech powerhouses announced they were entering the field of personal health records, and...
August 14, 2008
Supercompute Your Way to Economic Success
New York State has laid claim to an economic development tool like no other. A supercomputer housed at the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute upstate. Available to ...
August 12, 2008
Fuel Economy
The public works department in Clemson, S.C., is saving 350 gallons of diesel each month by using GPS systems in garbage trucks, according to USA ...
August 6, 2008
Doctor of Technology
Why should physicians pay out of their pockets to set up electronic health records so that insurance companies can profit?
That's something many docs are ...
This Little Light of Mine
Many cities have been switching to the efficiencies of as-needed lighting, thanks to their computer programmers.
July 31, 2008
Data Defender
On a summer afternoon, Will Pelgrin and several of his staffers gather in a conference room in Albany to conduct a Webcast known as "Info...
July 24, 2008
Model Thin, Basketball-player Tall
This question is for the women out there:
How much do you weigh? Really? What does your driver's license say you weigh? Are the numbers ...
July 18, 2008
Delaware's Cloud
Delaware's home page has a word cloud. Also known as a category cloud or a tag cloud. You know, one of those lists of words, ...
July 15, 2008
The Phishing Catch
When's the last time you've gone phishing at the office? New York State did an exercise in 2005, sending a fake email to 10,000 state employees in five agencies. The "scam" perpetrated by security officials, was a spot check on employee e-mail behavior.
June 30, 2008
The Buzz about 311
When a dozen peacocks turned up in Judi Zito's fenced backyard in Pinecrest, Florida, one of 28 small municipalities that are part of Miami-Dade County, she...
June 6, 2008
Fish, Pigs and Saving the Planet
Cities fighting to be the greenest in the land should look to Victoria, British Columbia, for some tips. In April, we wrote about cities hiring hiring sustainability or energy directors to encourage departments to turn off lights and shut computers when they're not in use.
June 5, 2008
The Grease Man
It has come to this: People griping that thieves are stealing leftover French fry grease from the back of San Francisco restaurants. Turns out, there's ...
Going Viral
The video a state or locality puts up on YouTube doesn't have to be wacky, but it helps.
May 31, 2008
WiMAXed Out
It's easy to see why some people call WiMAX, a form of wireless broadband, "Wi-Fi on steroids." Rather than hotspots of connectivity -- a dot...
May 28, 2008
311 is not as easy as 1-2-3
So we just finished a special pre-conference session on city 311 systems, and some of the panelists cited a common problem: You set up this great 311 system, and then what happens? Other departments and jurisdictions want to horn in on your success without paying their fair share or doing the work!
May 14, 2008
Lending More Than Books
War and Peace.
Horton Hears a Who.
And a fishing rod.
You can borrow them all from the public libraries in Coventry, Lincoln and Scituate, ...
April 30, 2008
Working in Wiki
The Web site names swirl around like sand in the Sahara: Facebook, MySpace, YouTube, Second Life, Flickr, Wikipedia. Most of us know a little bit...
To Catch a Thief
High-level data analysis is helping police spot crimes -- sometimes before they happen.
March 31, 2008
Mr. Sustainability
John Coleman is the "sustainability director" for Fayetteville, Arkansas. At first blush, that may sound like some outdoorsy environmentalist job. But in truth, Coleman spends...
March 18, 2008
Wanna Slow Global Warming? Start a Recession!
A slowing economy may be the answer to global warming.
Okay, that may be a bit of a stretch. But Mesa, Arizona, has found that ...
The Safety Gap
To protect the children they serve, child welfare caseworkers need high-tech connections between field and office.
January 31, 2008
The Year of the Superbus
In the Atlanta region, commuter buses have all the comforts of home. With television sets on board, passengers can lean back in cushy seats and...
January 17, 2008
Can You Hear Me Now? Are You Stealing My Data?
My head is still spinning from reading about all the government laptops that go missing, potentially exposing private data.
Connecticut has had a heck of ...
December 31, 2007
Delete at Your Own Risk
For several months last fall, the St. Louis media had a field day with Missouri Governor Matt Blunt's office for doing the equivalent of crumpling...
December 1, 2007
Colorado Consolidates
The governor moves to streamline the state's IT systems.
Crazy Cool in L.A.
A fire department taps into microblogging to keep itself on top of situations.
Crazy Cool in L.A
A fire department taps into microblogging to keep itself on top of
situations.
November 30, 2007
Digital-Age Digs
For more than 200 years, St. Mary's Catholic Church Cemetery has anchored the corner of Washington and Church streets in Alexandria, Virginia, while several enterprises have...
November 15, 2007
How Green is your Building?
Step right up, ladies and gentleman, and see for yourself!
It's the amazing, one-of-a-kind, Aldo Leopold Legacy Center , located in Baraboo, Wisconsin. THE GREENEST BUILDING ...
November 14, 2007
Weather, weather everywhere. Little of it rain.
Yesterday, Governor Sonny Perdue asked a crowd of 250 Georgians outside the Capitol to "pray up a storm."
The state and the region badly ...
November 13, 2007
Do Governors Have a Prayer?
I just checked the weather in Atlanta today. It's 52 degrees and very sunny, (see the bright yellow sun on weather.com?). Georgia has had it ...
November 12, 2007
How Hip Are the Burbs?
Governing doesn't check in with hip, stylish men nearly enough. So, today, we present you with the cool guys' view on city versus suburban living.
...
November 1, 2007
I'll Fly Away: Florida Stomps on Styrofoam
Florida is enlisting the aid of machines to "densify," "palletize" and "smush" polystyrene, the familiar coffee cup and packaging material known by its trade name Styrofoam
November 1, 2007
Going for Green Grades
Schools are finding that green classrooms do more than save energy.
November 1, 2007
Vroom for Improvement
New ordinances seek to reduce motorcycle noise.
November 1, 2007
Change Agent
Two years ago, Missouri's new governor, Matt Blunt, and the state's new chief information officer, Dan Ross, had a vision: an efficient, centralized, streamlined IT operation that delivered each cabinet agency the services it needed while relieving the agencies of the considerable burden of managing an IT shop. Accomplishing this goal meant consolidating the technology operations of 14 agencies, with thousands of employees and more than $250 million in funding among them.
November 1, 2007
Fresh Perspectives
Much of the time in government, change is brought about by those on the inside. Over the years, we have often told the story of career public servants who knew precisely how to transform troubled institutions once they got the chance.
October 1, 2007
Text Talk: Boston Keys in for Crime Tips
Picking up and dialing from a pay phone is the best way to give an
anonymous crime tip to police. Or is it?
The Power Switch
The emerging topic for state CIOs is how to reconfigure desktops and computing practices to save energy.
The Power Switch
The emerging topic for state CIOs is how to reconfigure desktops and
computing practices to save energy.
September 30, 2007
Radio Activity
Two years ago, a report came in of a plane crash on a grassy hillside near Anchorage's airport, in the middle of a park where...
September 1, 2007
Job Jot: Alabama's Winner of a Car Deal
Now that Mercedes-Benz has been assembling vehicles in Alabama for 10 years, the state can crow about the wisdom of its 1993 decision to woo the company with tax breaks.
September 1, 2007
eHealth confidential
Can health information exchange systems keep snoops out of patients' online records?
September 1, 2007
The Big Spill
When trucks lose their loads, cleaning up gets creative.
August 20, 2007
Check-up: Do Docs Need Financial Aid?
One thing a lot of people don't think about when discussing the idea of a national health records exchange is that it all begins in ...
August 14, 2007
Promises, Promises
Now that Former Wisconsin Gov. Tommy G. Thompson has dropped out of the race for president, I guess breast cancer is going to remain a ...
August 7, 2007
A Red is a Red is a Red
This week is National Stop on Red week. Which does not mean you get to Go on Red all other times.
The week of ...
August 1, 2007
Tribes and Tribulations
Localities are struggling to deal with the issues that arise from
being adjacent to Indian lands.
311 Potholes
Consolidating call centers is proving to be a boon to cities, but the roll-outs are rough.
July 15, 2007
Be Merry, But Don't Eat and Drink So Much
Mmmm. The smell of the French fries. The sight of the pizza. It's lunchtime!
But before Phoenix city employees can enter their building's cafeteria, where ...
July 1, 2007
Warning: Evoting Ahead
From local election officials to ordinary citizens, there's angst in
the air over the security of electronic ballots.
July 1, 2007
Gimme Shelter: Boosting Florida's Turnpike Power
When a hurricane strikes Florida, the first concern of residents is to
protect their homes and evacuate if necessary. The Florida Turnpike
Enterprise, part of the Florida Department of Transportation, sees its
job as providing a safe haven as evacuees travel the road.
July 1, 2007
Meltdown
How a promising technology mega-project went awry.
The Hit Record
When it comes to using technology to streamline the health care
system, the biggest buzz is about digitizing individuals' health
records--putting them in a standardized format and connecting them via
the Web.
June 30, 2007
The Valley of Surveillance
You can find practically anything you need along Indian School and Thomas roads in Phoenix - at the tortillerias, the pharmacies, the supermarkets, the auto...
Hiring Help
In their search for young workers, IT departments are seeking ways to make technology jobs look more like a day at a Play Station.
May 31, 2007
REAL Nightmare
For the past five years, clerks at the Colorado Department of Motor Vehicles have been enforcing new rules for getting a driver's license. It hasn't...
May 31, 2007
Digitally Dazed
Rhode Island's been quick off the mark. When it comes to health IT, it's got a lot going for it. The governor, Donald Carcieri, doesn't...
April 16, 2007
Get-Off-The-Phone Laws
Here's the part I don't understand about Washington State's new law, or any other state's law, that prohibits driving while holding a cell phone to ...
April 1, 2007
Spitzer's Web: You Could Be on Youtube
Starting this summer, New York State meetings must be webcast for the
public if they fall under the state's open meetings law. As one of his
first official actions as governor, Eliot Spitzer signed an executive
order requiring state agencies and public authorities to come up with
plans to broadcast all such meetings on the Internet.
Keeping Personal Data Safe
Not many know how many cybersecurity breaches occur in state and local governments.
March 31, 2007
Topside Turnover
When Otto Doll shows up at NASCIO meetings, the South Dakota CIO is often treated with a subtle degree of deference -- the kind you...
March 19, 2007
Get Real
States must be crying crocodile tears over woes at the State Department about delays in issuing passports.
The federal government is struggling under an onslaught ...
March 12, 2007
Freedom vs. Keeping All Your Body Parts
Just for the record, if anyone hears me say, "I'd give my right arm" for something, I'm speaking figuratively.
But prison inmates in ...
March 8, 2007
Time, and Time Again
This Sunday night it's going to be nice and light an hour later than usual, thanks to the Daylight Savings Saving [Ed. note: Thanks, Scott!] ...
March 7, 2007
Marketing 202
It's ingenious. Pennsylvania uses marketing moxie to make money from items people must surrender at airports, according to a local story. For the past three ...
February 27, 2007
Medical Cost Confusion
posted by Ellen Perlman
All politics may be local, but often it's personal too.
If someday West Virginians can understand their medical bills, it could ...
February 9, 2007
I (heart) the BWI Parking Garage
Okay, how weird would it be to wax poetic about a parking garage? Well, here I go.
There I was, late as usual for a ...
Smash Hit
It's not just for the young and hip. State and local IT officials are tapping into a cool Google tool to create maps with new, improved uses.
January 26, 2007
Why Should I Travel to Your State?
Most states have lousy looking or ineffective home pages for their tourism web sites, in one cat's opinion.
Smiley Cat's to be exact. Smiley Cat ...
January 12, 2007
BELIEVE
Baltimore wants us to believe. It's just that I'm not sure in what. In God? In country? In ourselves? In a chicken in every pot? ...
January 1, 2007
"Stat" Fever
The practice of collecting data to monitor and improve government
performance continues to gain momentum and evolve.
January 1, 2007
The Guts of a New Machine: Investing in Biodigesting
Manure lagoons, bad. Manure digesters, good. That is the argument that
Texas' Gulf Coast Industrial Development Authority used in floating
$60 million in revenue bonds to finance four digester machines that
will help keep farm runoff from polluting land, water and air.
December 31, 2006
An Indelicate Balance
This is not your father's procurement process.
When Virginia wants to overhaul its aging IT infrastructure, its information technology officials don't gather together to make...
December 4, 2006
Ride Forever, Charlie
There's nothing better than a city with a sense of humor. The new electronic fare cards for the "T," or the transit system, ...
December 1, 2006
Linking The Layers
The ability to share GIS data across agency and jurisdictional lines
makes service delivery more efficient and effective.
Critical Connectors
During emergencies, citizens and even some disaster workers depend on
libraries for Internet connections to the world.
November 1, 2006
Wi-Fi Visionary
Helping all of Philadelphia connect to the Web.
November 1, 2006
Welfare Workout
The feds thought the states were gaming welfare reform. Now states
have to deal with a new round of rules.
October 19, 2006
Up to Snuff?
Winston Churchill and state chief information officers. Not usually grouped in the same category as examples of great leadership.
Unless Churchill's granddaughter is speaking to ...
October 18, 2006
Lifting the IT Curtain
"I smiled politely but I had no idea what you were saying." So said a non-techie National Parks Service employee, referring to the ...
October 1, 2006
Rx For a Headache
States are experiencing a lot of pain in switching seniors out of
state programs and into the Medicare Part D drug plan.
A Very Long Haul
It's taken a dozen years and may take a few more as states struggle to
put IT into their child welfare systems.
September 27, 2006
Tasty. But Necessary?
I'm pretty certain that people who are sensitive to the needs of strangers on public transit don't do their good deeds with the hope of ...
September 15, 2006
PR FUBAR
How's this for a gripping item? It's from a media advisory sent to reporters with the hope they would jump all over the story: At ...
September 12, 2006
Yes, I Voted
Thank goodness it's primary election day in the District of Columbia. Maybe now I'll stop hearing from a lot of my new "friends." ...
September 1, 2006
A Film Star is Born
New Mexico reaps rewards from its Hollywood "give-aways"
September 1, 2006
Bouncing Down the Block
Some cities have sidewalks made of recycled tires.
September 1, 2006
Boosting a Biotech Future
Arizona plans to lure high school students to the biology lab and
beyond.
September 1, 2006
Blacktop Blues: Road Repair is a Pain in the Gas
The steep climb in gas prices is not only hitting drivers' wallets. It's also smashing holes in transportation department budgets for road repairs.
August 28, 2006
Otherwise, Have a Nice Day
Counties - this question's for you. Since returning from the National Association of Counties meeting in Chicago three weeks ago, what steps have you taken ...
August 17, 2006
Ride, Sally, Ride
We bicyclists here on the 13th Floor are lucky because our building offers a shower. That allows the seven or so of us who commute ...
August 11, 2006
Counties Need Stuff. Lots of stuff
All sorts of educational sessions were taking place at the National Association of Counties meeting in Chicago from August 4th to 8th.
But for a ...
August 9, 2006
Jumping Jacks are So 20th Century
The windy, second, gritty city of big shoulders, tool maker, wheat stacker and hog butcher to the world.
Yes Chicago, with all its epithets given ...
August 9, 2006
Everyone Likes to Win!
Journalists often would prefer to think inside the box, stick with old paradigms and face fair-to-middlin' -- not perfect -- storms, rather than be caught ...
August 2, 2006
A Material Girl
posted by Ellen Perlman
When I read that Washington, D.C. had put down some rubber sidewalks I decided I just had to go test ...
July 28, 2006
Boot, Suits and Geeks
Many people have a vision of fire fighters that involves red trucks, ladders, hoses and a couple of dalmatians. But police and fire work also ...
July 27, 2006
Man on the Street Q&A
Yes, we all know politics is local. Sometimes, it's also individual. Yesterday morning I was biking to work and came across about eight people spread ...
July 20, 2006
The Pink-Blue Divide
It happens in the medical field and apparently it also happens in government. For a long time, researchers used men for studies on heart attacks ...
July 14, 2006
Where's the Head?
For those who think offshore oil rigs ruin the view, how about floating toilets? But the latter could be an environmental lifesaver.
Virginia wants to ...
June 1, 2006
Getting Back Taxes
Big cities go to court over online hotel-rate deals
June 1, 2006
Where Will Sex Offenders Live?
Creating buffer zones around schools and other public places can make
entire cities off-limits.
Born Digital
A handful of states are beginning to focus on the need to preserve digital documents.
May 16, 2006
Hi Ho, Hi Ho, It's Out of Sight They Go...
The L.A. Times says a California sex offender program was criticized by state lawmakers who complained that 23 offenders had been housed within 11 miles of ...
May 15, 2006
Finally. Relief Is In Sight
Sometimes you forget the crazy assortment of details a city mayor has to attend to. That is, until you read a headline such as, "$1.4 ...
May 12, 2006
Statehouse Blogging in Utah
Talk about variety. The Utah Senate has a blog that one day has pols and citizens squabbling over how to spend a $1 billion surplus, and ...
May 11, 2006
Be Nice or Be Anonymous
We really want you to share your opinions on what we write here on the 13th Floor. But we ask that you don't rant, rave ...
May 11, 2006
Sign of the Times
Seems like Wisconsin has Vegas envy. The state is most likely going to allow electronic billboards that look like high-def TV screens. The only electronic ...
May 1, 2006
Open Sorcerer
A crusade for open standards in technology cost one top official his
job in Massachusetts. But the issue isn't going away.
May 1, 2006
Uncharted Territory: Going Digital to Keep Track of Mines
Four years ago, nine miners accidentally tunneled into a flooded mine in Pennsylvania that wasn't on any map. It took three days to rescue them, and the accident at Quecreek Mine was a wake-up call to the state's Bureau of Deep Mine Safety. The mining community it serves obviously needed a comprehensive, digital map that would chart the thousands of mines, active and closed, in the state.
May 1, 2006
Gas and Go. Or not.
There's a gas-up game people on the East Coast play, when driving from New York to Washington, or vice versa. Can you make it to ...
April 28, 2006
Sex, Lies and Registries
Out of curiosity, I went to a sex offender Web site this morning to see if any such people lived near my home. (This is ...
April 20, 2006
You Hear This, Geena Davis?
Does Hollywood have a water cooler? If so, someone should put up this quote from Martin Sheen somewhere near it, for all the celebrity political ...
April 13, 2006
Nobody Home?
I have a friend Alex who, when I call or email to ask her to do something she doesn't want to do, doesn't get back ...
April 1, 2006
The Hidden Cost of Construction
Tempe will lighten the load for businesses on a light-rail line.
April 1, 2006
FedEx Delivers: Tennessee Gets Tips on its DMV
Half the people in Tennessee's motor vehicle offices don't need to be there. They could be getting their services online. Tennessee learned this by getting research assistance from its native logistics expert: Federal Express.
April 1, 2006
Helping the Overwhelmed Family
States are accentuating the positive to protect children.
Online Via Power Line
Small towns and cities are finding high-speed Internet access is as
close as their electric grid.
March 24, 2006
Is this a reality show or are we really outside?
How do you get people into your state parks and forests? One way is to tap into their penchant for being TV-watching couch potatoes. Connecticut ...
March 22, 2006
The Presidents will be missed
Who knew that four dead presidents - all white males, of course - would end up right in the middle of the latest abortion debate? ...
March 21, 2006
Crime Costs
A zero-tolerance crackdown on drug- and quality-of-life crimes in Buffalo is working very well. Police arrested 500 more people in January and February of this year ...
March 17, 2006
Drum on Your Heart's Content
Powwows are back in Georgia state parks.
For a while there, a recommended ban on powwows, which was never formally adopted but was enforced anyway (...
March 9, 2006
Oldster Speedsters
I can see it now: Senior citizens angling with teenagers at the video arcades to get a turn at one of those race-car games where ...
March 7, 2006
Wine To Go, Whining To Stop
Waiters in Massachusetts' restaurants are going to have to figure out how to make those little foil swans for wrapping up leftover wine and sending ...
March 2, 2006
Grateful, Dead Bears
posted by Ellen Perlman
Two bears in Richmond were killed by health officials and tested for rabies after biting a four-year-old boy who got too ...
March 1, 2006
The Missing Link
Wikis, blogs and other interactive tools are making it easier to find
out what people really think of their government and its services.
March 1, 2006
Crossing the Rural Divide
Maine will spread technology to its farthest reaches
February 27, 2006
The State Dirt
Here's today's assignment: turn to your neighbors at home or at work and ask them if they know what their official state dirt is. Okay, ...
February 2, 2006
Se Habla Español?
Boston's city council is headed to Spanish class. According to the Boston Globe, Council President Michael Flaherty hired a Spanish tutor to come by City ...
February 1, 2006
New Mexico Goes on Call
Nurses to staff an advice line 24/7
February 1, 2006
Piecemeal Parity
When it comes to health insurance for mental illness, states are still
wary of full coverage.
Rental Signs
After years of neglect and false starts, low-income housing is finally
finding an online home.
January 27, 2006
Dodging the Bullet
When I read the story about the Virginia legislator who fired his handgun in his legislative office -- right into the bulletproof vest hanging on ...
January 23, 2006
Criminal Policy for the Mentally Ill
While I was reporting a story on mental health parity laws for the upcoming issue of Governing, one source asked me a trivia question: "...
January 11, 2006
HOV Chutzpah
High-occupancy vehicle laws are intended to help cut down on traffic congestion by getting people to carpool. A woman in Arizona, however, tried to beat ...
January 11, 2006
On the Wave Watch
Norfolk, Virginia has been declared "TsunamiReady." Norfolk joins Indian Harbour Beach, Florida, as the only East Coast localities to meet the government's preparedness ...
January 5, 2006
Md. Judge: Go Ahead and Drop Trou
I don't imagine students at high-priced law schools, who have lofty dreams about public service, think about the possibility they might be hearing a case ...
January 1, 2006
An Unusual Outsourcing
Virginia partners for technology overhaul.
January 1, 2006
A Looser Lockup
Get-tough programs for juvenile offenders have largely failed to
reduce recidivism. Missouri has had success with a less punitive
approach.
December 29, 2005
A Mile High
If I were to say, "Holland," what is the first thing that comes to mind? "Drug-addled populace?" "Crime run rampant?&...
December 23, 2005
Fatal Mistakes
Virginia Gov. Mark Warner just pardoned two more men who it appears were possibly innocent. Newly discovered DNA evidence in old files helped to exonerate ...
December 15, 2005
Costly 411
My mother used to tell us children to use the phone book instead of automatically, lazily, dialing 411 for directory assistance. One cost money, the other ...
December 9, 2005
Money Makes the Tickets Go Round?
People often complain that cities issue traffic tickets or set up red-light cameras for revenue rather than public safety. Many officials deny that is the ...
December 1, 2005
That's Agritainment!
The simple life is becoming an economic showcase for rural states.
December 1, 2005
Pairing Up
Mississippi is moving ahead by marrying GIS data to a host of state
and local social indicators.
November 30, 2005
Rethinking Juvie Jail
Anyone who's ever advocated throwing juvenile offenders in prison to teach them a lesson ought to meet some of the youths who are in detention ...
November 14, 2005
Punting on Quake Readiness
Post-Hurricane Katrina, post-9/11, post-Northridge earthquake, post-Rita/Wilma/Andrew, post-fill-in-disaster-of-your-choice-here, I can't help but roll my eyes at this story from Sacramento.
Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger recently ...
November 10, 2005
Let's "Incent" Plain English
I remember being shocked--shocked--when Jack Kemp expounded on his housing initiatives, decades ago now, by talking about "incentivizing" and "de-incentivizing" (or ...
November 7, 2005
E-Vote Anxiety
Feeling jittery about Election Day? Either you're a candidate running for office or an election official hoping the voting machines will do their job correctly.
...
November 1, 2005
Bringing Home The Bacon
Some day soon, a food-tasting event at New York's LaGuardia Airport
might help fund the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey's
budget.
November 1, 2005
A State Shapes Up
With a bureaucracy grown rigid and rule-bound, Iowa is pushing its
agencies to act like entrepreneurs.
November 1, 2005
To Catch A Thief: N.Y. Localities' New Route To Rooting Out Medicaid Fraud
New York counties, which finance $7 billion a year in Medicaid
services, are tapping a new software to catch providers who lie, cheat
and steal public dollars with various frauds.
October 11, 2005
Downsizing
Governors know a trend when they see one. According to the AP, Maine Gov. John Baldacci has replaced his SUV with a sedan, while New ...
October 1, 2005
Government To Go
A handful of public officials and agencies are making their messages
and meetings available by "podcast."
October 1, 2005
Where Are They Now?
States and localities are using GPS to put moving targets on the map.
October 1, 2005
Government To Go
A handful of public officials and agencies are making their messages
and meetings available by "podcast."
A Sticky Business
No state is immune from hosting private contractors who come to do a
job, are paid well--and never leave.
September 29, 2005
Happy Hookers
I'm not here to argue the merits or morality of prostitution.
But I have seen the difference in the sleaze factor between legalized and outlawed ...
September 18, 2005
Hey, Partner
Food, water, shelter. Monitors, servers, network cables. Hey, the basic necessities are different for everyone after Katrina's onslaught. For Freddie Manint, the chief information officer ...
September 5, 2005
Get Out While You Can
Politicians, pundits and people everywhere are shaking their heads and wondering why people in New Orleans didn't evacuate when they were told to.
For starters, ...
September 1, 2005
Chip on Your Shoulder
Radio frequency technology offers government some breakthrough
possibilities. It also scares people.
September 1, 2005
Uncharted Waters
What's it like to be the mayor of a large city with no residents? If total evacuation orders are fully carried out, New Orleans Mayor ...
August 26, 2005
Meth Message
A proposed ordinance in Phoenix to make it tougher to buy pseudoephedrine, a major ingredient in meth, is going to "send a powerful message." So ...
August 1, 2005
Phantom of the Neighborhood
Population explosions usually mean lots of new residents. But that's
not always the case.
August 1, 2005
Superfund Setbacks
Damaged sites don't fade away. They just give local officials a
planning headache.
Block that Broadband
Any city that tries to build its own high-speed Internet connections
can expect a whole lot of pushback.
July 1, 2005
Hard Luck on Slots
Pennsylvania's plan to use gambling revenue for property tax relief
has turned into a political lemon.
July 1, 2005
Cross Checking
A city compares its data
June 15, 2005
Easy money?
Gambling as financial salvation? Not so fast. States that bring in slot machines do not witness an end to their tax and spend woes, according ...
June 1, 2005
Opening the Mail
When is an e-mail like a phone call--and when is it a public record or
a secret meeting?
June 1, 2005
Rx Data on Demand
A computer system helps reduce pain-killer abuse.
June 1, 2005
Hurricane Hubris
Evacuating residents from the path of a storm is often a frustrating
task for emergency officials.
May 1, 2005
The Erpworks
Recoding the guts of an enterprise can bring a city or state to the
brink of failure, fatigue and notoriety.
May 1, 2005
Wisconsin Fights the Feds
The state is defying a moratorium on Internet access taxes.
May 1, 2005
Cheering Squad: Seattle Settles a Line-Cutting Score
In most places, traffic cops don't get no respect for hanging around to nab drivers for their sins. In Seattle, however, two motorcycle cops are revered for patrolling a freeway ramp to stop drivers who cut in line.
The Frequency Factor
When children in school and books in libraries can be tracked by radio
waves, privacy advocates get all upset.
April 1, 2005
Courting Cuba
States have been wooing trade with Havana, but politics may put an end
to it.
April 1, 2005
American Patrol
Public agencies are training citizens to provide an additional layer
of homeland security.
April 1, 2005
Pushing the Limit: Minn. Localities Chafe at Pay Constraints
Municipalities in Minnesota, constrained by a state law that limits public employee salaries to 95 percent of the governor's pay, have been trying to figure out ways to get around the $114,000 a year cap.
March 1, 2005
The Fiscal Fast Lane
When a county is growing like Topsy, its finance officers have to move
even faster--just to keep up.
March 1, 2005
CSI: Orange County
Building a Better DNA Database
March 1, 2005
Space Hogs
SUVs Send Cities To the Redrawing Boards
March 1, 2005
Barrier-Free IT
Making state and local government Web sites accessible to people with
disabilities is less a matter of dollars than sensitivity.
The eTax Collector Cometh
As states streamline their sales tax codes, they are moving ahead with
the technology to make it easy for online businesses to collect the
tax.
February 1, 2005
Embracing Racing
Rev your engine and floor it! Take it up to 100 mph if you can. Not only will the cops not arrest you, they'll probably be there cheering you on. They may even race with you.
February 1, 2005
Shop Talk
Training beauticians to direct battered women toward help.
February 1, 2005
Easing the Nursing Burden
A Georgia prison frees up its infirmary staff
January 1, 2005
Ready Money
About $2,500 worth of checks was bouncing each semester before the
high school in Grossmont, California, adopted a no-check policy. But
that doesn't mean that students have to come to school with wads of
cash for their books, cheerleader uniforms, prom tickets and class
rings. Instead, they can take plastic to an automatic teller machine
and get the cash they need--right at school.
January 1, 2005
Grid Lock: West Virginia Powers Up Its Computing Capacity
West Virginia is buying into a very 21st-century economic development
engine. A few weeks ago, it authorized funding to develop the first
state-sponsored, public grid computing effort.
January 1, 2005
Foiling Forgers
Security features protect driver's licenses.
January 1, 2005
Ready Money
About $2,500 worth of checks was bouncing each semester before the high school in Grossmont, California, adopted a no-check policy.
Laptop Lessons
As school districts try to stretch their tech dollars, they are
testing ways to bring the Internet and mobile computing to the
classroom.
December 1, 2004
A Capital Connection
It took a little longer than expected, but law-enforcement agencies in Maryland, Virginia and the District of Columbia are now sharing local data through a system called the Capital Wireless Integrated Network, or CapWIN, which became operational in June ["Can We Talk?" May 2003]. "We're finally getting traction," says Roddy Moscoso, CapWIN's marketing manager. "Some key milestones have been reached."
December 1, 2004
Putting the Disabled to Work
A county program links public benefits and private jobs.
November 1, 2004
Broadcasting News
A free system could help states and localities improve the way they
alert responders and residents to emergencies.
November 1, 2004
Heavy Traffic
A surprising number of SUVs violate weight limits for local streets.
November 1, 2004
Library Living
Mixed-use projects are putting library resources, residents and retail
in close proximity.
November 1, 2004
E-rate's Bad Connections
Trouble continues to simmer over the $2.25 billion e-rate program, authorized by the U.S. Congress in 1996 to provide affordable telecommunications in schools and libraries in disadvantaged areas.
November 1, 2004
Wiring Woes
Trouble continues to simmer over the $2.25 billion e-rate program, authorized by the U.S. Congress in 1996 to provide affordable telecommunications in schools and libraries in disadvantaged areas.
October 1, 2004
Graphic Details
A data-rich Web site that displays GIS-generated maps is now an
essential tool for cities seeking to recruit new business.
October 1, 2004
More DNA Don'ts
DNA evidence problems continue to plague the Houston police department ["Evidence of Failure," April 2004], even though its crime lab has been closed since November 2002.
October 1, 2004
Keeping Tabs on Schools
In New Hampshire, a state system will track the progress of each
student--as well as each school.
October 1, 2004
Massachusetts Pulls Its Transportation Forces Together
It didn't seem to make much sense that within a two-mile stretch of his commute south into Boston, Daniel Grabauskas, Massachusetts' secretary of transportation, drove on a road maintained by the highway department, a bridge run by the port authority and a parkway run by the conservation and recreation department.
October 1, 2004
Graphic Details
A data-rich Web site that displays GIS-generated maps is now an
essential tool for cities seeking to recruit new business.
September 1, 2004
Dealing In Data
Forget about building a big all-purpose database. There are other ways
to integrate state and local information.
September 1, 2004
Double Duty
A handful of states and localities are taking their digitized data to
a higher level.
September 1, 2004
Full Speed Ahead
Construction of the largest fiber-to-the-premises project in the country has begun in multiple cities in the Salt Lake City area, following the sale of $85 million in bonds for the project's first phase ["Plug Me In," July 2004].
September 1, 2004
An In-Your-Face Campaign
Reality shows attract a lot of viewers these days. Wyoming hopes that reality billboards will also draw some attention--to the deleterious effects of methamphetamine use.
August 1, 2004
At Least It's Not Haunted
They are accommodations any college student might die for, but it's different when South Carolina's chief executive is sleeping on a futon in the pool house on the grounds of the governor's mansion.
July 1, 2004
Calling All Phones
VoIP looks to be the next new thing, although an Internet-based
telephone system may not be right for all governments right now.
July 1, 2004
Aloha to Algae
Things are really murky around Hawaii's Capitol these days. But it has nothing to do with politics or legislative issues. Rather, it's the green slime found in the two large reflecting pools in the Capitol's courtyard.
June 1, 2004
The Streets of San Diego
The "vroom, vroom" of engines getting ready to drag race may still be heard on San Diego streets, but the shouts of encouragement from onlookers have diminished markedly. It's not that the "sport" of illegal street racing is any less exciting to aficionados. Rather, those who watch can now be arrested and fined $1,000 or thrown in jail for six months.
June 1, 2004
Techtonic Shift
Delaware has reformatted the structure and operation of its technology
agency.
June 1, 2004
Combing Forces: Two States to Share Security Essentials
The governors of Arizona and New Mexico have made it official: Homeland security and law enforcement officials will share unclassified intelligence information state to state. And perhaps eventually expand the effort to other states as well.
May 1, 2004
Middle Ground
Surveyors have determined the exact center of the state of Arizona's population, and it is in the town of Gilbert. Unfortunately, the precise spot is in the middle of someone's backyard, so the brass monument to Gilbert's new claim to fame is located in a public park about a mile away.
May 1, 2004
Brother, Can You Spare an RN?
There aren't enough nurses to go around, and there's no cure in sight.
May 1, 2004
Unlocking the Code
It may be free and totally adaptable, but whether or when to use non-
proprietary software is far from an open and shut case.
May 1, 2004
Order in the Digital Court
Maryland sends judges for training in new tech tools.
May 1, 2004
Back taxes are streaming into Massachusetts' coffers. No, delinquent taxpayers haven't been born again with a keener sense of civic duty. Rather, the revenue department has cranked up the technology to find tax scofflaws it used to miss.
Back taxes are streaming into Massachusetts' coffers. No, delinquent taxpayers haven't been born again with a keener sense of civic duty. Rather, the revenue department has cranked up the technology to find tax scofflaws it used to miss.
April 1, 2004
They Won't Make a Peep
When it came time for Rowley, Massachusetts, to decide on a permanent site for its stuffed bird collection, the debate ruffled more than a few local feathers.
April 1, 2004
Evidence of Failure
Overwhelmed by a flood of DNA evidence, public crime labs are
performing poorly.
April 1, 2004
The Struggle Over Schools
New York City's Reforms Aren't Easy to Implement
March 1, 2004
E-Purchasing Hits Its Stride
Hopes ran so high: Electronic procurement seemed the perfect IT investment. It could replace a slow, paperbound process with a fast, simple one that would pay for itself.
March 1, 2004
Take Nothing for Granted
Even minor mistakes can be deadly when an agency applies for a grant.
Advances in technology can fix the paperwork pitfalls.
March 1, 2004
Take Nothing for Granted
Even minor mistakes can be deadly when an agency applies for a grant.
Advances in technology can fix the paperwork pitfalls.
February 1, 2004
Tech Success in San Diego
The technology outsourcing relationship between San Diego County and CSC Corp. started out with high hopes in late 1999 ["Taking Tech Private," May 2000], but nearly ended in divorce a few years later. "We went through a very painful time," says Michael Moore, the county's chief information officer.
February 1, 2004
Lifting Waits
Powder rooms, ladies' rooms, restrooms. Call them what you will, just make enough available for women in need, say members of the New York City Council, announcing a bill requiring public facilities to offer more lavatory amenities for women than men.
February 1, 2004
Wishing They Were Tone Deaf
It's been dubbed the Kokomo hum, but it isn't soothing music to the people who hear it. In the late 1990s, people in Kokomo, Indiana, started complaining about a baffling low-level noise they claimed was affecting their health.
February 1, 2004
Records as a Resource
It's all about results. Government agencies are learning that by uniting data from many sources they can get a better understanding of how well their missions are being carried out.
February 1, 2004
A Liking for Biking
Cities Make Room for Two-Wheelers
January 1, 2004
North Carolina Puts Super Computing On Its Screen
North Carolina is very excited about grid computing. But then, who wouldn't be? The state claims its grid computing initiative will have a $10 billion impact over seven years and create a net of 24,000 jobs, even after taking into account the 31,700 jobs that will be lost due to adoption of new technologies.
January 1, 2004
Reindeer: The Other Red Meat?
With Christmas behind us and Rudolph safely back at the North Pole, this is as good a time as any to talk about other uses for reindeer.
January 1, 2004
The E-mail Mess
A new federal law is riding roughshod over tough state efforts to stop
unwanted--and often indecent--spam.
January 1, 2004
A Digital Map of Progress
Pennsylvania has come up with a map that's more than just a charting of geographic features. It's an Internet-based, interactive map that details the commonwealth's telecommunications infrastructure.
January 1, 2004
CIOs Branch Out--And In
A growing number of local agencies--and even a state legislature--are
hiring CIOs to bolster their top management teams.
December 1, 2003
High And Mighty: Medicinal Marijuana Gets Carded
California is taking its approach to marijuana-as-medicine one step further: Patients will be able to whip out a piece of plastic proving that they're entitled to inhale for medicinal purposes.
December 1, 2003
Line-Item Value
To make a business case for IT projects, state and local agencies have
to factor in hard costs and soft benefits.
December 1, 2003
Two-Bit Squabble
Cheeseheads rule! Despite the fact that Wisconsin's Commemorative Quarter Council chose a theme of "early exploration" for the state's new quarter design, that turned out to be a no go.
December 1, 2003
Imaginations Run Wild In The West
When people think of old-time bordello dancers, or "sisters of riotous sensuality," as they were sometimes called, what generally come to mind are young dancers in black stockings, high heels and frilly dresses.
November 1, 2003
You've Got Access
Better set-ups for business start-ups.
November 1, 2003
Addressing URLs
The feds are asking cities and counties to change their .gov ways, but
its new rule is getting some kickback.
November 1, 2003
Fowl Smelling
A brochure with a manure-odor scratch 'n' sniff might not sound like a very good civic advertisement. But it's what Ottawa County, Michigan, is using to provide a reality check to city folk who hope to move out to the country for the fresh air, quietude and sweet smell of hay.
October 1, 2003
Maps for The Masses
Geographic information systems aren't just for techies anymore. Now,
GIS is online in citizen-friendly formats.
October 1, 2003
Downsizing Government
State-sponsored wellness programs aim to trim employee waistlines and
health costs.
October 1, 2003
Measuring Up: After-School Activities Are Put To The Rest
No more of this milk-and-cookies stuff. Detroit wants hard numbers on what kids are doing after school and how that affects their grades, their likelihood to use drugs or engage in sexual activity and other outcomes.
September 1, 2003
The Inside Story
It's not just outsiders who need to be kept out of online files.
Limits have to be set on what public employees can see.
September 1, 2003
Truth Busters
Nothing can undermine the growth of online government faster than a
digital database that leaks information.
September 1, 2003
Plant Check
Paul Choate thought it would be amusing to wander over to a protest during an agriculture conference at the Sacramento Convention Center toting a sign about the World Trade Federation of Naboo (a reference to the Star Wars planet).
September 1, 2003
Trash Sites
When public employees abuse their Internet privileges at work, IT
managers need to know how to deal with it.
August 1, 2003
Managing Medicaid
Internet Sign-Up Inches Forward.
August 1, 2003
Idle Threats
Earlier this year, Illinois' new secretary of transportation pulled his car over on the Dan Ryan Expressway to introduce himself to some highway maintenance workers and found a couple of them sleeping in their vehicles by the side of the road.
July 1, 2003
Guide To Contracting: The Art of Re-Doing The Deal
Whether it's renegotiating, renewing or rebidding, state and local
governments are looking for IT savings.
July 1, 2003
Network Nabobs
Florida Engineers A Breakthrough On Break-ins.
July 1, 2003
Measure for Measuring
Borrowing a lesson from corporate America, state and local IT agencies
are using metrics to quantify how they're doing.
July 1, 2003
Sweat Equity
You've got to wonder why men would be clamoring to join a fitness center called "Curves for Women." Then again, maybe you don't.
June 1, 2003
Outside The Box CIOs
The role of chief information officer is now about politics and
relationships as much as it is about computer systems.
June 1, 2003
The Paper Chase
Maryland Medicaid Keys Up Provider Relief.
June 1, 2003
Packing Heat In Florida
Charles Bronson, Florida's agriculture commissioner, has no plans to be a pistol-packin' papa in the halls of government, but he wants to be prepared all the same. Ever since September 11, 2001, security has tightened at the state Capitol and metal detectors have been placed at entrances. Everyone's a little more cautious than they used to be.
June 1, 2003
Tax Me More
Some states are making it easier for taxpayers to donate a little
extra money.
May 1, 2003
Can We Talk?
No one has a blueprint for what states and localities should do to
secure the homeland. But clearly, being on the same wavelength is the
place to start.
May 1, 2003
Homemade Access
State housing agencies are finding ways to bring residents of public
housing across the digital divide.
April 1, 2003
Retro To The Rescue
The idea guys behind the installation of a giant lava lamp in the depressed town of Soap Lake, Washington, call it a "wonderfully whimsical" structure that will draw visitors the way the Eiffel Tower and the Space Needle draw tourists to Paris and Seattle. On the other hand, a Kansas woman said the idea was the dumbest thing she'd ever heard. But she told Mayor Ken Lee that if the town builds it, she'd come to have a look.
March 1, 2003
Roswell's Image Takes Flight
What, exactly, does a pilot's ability to right a plane after the tail fin snaps off have to do with the prosperity of Roswell, New Mexico? Plenty. The small city has landed a flight safety training center that will boost its image as an aviation hub and help attract more aviation-related businesses to the area.
March 1, 2003
Gaming The Budget
In the midst of a fiscal crisis, many states are betting on the
legalization or expansion of gambling to boost their revenues.
March 1, 2003
The Deficit Diet
Meals are generally considered to be a highlight of life behind bars. So states take a risk when they mess with inmates' mess. In the wake of budget cuts, however, Iowa has been pruning prison meals to save money on food.
March 1, 2003
A New Light On Energy Audits
When California was in the throes of its energy crisis two years ago, state agencies did everything possible to conserve energy immediately. Employees unplugged coffee pots and refrigerators and even worked in the dark with flashlights.
March 1, 2003
Don't Bug Me
Protecting network systems against virus attacks takes good
management--and a little bit of luck.
February 1, 2003
Saving Billions On Computers
Three years ago, 15 Western states, frustrated by the steep prices they were paying for computer equipment, put together the Western States Contracting Alliance.
February 1, 2003
Bait and Switch Off
Hear the one about the dumb guy who locked himself out of his car? It took him three hours to get the rest of his family out. This joke may be especially amusing to police in San Diego, who now actually have a way to lock people in cars so they can't get out.
February 1, 2003
Staying Within The Lines...
You've heard of the "thin blue line"? Bethany, Oklahoma, is pinning its hopes on a thick one. The town painted a bright blue, 8-foot-wide line to denote where its boundaries end and those of the next city over begin.
February 1, 2003
Helping The Elderly Buy Pills For A Pittance
The cost of prescription drugs is rising faster than any other component of health care--as much as 20 percent this year, according to estimates. With those escalating prices in mind, several states are making efforts to help older citizens deal with the pocketbook pressure of paying for their medicines.
January 1, 2003
Good Spirits
Governments hope lower prices on high-quality liquor will boost tax
revenues.
January 1, 2003
The Anti-Silo Solution
Coming up with the cash and willpower to build IT projects across
agency lines
January 1, 2003
Techies At The Top
When the governor or mayor comes from the IT business world, it makes
implementing e-government easier--at least it should.
January 1, 2003
A 'Sim City' For City Planner Wannabes
The latter is the case in Massachusetts, where a new program allows players in some 350 communities to virtually rebuild their cities and learn the economic, fiscal and political ramifications of their choices.
December 1, 2002
Digital Divide
The award didn't come with a dinner, money or even a handshake. And it wasn't exactly what you'd describe as an honor. Yet winning the national "Pickled Skunk Brain" award did bring Monroe County, Indiana, its 15 minutes of...well, recognition.
December 1, 2002
Teaming Up for IT
When it comes to outsourcing technology, big is not necessarily
beautiful.
December 1, 2002
Uncovering Purchashing Card Misuse in Missouri
The state giveth, and now it may taketh away. Missouri started a procurement card program in 1998 to reduce the administrative expenses of low-cost purchases. But a recent state audit showed that procurement cards may be leaving the state unnecessarily liable.
November 1, 2002
IT's Tower of Babel
The name of the game for enterprise architecture is linking all the
technological systems a government uses.
November 1, 2002
Gutting Their Goat
Slaughtering a goat and nailing its head to a tree is no longer allowed in Sanford, North Carolina.
November 1, 2002
Putting Emergency Responders on the Same Wavelength
After a University of Maryland basketball game earlier this year, students and other fans caused a near riot, starting a fire that burned telecommunications lines and cut phone service.
October 1, 2002
Dry Humor
It wasn't Hugh Hefner recommending that people shower in groups this summer. Rather, it was the Denver Water Board.
October 1, 2002
Gilding the Building
Private fundraising to enhance public schools raises questions of
inequity.
October 1, 2002
N.J. Gets Down to Business with School Repairs
New Jersey is counting on a new public corporation to speed up sorely needed school financing and construction--and end the bureaucratic tangle that was tripping up school districts trying to make improvements or build new facilities.
October 1, 2002
Conference Report on Managing Technology: Policy, Politics and Leadership
Working with tight budgets, state and local officials responsible for managing technology are focused on figuring out how to fund the technology they need and how to get the most value for the dollars that do come their way.
October 1, 2002
The Data Lockout
In the post 9-11 era, localities are caught between demands to share
data and the need to keep their inner workings secret.
September 1, 2002
Mind Your Own Business
Techies in several states are all keyed up about providing public
employees with do-it-yourself services.
September 1, 2002
The Personal Touch
Continental Airlines recently e-mailed its customers that the next time they signed on to the airline's Web site they'd "see something special on our home page: your name." California, Michigan, North Carolina, Pennsylvania and Virginia, among other states, are not impressed. They beat Continental to the punch.
September 1, 2002
The People Connection
There have been fumbles and stumbles. But states and localities are
finally figuring out how to make G2C click.
September 1, 2002
Floating an Idea
An Alaskan businessman wants to fill gigantic plastic bags with water from rivers in Northern California, and tow them via tugboat to San Diego to provide drinking water for residents.
September 1, 2002
San Diego Settles a Contract Conflict
With its outsourcing deal experiencing a troubled third year, San Diego County has finally resolved a contract dispute with the company that provides computers and telephones for the county workforce.
August 1, 2002
Less Than Thrilled
The "not in my backyard" syndrome typically applies to landfills or sewage-treatment facilities. But Las Vegas is not your typical community and neither is the NIMBY situation there. In the case of Sin City, residents have been fighting over the placement of a thrill ride.
August 1, 2002
A School For Catching Cyber Scoundrels
Just as sheriffs rounded up posses in the old days, state attorneys general today are collaborating with two groups to enhance the cybercrime-fighting skills of personnel in their offices.
July 1, 2002
Blast From the Past
The situation could hardly have been more ironic. At the same time that Nevada's top officials were fighting against becoming the nation's nuclear waste dumping ground, the state proudly unveiled a new license plate design: a mushroom cloud from an atomic explosion.
July 1, 2002
Contract Hoops and Loopholes
With a high failure rate for outsourcing IT projects, everybody from
legislators to CIOs is scrambling to put safeguards in place.
July 1, 2002
Putting Business First
CIOs from the private sector bring a refreshing mindset to their
government jobs, and vice versa.
June 1, 2002
Focus on Customer Relations: The Call-In Connection
Touted as the best way yet to track constituent complaints, CRM holds
out the promise of the holiest of grails: seamless service.
June 1, 2002
Making Sure New Systems Compute
Every so often, a handful of social service workers in Hennepin County, Minnesota, give away their pending cases and stop visiting families in need. Instead, they turn into technology liaisons.
May 1, 2002
Check Your Tickets at the Border
The odds of winning the South Carolina lottery are one in several million. The chances of being arrested in neighboring North Carolina for merely having a lottery ticket in hand are far better.
May 1, 2002
Legislators Who Get IT
Politicians hold the purse strings for big technology projects. But
few are interested in or informed about IT issues.
May 1, 2002
Simplifying the Domain Name
No matter what the powers that be thought at the time, www.state.nm.us or www.state.ny.us is not an easy-to-remember address for a state Web site.
April 1, 2002
The Shipping News: Getting a Charge Out of Radioactive Rubbish
Trucks and trains carrying radioactive waste through Iowa will no longer be able to drive through the state scot-free.
April 1, 2002
Digital Nightmare
What if terrorists break into critical state and local networks and
wreak havoc?
March 1, 2002
Too Much Room at the Telecom Inn
Telecom hotels--structures that house the equipment used for Web hosting and telecommunications--once seemed like the perfect solution to a serious urban problem.
March 1, 2002
No Need to Tuck it In
Heavy, wool plaid is what most people think of first when they hear the words "school uniform." But at Newport Elementary School in Newport Beach, California, the uniform is a tad less traditional:
March 1, 2002
The Dot-Bomb's Silver Lining
In the wake of the tech sector's tumble, governments are finding it
easier to fill IT positions.
February 1, 2002
Maryland Has a Bad Air Day
When the Maryland legislature failed last year to pass a measure to change its clean-air permitting process, it became the first state to lose its power over industrial permitting.
February 1, 2002
Parking Pardons
A small New Jersey-based company has tapped into humankind's primal instinct to fight parking tickets. For a fee, parkingticket.com's software will scan databases in New York City, San Francisco and Washington, D.C., hunting for technicalities or other reasons why a ticket could be challenged in those cities.
February 1, 2002
Turnabout on Red
Some places are rethinking the right-turn-on-red rules.
February 1, 2002
Keeping Cell Phone Costs in Line
Governments should buy the most cost-effective cell phone rate plans for their employees to use on the job. That's obvious.
January 1, 2002
A Tree Grows Through It
Tapping both nature and nurture, a growing number of cities and states
are coming up with incentives to get buildings to go 'green.'
January 1, 2002
Building in Green
There is no simple answer to what a "green building" is. It could be one that focuses on health and safety inside by using non-toxic paints and adhesives and installing an advanced filtration system.
January 1, 2002
Wisconsin Upgrades Its Undergrad Fund
Last May, Wisconsin's college-savings program, EdVest, held $9 million in cash that parents had invested for their children's higher education. By November, EdVest had $120 million in hand.
January 1, 2002
Crate Exploitations
In late 2000, the Florida Supreme Court's attention was focused on pregnant chads. Lately, the debate has been over the rights of pregnant pigs.
January 1, 2002
Staying Ahead of Hackers
Somewhere out there, as all government techies know, lurk bad guys itching to inflict mayhem on government computer systems.
December 1, 2001
Wedded to Civics
Politics may make strange bedfellows. But it's rare for bona fide
bedfellows to be the top elected officials in overlapping local
governments.
December 1, 2001
Reducing the Risks of Being Sued
It had to hurt. Washington State paid $85 million in court judgments
and settlements this past fiscal year, a 240 percent jump over the
year before and a quantum leap over the highest payout--$26 million--
in the past 10 years. "We tend to be the deep pocket," says Marty
Brown, director of the Governor's Office of Financial Management.
November 1, 2001
Holding the Line on Fines
Fifty dollars went a long way in the era of the horse and buggy. But
issuing a $50 fine in the 21st century, as a penalty for potentially
dangerous municipal code infractions, doesn't seem like much of a
deterrent. Yet, under a Tennessee constitutional provision set in
1796, that is the maximum amount the Metropolitan government of
Nashville and Davidson County can impose as punishment, according to a
ruling issued by the state Supreme Court in September.
November 1, 2001
IT in the Ruins
For governments hoping to keep their systems online after a disaster,
the lesson of September 11 is clear: You have to have a plan.
November 1, 2001
Going, Going ... Click!
The auctioneer's cry can still be heard as state and local governments
periodically put surplus goods on the block. But governments are
finding that selling surplus goods online can be more efficient--and
can bring in a lot more money than a traditional auction.
November 1, 2001
Aldona K. Valicenti: Information Visionary
Teaching a bureaucracy to think like an enterprise
October 1, 2001
The Web Gets Wind of Pollutants
People in many areas of the country may see haze or notice a rotten
odor and wonder if it's pollution. Residents of Yellowstone County,
Montana, can find out for sure. By clicking on an air-quality
information Web site, they can check levels of sulfur dioxide in the
air during the past hour and also can see historical data on the
pollutant.
October 1, 2001
Begging Their Pardon
The police department in Lewiston, Maine, believes that to err is
human. So it's being pretty divine about forgiving parking tickets--
but only for first-time violators whose meters have run out.
October 1, 2001
Performance Payoffs: Rewarding in-House Experts
A penny saved is a penny shared by Delaware Department of
Transportation employees. Millions of dollars saved can turn into real
dollars in their pockets under two new pilot programs that reward
employees with cash if they propose money-saving ideas.
September 1, 2001
Card Tricks
Some states have a reputation for easy-to-fake IDs.
September 1, 2001
Losing Numbers
Lottery profits are down in a majority of states. And officials are
scrambling to reverse the trend.
September 1, 2001
Spreading the Word on HIPAA
The complicated federal health care law known as HIPAA has produced an
interesting side effect in Washington State: It has broken down
barriers between agencies. Seven state agencies have joined forces on
an intranet Web site to help them internally with following the law.
And they've extended that cooperation to a public Internet site that
will provide information updates to health care providers, hospitals,
employers and other interested parties.
September 1, 2001
E-Gov on the Cheap
What does it cost to launch a government Web site? It's a question
that makes some governments uncomfortable, fearing apples-and-oranges
comparisons with other jurisdictions. Governments budget for their Web
sites in different ways, some including staff time and maintenance
time, some paying from a central IT office, some paying through
individual departments, some outsourcing, some building in-house.
August 1, 2001
Thinking Big
Michigan's effort goes well beyond just Web-enabling service delivery.
It's an attempt to redesign a government enterprise-wide.
August 1, 2001
Playing Together
From sharing software to collaborating across jurisdictional lines,
governments are beginning to reach out to each other to solve complex
and expensive technology issues.
July 1, 2001
Slowdown Ahead for Financing E-Procurement
Self-funding models for e-procurement seemed like a grand idea for
budget-strapped purchasing departments: The private sector would foot
the bill while the public sector got itself an automated purchasing
system.
July 1, 2001
A Strong Set of Cards?
It's been a while since the odor from the stockyards wafted across
Chicago, but now the Windy City is grappling with a new source of
olfactory offensiveness.
July 1, 2001
Few-Plate Special
Car tags with low numbers are highly coveted and controlled.
July 1, 2001
The Privacy Czars
Corporations have been rushing to create a new executive position:
"chief privacy officer." They're awash in a flood of privacy concerns
from customers who worry whether their personal information is being
trafficked over the Internet. Few governments have created such a
position, but some now are starting to follow in those corporate
footsteps.
June 1, 2001
Spirits from the Past
The recent discovery of wooden vats from an old rum distillery doesn't
mean that Albany, New York, suddenly has a new brownfield on its
hands. Indeed, there's no contamination on the downtown site--only
artifacts. But deciding what to do with them has delayed construction
of a $12 million municipal parking garage.
June 1, 2001
Indiana Makes Exceptions for E-Mail Privacy
Indiana legislators don't have to play by the same rules of disclosure
as everyone else. On the last day of Indiana's legislative session,
lawmakers approved a bill that exempts them from the state's public-
records law.
June 1, 2001
Click Here to Sign
Most governments are moving cautiously into the arena of digital
signatures.
May 1, 2001
Seeing Red
Many drivers are livid about photo-cop systems.
May 1, 2001
Arkansas Flattens a Building Fund
It's hard to find anyone shedding even crocodile tears over the demise
of the Economic Development of Arkansas Fund Commission. It's not that
the commission didn't do a good job in providing money for water,
sewer and other economic development projects. But the legislature,
the administration--even the head of the commission itself--see good
reasons to let the commission expire in January 2002.
May 1, 2001
Cashing in on Affiliations
Affiliated with, sponsored by, partnered with ...
They're phrases used by the not-for-profit government associations when they talk about deals they have cut with for-profit companies, usually to provide goods and services to members. Mayors, county executives and other members of national membership organizations may wonder how their associations decide to make agreements with particular technology vendors and e-government companies, why they do it, and how those deals benefit the associations and their members.
May 1, 2001
Web Marketing on the Cheap
Most governments are trying to market their new online services
without spending a lot of money. Some are beginning to rethink that
strategy.
April 1, 2001
Probing the Past
Conducting background checks on teachers and other workers is
expensive. But not doing them can also be costly.
April 1, 2001
Rooked on Phonics
If you're planning to run for office as a write-in, you might want to
be sure your surname is Jones--or Bush or even Gore. John D. Schmidt
of Hays County, Texas, found that out the hard way.
April 1, 2001
Wisconsin Tells its Localities to Collaborate--or Else
The pressure is on Wisconsin localities to work together. Governor
Scott McCallum has endorsed a major recommendation in a report
commissioned by former Governor Tommy Thompson that was supposed to
come up with "radical and bold" ideas for Wisconsin government.
March 1, 2001
The Outsourcing Option
As governments turn to private partners to put their transactions
online, they're finding that there's more than one way to make e-
commerce happen.
March 1, 2001
A Lot of Pots
Among the first things you see on entering Kerrville, Texas, are
dozens of yellow portable toilets. It's not the kind of pleasant
welcome that city officials had planned on when they changed zoning
restrictions in 1997. That's when planners decided to zone for a
"gateway" into town that would foster tourism with hotels, restaurants
and other visitor services.
March 1, 2001
Cities Band Together to Put Permits Online
Twenty-one cities in King County, Washington, formed the Electronic
Government Alliance this winter.
March 1, 2001
Governors and E-Expectations
This year's crop of new governors faced a transition task that their
predecessors did not. Incoming administrations have always had to
change names on office doors and update highway welcome signs. This
time, administration employees also had to update state Web sites to
reflect the change in administration.
February 1, 2001
Foiling Food Fights
When food fights started erupting on a regular basis last fall at Paul
V. Moore High School in upstate New York, something had to be done. So
the principal came up with an idea: Have the parents of students
suspended for launching their lunch across the table--or the room--eat
in the cafeteria with their progeny for a week in exchange for
expunging the suspension from school records.
February 1, 2001
The Imperial Usps
When it's time to build a new post office, towns often have little
input.
February 1, 2001
Dallas Goes for the Green
Tiger Woods would love it. The city of Dallas' newly refurbished golf
course is designed to attract golfers who used to drive 30 minutes out
of the city to play on fancy, upper-end courses. Its quality grasses
can be mowed to an eighth of an inch so that balls roll as if they're
on low-nap carpet.
February 1, 2001
W.VA. Defends a Privatized Contract
Don't always believe what you read, says Bruce Kenney, a systems
management engineer with the West Virginia Department of
Transportation. A local newspaper recently ran a story saying that
since the state privatized the striping of its highways, costs have
almost doubled to $9 million. And that, Kenney says, is simply not so.
The overall costs may actually be lower.
January 1, 2001
The IT Czar of Main Street
Local governments are giving CIOs new policy-making and leadership
roles.
January 1, 2001
Putting the Brakes on Scooters
A weed-whacker on wheels: That's how New Jersey Assemblyman Kenneth
LeFevre describes the sound of the motorized scooters that have become
popular with teens in his hometown of Brigantine Island.
January 1, 2001
The Cost of Poor Planning
Philadelphia's city controller, Jonathan Saidel, didn't mince words in
his audit of one troubled school system technology project. Taxpayers
underwrote a new computer system for financial management, human
resources and payroll that was "inefficiently procured, wastefully way
over budget and still doesn't do many of the things it was intended to
do," Saidel wrote.
December 1, 2000
Focus on Geographic Information Systems: Maps That Sell
Communities are finding that the combination of GIS and the Web can be
a powerful tool in the competition for economic development.
November 1, 2000
Our Dying Data
Information on paper lasts hundreds of years. Electronic data can
disappear in a decade. Preserving it is a big--and expensive--
challenge for governments.
November 1, 2000
Sister-City Spin
The timing was coincidental, but it was bad nevertheless. Hartford, Connecticut, officials were already under fire for their plan to visit a new Chinese sister city while in the midst of conducting a national search for a police chief.
November 1, 2000
Rest in Place
Development is endangering many rural cemeteries.
November 1, 2000
The Electronic BIllboard
Go to Honolulu's Web site for information on the city council or local elections, and you will encounter something you might not expect to see on a government Web page: an advertisement from Prudential Locations.
October 1, 2000
The Electric Slide
Arkansas officials feel California's pain over utility rates that soared in the wake of electricity deregulation. But they sure don't want that kind of grief inflicted on their state's ratepayers.
October 1, 2000
The Poseidon Adventure II
"Full nakedness! All joys are due to thee." The poet John Donne may have extolled the virtues of nudity, but the Institute in Basic Life Principles doesn't buy it. When the Christian home-schooling group arrived in Sacramento and saw an unclad statue of Poseidon outside the convention center where its week-long meeting was to be held, attendees recoiled in dismay.
October 1, 2000
Taking Away the Keys
Drive-home cars can be a legitimate employee benefit--or a big luxury.
October 1, 2000
Managing Technology: Policy, Politics and Leadership
As technology continues to offer new potential for more effective and efficient government operations and services, public officials at all levels are recognizing that the challenge of managing technology requires new modes of communication, collaboration and organization.
September 1, 2000
Local Resistance
There's a widening gulf between high-wired states and hard-pressed
localities. These smaller governments may not come into cyberspace
willingly.
September 1, 2000
Poetic Government
States without official poets laureate are getting on the bard wagon.
September 1, 2000
Turmoil in Gov-Com Land
Last year at this time, it was the calm before the marketing storm of e-government. Dot-com companies were beginning to burst onto the scene, offering to make it easy and convenient for citizens to go online to pay tickets and taxes and get licenses and permits.
August 1, 2000
No Free Lunch Online
Click-happy constituents expect to do business with their governments
online--and many don't want to pay for the privilege.
August 1, 2000
Smoothing the Way to Lay Cable Lines
Tooth-rattling bumps, zigzag detours: These are what city drivers experience when roads are ripped up by telecommunications companies laying fiber-optic cable.
August 1, 2000
Moving it Out
Now, all IT eyes are focused on the Memphis attempt.
July 1, 2000
The Electronic Decision-Maker
Information technology is being harnessed to help government people
make better decisions, and make them faster.
July 1, 2000
The Lure of the Private Sector
Where have all the CIOs gone? Gone to the private sector, almost every one. In the past year, nine top state technology managers have left their jobs.
June 1, 2000
Cards With Brains
Several large transit systems are successfully using `smart'
farecards. Others are clamoring to get on board.
June 1, 2000
A Windy City Tax Targets Litter
A hamburger taken out from a McDonald's in Chicago is now taxed at a higher rate than a hot dog bought from a street vendor.
June 1, 2000
A Slick Scheme to Control Geese
Corn oil: It's not just for cooking anymore.
In Falls Township, Pennsylvania, it's being poured on the eggs laid by Canada geese, so the embryos won't get the oxygen they need to hatch.
May 1, 2000
Potluck Politics
Imagine arriving at the American Legion Hall with a crockpot of baked beans to contribute to the potluck dinner--only to be told they're not welcome there.
May 1, 2000
Taking Tech Private
San Diego County is embarking on the biggest outsourcing of technology
in the history of state and local government. Will it work? We'll know
in a few years.
May 1, 2000
Paying the Security Price
An auditing team looking into the Chicago school system's technology operations had an interesting experience last summer: They were able to walk right into a new data center during normal business hours, without an escort and without being questioned, and were even able to get their hands on equipment and data.
April 1, 2000
Terms of Imprisonment
More than half the states have mandatory minimum sentences for drug
offenders. Some of them are starting to rethink and revise their laws.
April 1, 2000
Gavel-to-Gavel Online
It may not top a list of major quality-of-life improvements, but residents of Bloomington, Indiana, can now catch every minute of every city council meeting online, at any time of day.
April 1, 2000
An Online Route to Low Prices
When the Orange County Transit Authority in California needs new bus parts, it no longer types and mails solicitation letters, waiting for bids to trickle in. Its new online procurement system automatically develops bid solicitations and e-mails them to vendors who have registered on CAMM NET, the online system operated by the authority's Contracts Administration and Materials Management Department, and found at www.octa.net/cammnet.
March 1, 2000
Pooling Prescription Price Controls
The cost of prescription drugs is soaring. For many states, it is the fastest-growing health care expense, with prescription drugs doubling over the past six years in some states and costs for Medicaid prescription drugs increasing 15 percent annually in several states.
March 1, 2000
San Francisco's Pet Peeves
In San Francisco, it appears as though political correctness might be going to the dogs--and cats.
March 1, 2000
Legislatures Will Wrestle With a Model Law for IT Transactions
Technology is the fastest-growing area of the economy, but the contract law to address computer-related transactions has been a non- starter.
February 1, 2000
High Hopes for Hogs
Civic boosters in Cincinnati have an idea: If they put 250 painted fiberglass pigs in public places around town, people will come in droves to see the l'il porkers and the city will be awash in tourism dollars.
February 1, 2000
The Threadbare Carpet Treatment
Sometimes, a penny saved is an accident waiting to happen. California Governor Gray Davis learned that lesson the hard way when a secretary in his office tripped over the very old, worn and wrinkled carpeting he'd decided not to have replaced. She fell right before his eyes, slightly injuring her ankle.
February 1, 2000
Ruling the Open Road
Cities are trying to gain some control over the fiber-optic cable-
laying frenzy.
February 1, 2000
New Mexico Grabs a Guarantee Against Road Wear and Tear
Some people buy an extended warranty for a car. New Mexico bought one for a highway.
February 1, 2000
Factoring Time Into Housing Aid
Delaware is placing a three-year time limit on rent subsidies. The experiment is part of a larger federal demonstration program to help long-time public housing residents become financially independent.
January 1, 2000
Wisconsin Breaks a Lottery Rule
When Wisconsin created a state lottery 12 years ago, legislators promised it would be self-funding and they would never, ever tap into state tax dollars. Yet, last session, legislators did just that.
January 1, 2000
Marriage of Church and State?
Of all the thousands of public-sector job titles, a newly created position in Wisconsin state government is among the more unusual and controversial.
January 1, 2000
Tattle Tales
The Internet gives public employees a new venue for grousing about
their jobs.
January 1, 2000
The Meth Monster
Combatting the homemade drug methamphetamine is proving to be a
difficult and costly job for law enforcement agencies in many states.
January 1, 2000
Services Online, CIOs on Loan
With their sights set on a lucrative market, companies are elbowing each other out of the way for the chance to set governments up with e- government capability--for free.