Ideas
Learning from New Jersey: Why Government Organizations Should Cut Ties with COBOL
COBOL is an aging programming language and its workforce is no different.
Digital Government
$3T COVID relief bill includes tech money and restructures health acquisition
The Health and Economic Recovery Omnibus Emergency Solutions Act, proposed by House Democrats, calls for far more than additional stimulus checks and emergency funding for state and local governments. FCW breaks down the provisions.
Digital Government
Ignoring Trump and Right-Wing Think Tanks, Red States Expand Vote by Mail
The Heritage Foundation and other conservative groups warn, with little evidence, that voting by mail fosters fraud. But some Republican secretaries of state reject those concerns and see no alternative to absentee voting if the pandemic persists.
Policy
Will COVID-19 Disrupt Election Day 2020?
"We have held elections during the Civil War and during World War I despite extreme conditions, so there isn’t any precedent for this," a professor of political science said.
Modernization
Labor Wants Feedback on Checklist for Modernizing State Unemployment Systems
The federal agency seeks input on the mandatory guidance it released to help states prevent service disruptions as they update their technology.
Digital Government
Governors, Mayor Implore Trump Administration Not to Send D.C.-Area Feds Back to the Office Prematurely
Acting too soon would endanger residents, they say.
Digital Government
States Start Hiring Battalions of Contact Tracers to Track Covid-19
As governors look to loosen coronavirus restrictions, a key benchmark will be improving the ability to track and isolate new cases. That will include more “contact tracers,” investigators who track down those who’ve come in contact with infected people.
Digital Government
Need Help With Covid-19 Tech? This Nonprofit Connects Volunteers with Governments
The U.S. Digital Response, a new nonprofit, dispatches tech-sector volunteers to assist governments with coronavirus-related projects.
Ideas
Government Secrecy Is Growing During the Coronavirus Pandemic
Local, state and federal officials throughout the United States have locked down information from the public.
Digital Government
Coronavirus Cases to Jump with Increase in Testing Capacity
Health officials said Monday that as testing shifts from public labs to commercial labs the number of coronavirus cases will increase. The insufficient testing capability has been a major criticism of the disease response.
Cybersecurity
West Virginia Scraps Voatz Mobile Voting App
The West Virginia Secretary of State’s Office announced it would use a different electronic absentee voting technology after researchers raised security concerns with the previous voting app it had used.
Cybersecurity
Some Election-Related Websites Still Run on Vulnerable Software Older Than Many High Schoolers
Our analysis found that websites in dozens of towns and counties voting on Super Tuesday have security weaknesses. Richmond, Va., still uses software from 2003.
Digital Government
Census Advocates Spread the Word on New Online Forms
March letters will kick off the decennial count.
Policy
Taxing Internet Ads Could Raise Lots of Money, but Doubts Persist
Maryland could be the first in the nation to tax online ads.
Cybersecurity
Report Warns of Tech Threats From ‘Other’ Chinese Companies
“The one area that China has been keen to exploit is at the state level because state governments largely are not aware of the threat it poses to them,” Sen. Marco Rubio said at the report’s release.
Digital Government
One-Third of U.S. Residents Suspicious of Census, Survey Finds
As the political stakes become clearer, more states are trying to motivate residents to participate in the census this spring.
Ideas
AI Algorithms Intended to Root Out Welfare Fraud Often End Up Punishing the Poor Instead
These systems must be designed in ways that are fair, transparent and accountable to prevent hurting society’s most vulnerable.
Ideas
How Citizen Scientists Can Help Protect Water Quality
One of the ways to help these groups gather data is to give them better tools and training.
Cybersecurity