• IT Directors Go Retro in Virginia
• BY: Brian Heaton   |   December 18, 2012
• Technology workers in two Virginia agencies are using an old-school organizational method to improve workflow and efficiency.

• Cities Pushing to Record Conversations on Public Buses
• BY: Brian Peteritas   |   Nation   |   December 13, 2012
• Despite privacy concerns, a growing number of public transit agencies are adding audio surveillance to buses.
• 2 Comments

• Pennsylvania Health Exchange to be Run by Feds
• BY: McClatchy News   |   Pennsylvania   |   December 13, 2012
• Gov. Corbett joins 19 other Republican governors who chose to leave the responsibility of running new online insurance marketplaces to the federal government.

• Report: Massachusetts Should Join Race for Online Gaming
• BY: Liz Farmer   |   December 13, 2012
• After a record year for the Massachusetts Lottery, a state task force has called online gaming “inevitable” and is recommending the agency take steps toward offering it to consumers. The report, issued Thursday, notes that if the lottery doesn’t enter the online marketplace, other entrants – such as casinos, commercial gaming companies, and other states – will likely fill the void to the detriment of the lottery and the revenue it generates.

• Fracking Floated as Possibility in Western Massachusetts
• Source: Boston Globe   |   Massachusetts   |   December 13, 2012
• The possibility that Western Massachusetts may hold limited deposits of shale gas is catapulting the contentious issue of hydraulic fracturing, commonly called fracking, into the state.

• Idaho Gov. Otter Opts for State-Run Health Exchange
• Source: AP/Idaho Statesman   |   Idaho   |   December 12, 2012
• Gov. C.L. "Butch" Otter, a critic of President Barack Obama's health care law, said a state-built health insurance exchange is the best option for Idaho.

• Amazon Agrees to Collect Taxes in Massachusetts
• Source: Boston Globe   |   Massachusetts   |   December 12, 2012
• Amazon, the world’s largest online merchant, said that it has agreed to start collecting the state’s 6.25 percent sales tax in Massachusetts next November -- a move that will cost consumers but generate­ tens of millions of dollars for the state.

• Social Services’ Challenge of Sharing Data
• BY: Jonathan Walters   |   December 11, 2012
• It takes leadership to implement the type of IT systems that would make human services more efficient and effective.
• 1 Comments

• Green Schools Not Living Up to Their Energy, Money-Saving Hype
• Source: USA Today   |   Nation   |   December 11, 2012
• "Green schools" promise huge energy savings and rising student performance, but do not always deliver, despite their extra cost.

• Tennessee Gov. Rejects State-Run Health Exchange
• Source: Tennessean   |   Tennessee   |   December 11, 2012
• Gov. Bill Haslam blamed a lack of specifics from the federal government about how a state exchange would have to be structured.

• Texting 911 Option Available Nationwide in 2014
• BY: Government Technology   |   Nation   |   December 10, 2012
• This program is part of the FCC’s Next Generation 911 services, which attempts to upgrade the rules and regulations of the landline era to the current mobile and IP world.
• 3 Comments

• New York City Seeks to Reinvent the Pay Phone
• BY: Government Technology   |   New York City   |   December 7, 2012
• The city is asking citizens for ideas on how to reinvent pay phone sites and their surrounding enclosures.

• Christie to Let Feds Run Health Exchange for New Jersey
• Source: Newark Star-Ledger   |   New Jersey   |   December 7, 2012
• Gov. Chris Christie, a critic of Obama’s Affordable Care Act, said the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services has yet to answer dozens of questions on how much the new online insurance marketplace would cost New Jersey residents, among other concerns.

• Report: Budget Transparency Website Could Save Florida Millions
• BY: Liz Farmer   |   Florida   |   December 6, 2012
• Two government watchdog groups say Florida could save millions of dollars if a budget transparency website, which taxpayers have already spent $4.5 million on, were allowed to go live.

• South Carolina Gov. Won't Release Full Hacking Report
• Source: The Post and Courier   |   South Carolina   |   December 6, 2012
• Gov. Nikki Haley’s administration will not publicly release a previously undisclosed, more-detailed report on how a hacker breached the S.C. Department of Revenue, affecting sensitive information for millions of taxpayers.