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The current troubles in the technology industry are not evidence of an ethics crisis, but rather a public-policy crisis.
For too long, tech has been someone else’s problem — something policymakers didn’t believe they needed to think about or even fully understand. It’s time to define what we want from a revolution that’s affecting everything.
A new federal law could go a long way toward improving oversight of grant spending and making state and local financial reports more accessible to researchers and constituents.
Chief Executive Satya Nadella said of Microsoft’s decision to invest $1 billion over the next four years in its newly created “Climate Innovation Fund,” which will aim to remove as much carbon from the atmosphere as the company has emitted since its creation 45 years ago. (Reuters, AP News — January 16, 2020)
The predicted value of an electronic health record market by 2025. As more patients and health-care providers opt to put medical records and access online and via mobile apps, big tech companies like Google and Apple are trying to further step into the health-care fields. But many are still concerned about data sharing and privacy of sensitive medical information.
In an opinion piece for the Financial Times, Sundar Pichai wrote in favor of stricter regulations of artificial intelligence and noted that “principles that remain on paper are meaningless.”
California’s gas tax allotted a portion of gas prices for road maintenance. However, as more electric vehicles roll onto the road, fewer consumers are contributing to the tax, and it’s costing the state millions.
The Montana city partnered with a Texas-based company to create an app to identify issues like potholes and broken parking kiosks. The app keeps the city accountable but also gives citizens more control
For more than a decade, the feds have been pushing states to modernize their Medicaid management information systems so they could report comparable data. The effort is starting to pay off.
Farms from the state's Central Valley have teamed up with Southern California Gas to convert cow manure into renewable natural gas, in response to a 2016 state law to reduce dairy greenhouse emissions by 30 percent.
This week, Governing’s Future of Finance examines the moves made in advance of tax season, California’s crackdown on traffic fine scofflaws, the world’s largest money manager is making the climate crisis its primary investment criterion, and MIT’s “significant” Jeffrey Epstein mistakes.
Businesses that make more than $10 million a year need to pay up to 6 percent more in taxes in the California bill that received Abigail Disney’s support. “This is a problem of corporate culture 50 years in the making.”
Our cities' transportation landscape is being dramatically altered. But a focus on small disputes overlooks the larger value questions that need to be addressed.
The federal tax law change took place in 2018, but the revised form has just been released. The IRS hopes the new W-4 is more transparent and less complex. But there are a few changes to be aware of.
Traffic fines in California can be quite expensive, often more than the monthly disposable income for many families. Officials are thinking of reworking the program to make it more feasible and to make sure the state gets paid.
Gov. Kim Reynolds’ plan to “Invest in Iowa” would mean raising sales tax by a penny but decreasing both property and income tax. But it also hopes to improve water quality, conservation, and outdoor rec opportunities.
The tax break would extend an existing incentive but after seeing the hefty price tag, the lobbyists have stepped back. But even if the break doesn’t pass this year, “the group may push for it again in future years.”
Logan Lamb, a security expert, said of a Georgia elections server that had been wiped clean after being exposed to the open Internet for at least six months during 2016. Election integrity activists subsequently filed a lawsuit for the state of Georgia to revamp their “unreliable and negligently run election system.” (AP News — January 16, 2020)
Alphabet Inc., Google’s parent company, became the fourth U.S. company to hit the amount in market value last Thursday. Alphabet, Apple, Amazon.com, and Microsoft are the only U.S. companies to reach this amount.
Stories about drones in mysterious formations across Nebraska and Colorado have been flying around for days, but officials still don’t have any answers. “It baffles me. I don’t know why someone would be doing this for fun.”
Minnesota’s new law allows families to install electronic monitoring devices into senior homes if they have proper consent. Some think it’s a great way to ensure Grandma’s getting the help she needs, others think it’s intrusive.
Between the pending legislation that would enact a $5,000 rebate and the state’s ambitious goals, environmental groups think New Jersey could be a national leader in the industry.
As technology begins replacing simple tasks like check-out and stocking, stores are now finding new ways to occupy their employees’ time. Mostly, employees are stepping in where robots can’t: high-touch human interaction.
State CIO explains that the “pretty substantial increases” are due to the expansion of technology into everything from watches to toothbrushes. The state has increased its cybersecurity team by 80% to bolster defenses.
Political attention this year will largely be focused on the presidential race, but at the start of a redistricting cycle both parties are pledging to spend record amounts on state elections.
Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez said regarding facial recognition’s quick spread and advancement without regulation. The New Yorker argued that while many people use facial recognition to“put on a cute filter and have puppy dog ears,” they don’t realize that “that data’s being collected by a corporation or state.” (Business Insider — January 16, 2020)
The number of customers that would be impacted by a T-mobile and Sprint merger. Several states oppose the deal because it would increase prices for customers and decrease competition in the telephone market as it “would leave the United States with three major phone carriers instead of four.” A U.S. District Court judge heard closing arguments on Wednesday, and will make his ruling “as promptly as possible.”
City officials are optimistic that implementing an app for the annual homeless count will yield more accurate results. Drones will be sent out before the volunteers to find encampments to make the process more efficient.
As more people use their phones as a primary Internet source, Mozilla is getting squeezed out as Apple and Google devices favor their pre-installed browsers. Mozilla has to “do things differently, including allocating resources” toward future-leaning tech.
The bill is intended to create incentives for electric and plug-in vehicles, but bills like this have failed before and lawmakers are split on the issue. This would be more than just passing legislation, “People are going to have to think differently.”
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