Links to selected items focusing on governmental operations posted on the Internet during the week ending November 23, 2024

4 Ways to Get Ready for AI in Transportation Based on meetings that involved public sector transportation leaders, this thought leadership paper covers the steps transportation agencies need to take in four areas: data, workforce, cybersecurity and collaboration. DOWNLOAD

5 Pillars that Support Upward Mobility Discover how housing, education, good jobs, health, and governance create the foundation for economic success, dignity and belonging, and power and autonomy for all. LEARN MORE

6 Great Use Cases for Public Sector GenAI Generative AI can help state and local government agencies simplify complex processes, elevate constituent experiences and secure sensitive data. Here are six ways your agency may be able to benefit from GenAI. DOWNLOAD

79 Communities Challenge Michigan Solar, Wind Farm Permit Rules Municipalities across the state have challenged the legality of the state’s processing of permitting requests for large-scale solar and wind energy facilities. The controversial law passed last year and diminishes local control. READ MORE

After Democratic Wins, N.C. GOP Rushes to Grab Power A proposed bill claims to provide disaster relief to those suffering the impacts of Hurricane Helene but in actuality focuses on obstructing power from the newly elected Democratic governor, attorney general and state schools superintendent. READ MORE

 Ahead of the L.A. Olympics, Officials Focus On Lone Drivers State and local transportation leaders discussed ideas intended to coax motorists away from driving alone at the CoMotion LA conference. The 2028 Summer Olympic Games in Los Angeles are looming as tech and policy options develop. READ MORE

AI Search Makes a Quick, Promising Splash in Palm Beach The Florida city’s newest technology is an effort to bring search further in the 21st century via a Polimorphic tool. A city official talks about use cases and lessons learned — experiences that could guide other towns. READ MORE

AI’s effectiveness depends on one critical factor: data quality. This guide covers how government agencies can modernize tech stacks, improve data accessibility, and clean data to unlock AI's potential and deliver smarter, more efficient services to constituents. DOWNLOAD

As Its CIO Prepares to Retire, Honolulu Selects a Successor Honolulu's new CIO and director of the Department of Information Technology will officially step in, in January. However, the transition is expected to get underway next month, affording an interval of collaboration. READ MORE

California Rent Control Rejection May Reflect Larger Desire for Change More than half of California renters spend at least 30 percent of their income on housing, making it the fifth-highest rate in the country. But a measure that would have lifted restrictions on local rent control failed this month by 22 points. READ MORE

California Schools Will Now Teach About Mistreatment of Native Americans A new state law will require public schools to incorporate Native American mistreatment into the Spanish Colonization and California Gold Rush curricula. The state Department of Education will consult with local tribes to make the updates. READ MORE

California’s Envision 2026 to Operationalize Best Practices The new three-year technology road map will serve state government as a whole. It builds on the work of a previous plan, Vision 2023, said state CIO Liana Bailey-Crimmins, director of the California Department of Technology. READ MORE

CDC Presents a Five-Year Plan for Rural Health Care Outlining rural health issues and priorities is the latest step in combating rural health disparities, according to leaders at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. READ MORE

Championing Economic Mobility Through Education and Innovation The Gates Foundation’s Allan Golston outlines a vision for equitable opportunities and the future of the American dream. READ MORE

Chief Data Officers Call for Governmentwide AI Strategy A new survey of federal chief data officers conducted by the Data Foundation and Deloitte reveals the need for more governmentwide clarity and guidance in the face of rapid artificial intelligence growth. READ MORE

Chief Data Officers Call for Governmentwide AI Strategy A new survey of federal chief data officers conducted by the Data Foundation and Deloitte reveals the need for more governmentwide clarity and guidance in the face of rapid artificial intelligence growth. READ MORE

CISA Director Jen Easterly, in Place Since 2021, to Step Down Easterly was unanimously confirmed by the U.S. Senate to lead the agency. The precise timing of her departure is unclear, but is expected to take place in advance of the incoming President-elect Donald J. Trump administration. READ MORE

Cloud-Smart Strategies for IT Infrastructure Modernization To improve cybersecurity, meet residents' evolving expectations, and alleviate workforce pressures, local governments must have modern, efficient systems. This thought leadership shares the steps that agencies need to take to guide their modernization efforts and simply cloud adoption. DOWNLOAD

Colorado Digital Service Team Implements Strategic Plan The state announced its multiyear Colorado Digital Government Strategic Plan in 2022. Leaders continue bringing it to life, engaging residents and focusing on three key initiatives to offer a simple, secure, fast experience. READ MORE

Cybersecurity and Change: Trump’s Second-Term Plans for Homeland Security What changes will President-elect Donald J. Trump implement in his second term regarding homeland security, technology, cybersecurity and more? Let’s explore. READ MORE

DHS Issues Guidance on Adopting AI in Critical Infrastructure A new series of recommendations from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security is designed to enable cloud providers, AI developers, public-sector entities and others to integrate AI while balancing risk and opportunity. READ MORE

Driving Change Through Authentic Community Engagement Author Fern Tiger discusses how genuinely connecting with communities before launching projects can drive progress by ensuring feedback is more than surface-level. Tailoring engagement can shape more accurate policies. READ MORE

Drone Cops: The Future of Policing American Cities? A Government Technology data analysis of the Chula Vista, Calif., police department’s six-year groundbreaking drone-as-first-responder program reveals impacts on response times, officer safety and citizen privacy. READ MORE

Election Shouldn’t Impact Pennsylvania to N.Y. Passenger Rail Officials hope the effort to restore passenger rail service between Scranton and New York City will be unaffected by federal leadership changes. A 2023 study estimated the line would generate $84 million in new economic activity annually. READ MORE

From Cybersecurity to Smart Tech: Insights for Event-Ready Cities This paper offers insights from host cities, with strategies any local government can adopt to enhance event security and streamline planning. DOWNLOAD

Get AI-Ready: How Governments Can Build a Strong Data Foundation AI’s effectiveness depends on one critical factor: data quality. This guide covers how government agencies can modernize tech stacks, improve data accessibility, and clean data to unlock AI's potential and deliver smarter, more efficient services to constituents. DOWNLOAD

Greg Abbott Wants Texas to Be No. 1 in Advanced Nuclear Power The governor’s office has proposed creating a Texas Nuclear Power Fund to incentivize nuclear growth as well as passing pro-nuclear legislation, creating a university research network and bolstering the nuclear supply chain. READ MORE

Help Communities Become Hubs of Economic Opportunity Opportunity-rich and inclusive communities are central to supporting families’ stability, access to social and economic opportunities, and children's chances to succeed. LEARN HOW 

How Arizona Police Use ‘Smart Transcription’ to Fight Crime As real-time crime centers gain popularity, police are turning to the latest tools to catch criminal suspects more quickly than before. Glendale, Ariz., offers a glimpse of what’s to come for more departments. READ MORE

How Can Cities Keep Nonprofit Groups Cyber Secure? A new study of San Francisco considers nonprofits’ unique cybersecurity challenges in that community as well as ways the local government could help. The research team hopes to study other cities soon. READ MORE

How Local Officials Can Help Residents Cope During Tough Times Mayors and other local leaders have an important role to play in the psychological well-being of their constituents, protecting them from harmful policies and helping them handle new uncertainties. READ MORE

How Much Do Hurricanes Cost Florida Businesses? Weeks after hurricanes Milton and Helene, businesses across the state are still feeling the financial impacts of the disasters. As of Nov. 1, storm damage had forced about 2,300 people across two counties out of work temporarily. READ MORE

How Nevada’s Second-Biggest City Measures Resident Satisfaction Henderson City Manager Richard Derrick has focused on improving city services in Nevada’s second-largest city. Community surveys suggest residents are reaping the benefits. READ MORE

How to Implement AI in State and Local Government Artificial intelligence (AI) holds limitless potential for agencies when it comes to enhancing operations, managing data and improving constituent experiences, but many governments don't know where to start. This issue brief explains how agencies can start using AI, why the cloud is important, and what needs to be done around data governance. DOWNLOAD 

If Trump Dismantles the Education Department, He’ll Regret It The view of the federal department as a source of malign leftist influence is backwards. Good ideas are out there, and there needs to be a central authority to disseminate best practices and insist on results, argues Matthew Yglesias. READ MORE

Implications for Public Finance in a Trump II Era His second presidency could recolor the landscape for federal spending, with ramifications for states, local governments, schools and public pensions. Governors and mayors will need to try to discern where the political wind is blowing — and what to watch out for. READ MORE

Investors Bet $3M on Procurement Startup Civic Marketplace The young company, which wants to make procurement easier for local governments, has its eyes set on geographic expansion and product development. The funding arrives as procurement offices face staffing challenges. READ MORE

Little Tech Can Have Huge Impact for State and Local Govt Small technology companies focused on specific sectors or niche markets have more to offer than meets the eye. They can help solve problems that might be too narrow for big tech to take on. READ MORE

Local Governments Work With Google.org to Design Digital Tools City and county officials discussed partnering with community organizations and technologists from Google.org on digital tools to resolve neighborhood issues, during a “Demo Day” webinar hosted by The Opportunity Project for Cities. READ MORE

Louisiana Is Making It Easier to Get a Job Without a Four-Year Degree There are an estimated 1 million people in Louisiana that have the skills and experience to qualify for higher wage jobs, but are being restricted due to not having a college degree. But the state is working to eliminate unnecessary degree requirements. READ MORE

Maine Must Address Struggling Youth and High Cost of Living The state’s 30th annual Measures of Growth Report found that Maine was performing well in environmental stewardship, Internet connectivity and transportation infrastructure, but needed to improve other areas to boost its economy. READ MORE

Maryland Leads States in Reducing Emissions In Maryland and several other states, many of the reductions have come thanks to the retirement of coal-fired power plants. READ MORE 

Michigan Approves Tax Breaks for Hyperscale Data Centers Michigan lawmakers have approved a bill that exempts data centers which make at least $250 million in capital investment from sales and uses taxes on equipment through at least 2050. READ MORE 

Minnesota Job Market Loses Steam, Residents Worry Over the Economy Seasonal retail and health-care hires did not offset the loss of jobs in the professional services and construction sectors in October, resulting in a net loss of 1,000 jobs in Minnesota. READ MORE

Mississippi State to Teach Students to Build, Train AI Systems A $1.2 million National Science Foundation grant will help train a cohort of 60 Mississippi State University students to develop artificial intelligence systems capable of analyzing digital images. READ MORE

N.H. County Underway on $17M Middle-Mile Broadband Build The state's second-largest county by land area is working with eX² Technology to stand up a 200-mile fiber-optic network, bringing high-speed Internet to more than 20 cities and at least one higher education institution. READ MORE

NASCIO Highlights Cyber Training Need for Locals, Underserved The work of state-level CISOs is expanding to help serve the cyber needs of small municipalities and vulnerable groups, a NASCIO report affirms. Whole-of-state cybersecurity and grants are helping drive the endeavor. READ MORE

Navigating the CJIS Security Policy Changes The new document addresses evolving concerns in areas such as incident response, cloud security and multifactor authentication. DOWNLOAD

Nearly Half of L.A.’s Homelessness Funds Went Unused Only $599 million of the record $1.3 billion homelessness budget last year was actually spent. City Controller Kenneth Mejia blamed “a sluggish, inefficient approach” for the underspending. READ MORE

Nebraska Innovates IT Through Reorganization, Modernization State CIO Matthew McCarville said he believes the state’s information technology reorganization and modernization efforts have laid the foundation for innovation, capacity building and cost savings. READ MORE

Nebraska’s New Sick Leave Bill Worries Businesses The new law will guarantee small business employees 40 hours of paid sick leave and 56 hours per year for people working at businesses with more than 20 employees. But business owners are concerned about the financial burden of the new rule. READ MORE

Partnerships Helped Secure Election Day Against New Threats Election officials and law enforcement worked together to fend off Election Day threats, with a new tactic emerging: hoax bomb threats made against polling sites with the aim to disrupt voting. READ MORE

Report: Computer Lapse Leaves Millions of Veterans’ Info Unguarded A Veterans Affairs office in Atlanta that determines health-care coverage for veterans failed to encrypt the records of more than 3 million people and ran outdated computer programs, according to an audit. READ MORE

Resource Explores Local Government AI Use, Offers Advice The National League of Cities released a report this week outlining strategic ways municipalities are using artificial intelligence to better serve constituents. An accompanying toolkit aims to facilitate analysis. READ MORE

Spatial Infrastructure: How GIS Data Can Transform Government Operations Embracing spatial infrastructure can help state and local governments by enhancing GIS data integration with everyday technologies and systems. This paper explains spatial infrastructure and explores use cases where it can improve government operations. DOWNLOAD

Stadiums, Nightlife and Taylor Swift: Cities and States Are Banking on Busy Weekends New consumer spending patterns fuel investment in entertainment venues. READ MORE

States Spend Billions on Transportation Projects. Are They Meeting Their Goals? A new report from Brookings shows how state departments of transportation have a free hand to spend on highway projects, but don’t keep good track of progress toward specific goals. READ MORE

Technology Helps Fill Gaps Amid Public Safety Staffing Shortages New emergency dispatch tools that offer automated services are more important than ever amid staffing shortages in law enforcement and emergency call centers. READ MORE

Texas Is Among Few States Experiencing a Surge in Energy Demand The increase of energy demand across the country is growing to rates that haven’t been seen since the end of World War II. READ MORE 

The Case for Cooperative Procurement Arizona's Cooperative Purchasing Program serves more than 1,000 agencies and nonprofits across the U.S. This paper explains how the state used a "source to pay" model to drive value, boost efficiency and grow its supplier base. DOWNLOAD

The Four Key Components of Successful Digital Transformation for Government This guide details four essential components for achieving successful digital transformation in Government: harnessing the power of SaaS and PaaS platforms, enabling data-driven decisions, improving access to comprehensive data, and fostering secure collaboration. DOWNLOAD

The Impact of Artificial Intelligence on the 2024 Election Experts at a Congressional Internet Caucus Academy briefing this week explored the role artificial intelligence played in the 2024 election, and the ways policy helped to reduce its negative impacts. READ MORE

The Peril — and Promise — of AI in Criminal Justice Innovation must come with transparency, safeguards and human oversight. We need to deploy the technology in ways that enhance rather than erode public confidence in the justice system. READ MORE

Three Steps for Getting Started with AI Chatbots This thought leadership paper details three steps your agency can take to kickstart an AI chatbot program. Real-world government examples show how AI chatbots can transform service delivery for constituents and improve efficiency for public sector employees. DOWNLOAD

Unauthorized Network Activity Downs Wash. Courts System The Washington state courts network remains offline more than a week after officials found “unauthorized activity.” The administrative courts office took it down Nov. 4 “out of an abundance of caution” and leaders are hopeful it can be restored next week. READ MORE

Unlocking Agility and Innovation with Modernization As agencies face stricter regulations and increasing demands for better services, updating their technology is crucial. By leveraging tools like artificial intelligence (AI), data analytics and cloud computing, organizations can transform legacy systems and build a foundation for future growth and public trust. Learn more about the benefits of modernizing by downloading the full publication. DOWNLOAD

USDA Invests in AI, Funding a Pilot Program for Michigan The U.S. Department of Agriculture is funding a pilot program in Michigan with tech startup Syncurrent. The project will provide six rural communities with AI-powered tools to secure critical grant funding. READ MORE

Using a Sandbox to Explore Generative AI Creating a "sandbox" environment allows an agency to explore GenAI technology before broad rollout internally and to the public. The sandbox helps IT learn about appropriate uses and identify needed security controls and business policies. It can also support efforts to consolidate siloed data on a unified platform -- a key factor for AI to generate accurate content and search results. DOWNLOAD

Using AI to Transform Emergency Management — ICYMI Ladris CEO Leo Zlimen outlines how artificial intelligence can help government agencies and communities prepare for disasters, refine emergency response plans, mitigate risks and speed up the recovery process. READ MORE

Using HHS Data and Best Practices to Change Lives This thought leadership paper covers three major best practices, along with corresponding real-world examples, around how to use data more effectively for health and human services programs. The paper also explains the value of cloud-based tools for data transformation. DOWNLOAD

Washington Election Turnout Drops, Especially Among Young Voters Participation for Washingtonians 18-24 dropped 8.5 points from the 2020 election, but improved compared to 2016. READ MORE

What’s New in Digital Equity: All BEAD Proposals Approved Plus, the industry reacts to a new Federal Communications Commission chairperson, a North Carolina partnership with 211 aims to connect people to information in an emergency, and more. READ MORE

What’s the Future of Ranked Choice Voting After Tough Election Setbacks? Voters in five states rejected the voting system, while D.C. voters approved it. READ MORE

Why School Police May Not Be the Most Effective Way to Prevent Violence Properly trained and integrated into the school leadership team, they can be helpful in some ways, but they cannot fix societal problems and their presence can make students feel less safe. READ MORE

Why the NYC Tech Office Chose Cloud Modernization The New York City Office of Technology and Innovation (OTI) faced significant challenges with legacy applications, which struggled to meet constituent needs, posed security risks, and experienced frequent outages. To address these issues, OTI partnered with technology providers to migrate nearly 30 applications to the cloud. This case study details how OTI strategically handled its application modernization journey and shares critical lessons learned for other agencies. DOWNLOAD

With Connectivity as Its Goal, BEAD May Be Tech-Agnostic The North Star for the federal Broadband Equity, Access and Deployment program is comprehensive connectivity for all homes and businesses, officials said at the Connecting Communities Summit. That could come through fiber or fixed wireless. READ MORE

Workforce Development, Tech Investment Prepare IT Orgs for the Future In addition to upskilling and transforming their workforce, IT leaders in government are investing in enterprise technology that can scale for the future. READ MORE

State Comptroller DiNapoli and Uster County Executive Metzger report no evidence of any crimes having been committed by former Ulster County Commissioner of Finance Burton Gulnick Jr. in performing his official duties

On November 22, 2024, State Comptroller DiNapoli and Uster County Executive Metzger announced that there is no evidence of any crimes having been committed by former Ulster County Commissioner of Finance Burton Gulnick Jr.

A forensic examination and investigation of former Commissioner of Finance Burton Gulnick Jr. found no evidence of any crimes committed by Gulnick while he served in his government role, but did find weaknesses in county procedures that could leave it vulnerable to fraud, State Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli said.

“A thorough investigation by my office found no evidence that the former Commissioner committed fraud in his public position,” DiNapoli said. “Despite this, we have made several recommendations to Ulster County officials to strengthen financial practices and guard against potential fraud in the future. I thank County Executive Jen Metzger for referring this matter to my office and assuring the county’s full cooperation in this examination. I also thank County Comptroller March Gallagher, District Attorney Emmanuel Nneji, and the New York State Police for their work and assistance throughout our inquiry.”

“It was pretty shocking to learn less than three months after coming into office that the County's long-time top finance official was accused of pilfering funds from another organization, and I was very worried that he could have exploited his County position to steal from taxpayers," said Ulster County Executive Jen Metzger. "It comes as a great relief that the State Comptroller's Office found no evidence of fraud after an exhaustive 19-month investigation, and the comprehensiveness of the probe gives us great confidence in the findings. I thank Comptroller Tom DiNapoli and his team for their assistance in helping us to bring closure to this chapter and I will continue to do everything in my power to ensure the highest level of fiscal responsibility in Ulster County government.”

“I truly appreciate New York State Comptroller DiNapoli and his investigative team for reviewing Ulster County finances considering the criminal actions by our former Commissioner of Finance at other organizations,” said Ulster County Comptroller March Gallagher. “From the day I took office, former Commissioner of Finance Gulnick routinely resisted my information and access requests. I look forward to working with the Executive and Legislature to address the State Comptroller’s internal controls recommendations, particularly in the areas of cash collection and recording.”

In February 2024, Gulnick was sentenced to two years in jail after pleading guilty to stealing over  $100,000 total from local not-for-profit, Hurley Recreational Association, and from former County Executive Michael Hein’s campaign account. Gulnick had been removed from his position with the Association in February 2023 after the New York State Police opened an investigation into discrepancies in the Association’s finances. Unrelated to his positions with the Association or the campaign, at the time of his crimes Gulnick served as Ulster County’s Commissioner of Finance.  

After his crimes became known, Gulnick chose to resign rather than be placed on leave. In light of the allegations and Gulnick’s position in the county, County Executive Metzger requested DiNapoli’s office investigate Gulnick’s activities in his role at the county to determine if he had engaged in fraud against the public.

County officials initially raised the following concerns for review: potential time theft by one of Gulnick’s employees and concerns regarding a $120,000 payout from the county to Gulnick for unused accruals upon his separation from employment; potential theft from estate/trust accounts administered by the county; potential conflicts related to vendors hired in relation to estates administered by the county; and possible theft of cash collections from departmental revenues, including potential theft associated with real property tax collections.

These allegations, as well as various others which arose during the course of the examination, were fully investigated and no evidence was provided or uncovered to support the allegations of fraud. 

DiNapoli’s office reviewed and analyzed thousands of records, including an in-depth examination of county financial and bank records, estate files, Surrogate’s Court records, payroll records, and other pertinent documents. Additionally, investigators conducted dozens of interviews with relevant county officials and employees.

While no evidence of fraud was discovered, DiNapoli’s investigators found areas where the county could improve its policies and procedures to strengthen controls and safeguard county assets. 

DiNapoli recommended Ulster County:

• Ensure all supervisory adjustments or entries to employee timesheets and/or hours worked be adequately supported with appropriate documentation indicating the reason for the adjustment, entry, or modification;
• Review and revise the Personnel Policy Manual section related to management accruals and payout calculations to ensure equal application of the policy throughout the county;
• Develop policies and procedures over the administration of estates. This should include recordkeeping and reporting requirements, disclosure of conflicts, and vendor procurement for the estates;
• Ensure an estate file with sufficient supporting documentation is maintained for each estate administered by the county, and disbursements from each estate, as well as commission revenues, if applicable, are properly reflected in the county’s financial accounting system;
• Review the policies and procedures for the collection of parking fees at the county parking lot to maximize revenue and safeguard cash; and
• Ensure segregation of duties for all points of cash collection and reporting, including parking lot and real property installment payments.

In response, County Executive Metzger thanked the Comptroller’s office for its comprehensive investigation and agreed with the Comptroller’s findings and recommendations. Specifically, Metzger advised that in response to the recommendations:

• All supervisory employees were notified that they must enter a justification in the “notes” field for all manual time punches. Ulster County Information Services is working to implement software updates to the county’s timekeeping system so that the “justification” field must be filled out when supervisory adjustments are made to employee timesheets.
• The personnel director, with input from the county comptroller, will issue guidance to clarify payout calculation procedures and ensure a uniform application of those procedures across all county departments.
• The commissioner of finance will develop written, standardized policies and procedures for the administration of estates.
• The county will ensure all estates files contain sufficient supporting documentation, and all commission revenues are properly reflected in the county’s financial system.
• The county will review its policies and procedures for the collection of parking fees at the County Office Building.
• The county will ensure segregation of duties for all points of cash collection and reporting with regard to parking lot fees and real property installment payments.

Since taking office in 2007, DiNapoli has committed to fighting public corruption and encourages the public to help fight fraud and abuse. New Yorkers can report allegations of fraud involving taxpayer money by calling the toll-free Fraud Hotline at 1-888-672-4555, by filing a complaint online at investigations@osc.ny.gov or by mailing a complaint to: Office of the State Comptroller, Division of Investigations, 8th Floor, 110 State St., Albany, NY 12236.