It's a way to measure progress toward building and strengthening a culture of learning and improvement.
Traditional public pensions widen the public-private pay gap, and they aren't a good fit for a younger government workforce.
The growth of citizen-powered engagement platforms is a challenge for local governments, but it's a phenomenon they should embrace.
Public-private collaborations for local-government innovation are spreading. There are some best practices for making them work.
Projecting spending beyond the next budget cycle has a lot of advantages for states that make the effort.
Decisions in one realm have ripple effects in others. Public programs need to reflect that reality.
Police, firefighters and other emergency responders occupy a special position of trust in their communities. They need to always be aware of the impact of their behavior.
A new federal loan program, patterned after a successful one for transportation, has a lot of potential for badly needed water projects.
For distressed localities seeking a comeback, governance reform and corruption prevention are key.
In the wake of the recession, there's growing interest in a federal program offering visas to immigrants who invest in local economies.
There is much to learn from Seattle's approach to adapting and building resiliency.
Wall Street can be hard on a state that moves to keep its local governments solvent or help them through bankruptcy. But it's a chance that some states have decided is worth taking.
America is industrializing again, but the days of good jobs for everybody are over.
Inspectors general need to take on another role: encouraging government to build its capacity for service delivery.
For dealing with recidivism and other human services problems, focusing on each individual's situation yields the best results.
Boom is always better than bust, but explosive growth presents its own set of formidable challenges.
The new National Resource Network aims to help local governments find the experts and information they need.
Governors have a major role to play in integrating two policy and regulatory systems that need to work together.
The changing relationship between labor and business is important for communities hoping for a manufacturing comeback.
States need to change the way they pay providers. Rewarding prevention and improved health outcomes is better for everybody.
Auditable standards for public-sector quality improvement efforts are the key to their sustained and effective implementation.
The federal regulator wants to make it easier for local governments to become Internet providers. That would be a blow to state-level federalism and a bad deal for taxpayers.
Place-based organizations need to know just how much impact they're having on both their communities and their business. It's a matter of enlightened self-interest.
There are two ways to look at the impact of taxes, and states that rank high on both scales have a lot to worry about.
States that reject the controversial education standards may not end up getting what they're looking for.
A big prize awaits the community that can show the way toward better use of resources. It's a competition that's critical to our energy future.
We need to know more about how agricultural practices, extreme weather and aging infrastructure affect our water systems.
It's critical to give caseworkers and everybody else involved in protecting kids a complete, shared picture of every vulnerable child's life.
It's not about new technology, policy or specific reforms. It's about how all of the players take ownership of a common concern.
Smart state leaders are recognizing that it costs a lot less to keep a struggling city, county or school district out of trouble in the first place.
Home and community based services can go a long way toward preventing or delaying expensive nursing-home care.
