News
The amount represents revenue that is unpaid by delinquent businesses, with about $39 million due from out-of-state vendors. More than a dozen companies owe the state more than $1 million.
A global oversupply of natural gas is creating a domino effect that is causing natural gas and coal prices -- and demand for coal -- to plunge, contributing to a $33.26 million state budget shortfall through October.
The bond proposal to fund blight remediation has turned out to be far more controversial than anticipated. Concerns have been raised about mismanagement of the city's demolition operations in recent years.
... But the payment could have been easily avoided “through simple changes to the flight manifest.”
The amount of money that was lost last year due to a cybercrime called Business Email Compromise (BEC), which uses fake, but realistic, emails to trick employees into wiring money into the wrong account. This was three times the amount of money that was stolen through BEC in 2016. But BEC isn’t the only cybercrime on the rise; it was reported by the FBI that Americans lost $362 million in romance and confidence scams last year, an increase of nearly $150 million from the year prior.
Facebook, LinkedIn pages are not automatically taken down or memorialized when a person dies and Southwest miles wait in purgatory. Managing the online assets after someone’s death can sometimes amount to 120 hours of work.
As U.S. immigration policies become more strict, many tech workers are migrating to Canada through the Global Skills Strategy program. The GSS program processes visas more quickly, alleviating anxieties about future residency status.
Maury Regional has an app that allows patients to video chat their physicians for urgent care needs. The average wait time is between 5 and 7 minutes and prescriptions can be sent to a pharmacy of the patient’s choice.
Two recent studies have concluded that drone delivery options could be more environmentally friendly than trucks. But it could be a bumpy flight before we get to the destination.
Lithium ion-powered devices are more sustainable solutions than gas or one-time use batteries, but they need to be non-flammable before they are safe. For now, they are still at risk for igniting and starting fires.
A once-desolate stretch of waterfront has become home to DC Water, a futuristic hub for managing water treatment in the nation’s capital and an architectural symbol of environmental sustainability.
The winners of this year’s Digital Cities Survey from the Center for Digital Government are those making smart investments in technologies from infrastructure and citizen engagement to data storage and cybersecurity.
Claire Wardle, executive director of First Draft, an organization that fights disinformation online, said of YouTube’s and Facebook’s inability to prevent the name of the alleged whistleblower from appearing on their websites. Both companies have said that they would remove content that included the whistleblower’s name because “naming the whistle-blower violated their so-called coordinated harm policies, which prohibit content intended to out a “witness, informant or activist.”” (The New York Times - November 14, 2019)
The amount of money that New Jersey is requiring Uber to pay due to “years of unpaid employment taxes for its drivers.” The total comes partly from an audit that revealed $530 million in unpaid back taxes and an additional $119 million that the state’s Department of Labor and Workforce Development is tacking on in interest.
LAX, undergoing a $14 billion upgrade, requires passengers to navigate its new system, which officials claim is fully accessible for travelers with disabilities. While some parts are mobility savvy, others are still clunky.
“Poor policies and lack of tracking” led to questionable government spending of nearly $2 billion. A fix would require more oversight, staff and technology to ensure taxpayer dollars are well spent.
Four public utility companies proposed plans on how to secure their utility lines and open communications with customers. Utilities want “more-modern equipment, which would benefit customers, going forward.”
Studies have found that technology-assist brake systems work best with adults in the daytime and become extremely unreliable at night. As long as tech continues to distract drivers, we should expect a continued pattern of pedestrian deaths.
Some Michigan officials are asking to open and count absentee ballots before Election Day, but others believe this could lead to greater fraud. Without early voting, sleep deprivation could cause mistakes and slow results.
Blair Milo has accomplished more than most people do in a lifetime. It all stems from her passion for serving others and ensuring their success through creating opportunities.
Sponsored
The 2019 Ideas Challenge identifies innovative public policy that positively impacts local communities.
The proportion of the total Microsoft workforce that are women workers. While the Seattle-based company has been making concerted efforts to improve its gender, racial and pay discrepancies (three years ago Microsoft revealed that women earned 99.7 cents for every $1 that their male counterparts made), Chief Diversity Officer Lindsay-Rae McIntyre thinks the software maker still has work to do: “If you look then at the representation throughout the organization we for sure have more work to do.”
Pope Francis said during a Vatican conference on “Promoting Digital Child Dignity” on Thursday that hosted big tech companies like Apple Inc., Google, Microsoft and Facebook as well as child protection groups and law enforcement and officials. During his speech, Francis urged the tech giants to “assume their responsibilities towards minors, their integrity and their future. There is a need to ensure that investors and managers remain accountable, so that the good of minors and society is not sacrificed to profit.” (Reuters - November 14, 2019)
A California law was designed to ensure that state agencies had websites accessible for people with disabilities. But, pages that weren’t meeting standards are being removed to accommodate short timelines, making the info inaccessible to everyone.
Linear Labs wants to produce electric motors for “everything from scooters to air conditioners.” The company hopes to improve green energy because, “Last time I checked, the world isn’t getting any colder.”
Quincy, Mass., is pondering what Internet would look like as a “fourth utility.” The city-owned utility would be an “opt-in model” with hopes of reducing prices by providing more Internet competition.
Cleveland residents are loving e-scooters, and some are even using them as daily commute vehicles. Officials think the scooters are here to stay, so “We have to ready ourselves for what that reality is.”
The U.S. power grid has become so interwoven with utilities and infrastructure that a power outage or cyberattack can be much more serious than it once was. Securing the power grid is complicated, but should be prioritized.
Hacking isn't the only problem. Misinformation campaigns and the refusal of politicians to admit defeat all serve to undermine voter confidence. Now, states need to anticipate new threats.
What was meant to be a 10-year plan has been extended into a 20 year marathon, as legislators battle over gas tax increases, grapple with varying amounts of federal funding and what projects to fund.
Most Read
