State loses $5.6M in federal funding to expand digital access, help with unemployment insurance
The Trump administration recently terminated more than $5 million promised to South Dakota for expanded access to digital technology.
New BEAD guidance leaves states searching for answers
Federal guidance issued last week has thrown much of the program into doubt, as states and other organizations try to find a way forward under a compressed timeline.
Senate reconciliation bill text tweaks state AI regulation ban
The Senate Commerce Committee would block some funding from states that want to regulate the technology. Meanwhile, a bipartisan group of lawmakers have said any moratorium should be dropped altogether.
Feds unveil ‘critical reforms’ to BEAD program
The $42.5 billion program to expand broadband will now be technology-neutral, rather than prefer fiber. Various workforce, climate and environment rules have also been relaxed.
Hunt for clarity on BEAD’s future goes on
With little word on the status of the Commerce Department’s review of the $42 billion broadband program, Senate Democrats and some industry groups have looked to up the pressure.
Missouri will hand over personal data of food aid recipients to feds
Missouri has agreed to abide by a request from the federal government to turn over personal data about anyone receiving food assistance, the state social services agency confirmed to The Independent Tuesday.
House-passed budget bill includes state AI moratorium
Lawmakers passed the package under reconciliation just before Memorial Day, with the 10-year ban on state AI regulation intact. Its future remains uncertain in the Senate.
Feds cancel unemployment modernization grants for states
The grant dollars — which the Department of Labor has been doling out since Congress allocated funding for fraud and access work in 2021 — don’t align with department priorities anymore, the agency says.
Proposed moratorium on state-level AI regs aims to level the playing field, lawmaker says
Georgia Rep. Rich McCormick, a GOP member of last Congress’ House AI Task Force, spoke on Wednesday night about the need to avoid a jumble of different rules of the road for AI developers.
New Mexico AG opposes U.S. House GOP efforts to restrict state laws on AI
As U.S. House Republicans seek to ban states from passing laws to regulate AI, state AGs, including in New Mexico, push back.
House budget bill would put 10-year pause on state AI regulation
The bill before the House Energy and Commerce Committee under the budget reconciliation process would prevent states from enforcing “any law or regulation” for AI models. It may run afoul of Senate rules.
BEAD uncertainty swirls, joined by Trump’s threats to the Digital Equity Act
State leaders want more guidance from the federal government amid a 90-day delay in their final plans. President Donald Trump, meanwhile, said he will kill a related digital equity program.
Doing less with less: Coping with federal cutbacks and fiscal uncertainty
COMMENTARY | Shrinking revenues and rising costs put state and local governments in a bind, especially as the federal government retreats. Strategic austerity might be the path forward.
Companies announce billions in investments to support emerging tech
The new corporate investments pledged to U.S. manufacturing aim to support the country’s growing artificial intelligence innovation ecosystem, among others.
Cyber info-sharing looks to ‘weather this storm’ of lost federal funding
The Multi-State Information Sharing and Analysis Center faces an uncertain future amid cuts in its federal funding. But for now, those involved pledged to keep the work going.
A lagging broadband program faces more delays as Trump plans changes
States will have an additional 90 days to submit their final plans for the Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment Program.
Ending Direct File could have downstream impacts for states, experts worry
Without the free, government-backed tax filing service, state agencies could see their modernization and efficiency gains unraveled, those experts say.
Trump is shifting cybersecurity to the states, but many aren’t prepared
Only 22 of 48 states in a Nationwide Cybersecurity Review met recommended security levels.
How cyber vulnerabilities and workforce cuts threaten the crisis lifeline program
A bipartisan, bicameral measure is hoping to prevent cyber incidents from limiting access to the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline after a 2022 attack on a system operator disrupted calls to the hotline.
Cyber insecurity: Shields down?
COMMENTARY | Federal funding cuts and the end of the cyber grant program, combined with growing threats from nation-states, has made our cybersecurity posture weaker.
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