News
In a demonstration flight, the Electric EEL flew from Maui’s airport to Hana and back entirely on a single hybrid-electric charge. The company says the plane is like a Prius in the sky, and it’s the first of its kind.
The county approved the budget, which includes a one-time bonus of $1,000 per county employee to help offset the impacts of COVID-19. The county also focused funds on climate change measures.
Three workers in San Francisco, Calif., have filed a class-action lawsuit against three city agencies, alleging they were paid less, denied promotions and subjected to harassment all due to their race.
While the Trump White House has done some good things, the president-elect has shown genuine interest in the issue, and more federal resources are becoming available.
A victim’s rights organization advocates on behalf of the only unwilling participants in a criminal justice system that overflows with unsolved and cold cases.
The new administration hopes to achieve a shift in federal immigration policy. Recent proposals from state legislators reflect an existing climate of compassion, including financial support, health care and safety.
Colorado House Speaker KC Becker said of several state Republicans’ request to investigate the state’s election software and voting machines. Becker denied the request, stating that audits left no doubt about this year’s election results. (AP News — December 8, 2020)
The amount that the University of Vermont Medical Center is losing each day from lost revenue and recovery costs since a late October cyberattack disrupted the center’s computer systems. The hospital’s CEO estimates that they are about 70 percent recovered from the attack.
A coalition of nonprofit community groups have been distributing one-time stipends between $1,000 and $3,000 to families impacted by COVID-19. The groups hope that investments like this continue in the future.
There are too many barriers to making medications that have been proved to help manage the disease available in residential treatment facilities. States should move to require the medications people need.
Annapolis’ police chief hopes the program will combat the state’s 40 percent recidivism rate by providing people with an education for trade work or counseling services. It’s helped 144 people since June.
As the coronavirus continues to devastate families, several Massachusetts Congress members are vying for direct financial relief. But the debate in Congress continues to be deeply divided and without compromise.
The Health Department claims a former employee, Rebekah Jones, “hacked” their system to send messages encouraging others to speak up about the state’s COVID response. Jones filed a COVID whistleblower complaint in May.
Many public leaders long believed that the people’s business could not be done from outside the walls of government buildings, but COVID-19 showed government can function from anywhere — quickly.
Work from home was at first a temporary pandemic solution, but as public and private organizations alike make remote work permanent, they’ll need to make adjustments to more than just where staff are located.
Clarence Hamer, a landlord of a four-bedroom duplex in Brownsville, Brooklyn, who said since one of his tenants owes him nearly $50,000 in back rent, he is unable to pay the thousands he owes for heating, hot water, property tax and the mortgage. (Reuters — Dec. 8, 2020)
The amount that the Federal Communications Commission has allocated to providing high-speed Internet to rural Louisianans over the next 10 years. A dozen companies won bids in Louisiana during the Rural Digital Opportunity Fund Phase I auction, with Elon Musk’s SpaceX receiving $26.6 million to establish Internet for 29,171 locations across the state.
An eight-week pilot program will deliver fresh produce and school supplies to 50 students in Miami-Dade County. The program will help prepare for more self-driving services to begin in 2022.
In the 2010 Census, Alaska Natives and Native Americans were the most undercounted group. This year, if they wanted to increase the accuracy of the count, they had to risk the spread of COVID-19.
If California AG Xavier Becerra is confirmed as the next U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services, Gov. Newsom will have an opportunity to fill two influential political offices.
Most methods of determining whether electoral maps are fair require a lot of math and some tough computation. But there is an easier way.
Nearly every great modern crisis has led to an expansion of federal power, but President Trump left the pandemic response largely to the states. This year, federalism was a boon both to health and election management.
As 2020 comes to a close, we take a moment to reflect on the numerous books that government officials from across the nation have recommended over the past several years.
Robert Durham, director of the nonpartisan Death Penalty Information Center, speaking of Trump’s recent efforts to increase the pace of federal executions ahead of Biden’s inauguration. (AP News — December 7, 2020)
The estimated number of Americans who will face hunger by this year’s end, a 15 million increase from last year, as the coronavirus pandemic continues to devastate households across the nation.
The state’s 200 contact tracers can’t keep up with the growing numbers of coronavirus cases. Residents continue to push back against virus precautions, leading many to worry the situation will get worse.
San Francisco Assemblymember David Chiu proposed a bill that would require tenants to pay at least 25 percent of their total rent but would also extend the eviction moratorium through Dec. 2021.
The Statehouse has closed for the indeterminable future as COVID-19 cases increase, leaving state lawmakers to debate how to safely conduct the legislative session while also providing public access.
Due to the high level of paper ballots, this was the first year that the state conducted a post-election audit. Despite success at ballot counting, it is unclear whether vote by mail is here to stay.
A new survey shows that public-sector employees are adapting to remote work and that many like it. It also reveals concerns that state and local government employers need to keep in mind.
