Technology

Massachusetts has a huge waitlist for state-funded housing. So why are 2,300 units vacant?

One cause of the vacancies is the online waitlist system the state rolled out four years ago.

  • By Todd Wallack and Christine Willmsen, ProPublica

New voter roll system unveiled after ERIC withdrawal

Alabama debuted a new system to manage the state’s registered voter rolls, completing a goal to replace the Electronic Registration Information Center system. Observers said the state seemed to simply be creating a newer version of the system it left behind.

  • By Ralph Chapoco, Alabama Reflector

Why humans can’t trust AI: You don’t know how it works, what it’s going to do or whether it’ll serve your interests

COMMENTARY | People can trust each other because they understand how the human mind works, can predict people’s behavior and assume that most people have a moral sense. None of these things are true of AI.

  • By Mark Bailey, The Conversation

How improvements in onboarding can lower employee turnover

One of the greatest challenges confronting state and local governments is a badly understaffed workforce. Here’s one technological and personal way to confront that problem.

  • By Katherine Barrett & Richard Greene

States put up their own money to attract chips manufacturing

One year after the CHIPS act became law, states are bolstering federal funding with their own investments in semiconductor research and development.

  • By Kery Murakami

Geospatial tech can help cities get ahead of real estate speculators

With insights from property analytics, cities can craft better policies to ensure an adequate supply of affordable housing for local residents.

  • By Molly Bolan

Feds open new round in $500M grant program for transportation tech

The second year of SMART grants will award another $100 million to state, local and tribal governments for safe, equitable and sustainable transportation solutions.

  • By Elizabeth Daigneau

An underused approach to fighting cyberattacks

The Multi-State Information Sharing and Analysis Center offers free services to help localities with cybersecurity. Why aren’t more governments using them?

  • By Katherine Barrett & Richard Greene

Watch out Zillow: States launch affordable-housing search sites

Rhode Island is the one of the latest states to announce a targeted housing database designed to connect families to low- and moderate-income units.

  • By Molly Bolan

Flood management gets a boost from drones

As major flooding events are expected to become more common, drones could help communities keep resilience up and damage down.

  • By Kaitlyn Levinson

Why am I stuck in traffic? A Tennessee project could provide answers

Vanderbilt University researchers hope that a first-of-its-kind project in the Nashville area will help them better understand, among other things, why phantom traffic jams occur and how to prevent them.

  • By Daniel C. Vock

Child welfare staffing crisis can only be solved by addressing capacity issues first

COMMENTARY | We need creative solutions to provide enough capacity for caseworkers to complete their work in an effective, timely and efficient way.

  • By Kelly Harder
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How smart software powers water conservation

COMMENTARY | Communities can optimize water usage, minimize waste and promote sustainable practices.

  • By Alexey Istomin

Governor calls for more speed cameras to curb deadly traffic crashes

After 251 people died last year in wrecks involving a speeding driver, Washington Gov. Jay Inslee is deploying speed cameras to slow drivers down. "We can’t allow this carnage to continue," he said.

  • By Jerry Cornfield, Washington State Standard

States scramble for solutions to curb rising wrong-way crashes

All over the country, states are looking for ways to reverse the trend, often relying on new technology to do so.

  • By Daniel C. Vock

Don’t fear AI, but prepare for its wider use

Governments should help build a talent pipeline for artificial intelligence jobs, one expert advises.

  • By Chris Teale

What happened to the Idaho Health Data Exchange, and can other states learn from it?

The exchange ran into financial troubles after its leadership made funding deals that fell through, leading to a bitter feud over a contract.

  • By Audrey Dutton, Idaho Capital Sun

US agencies buy vast quantities of personal information on the open market

COMMENTARY | The government faces legal restrictions on how much personal information it can gather on citizens, but the law is largely silent on agencies purchasing the data from commercial brokers.

  • By Anne Toomey McKenna, The Conversation

Digital literacy, not bans, should shape states' approach to social media

Protecting children from harmful content is important, but states should help young people understand the platforms’ risks and make informed decisions about what to view, experts say.

  • By Chris Teale

Outdated flood data could drown out actual infrastructure needs

Historical data fails to capture current flooding conditions, which could steer communities in the wrong direction when trying to plan and recover from weather events.

  • By Kaitlyn Levinson

Is government culture stifling customer experience innovation?

Risk aversion among government managers is blocking needed improvements to key programs, according to a recent white paper.

  • By Natalie Alms