Commentaries

Commentaries are contributed, non-commercial and educational articles that subject matter experts write for American City & County. If you would like to submit an exclusive commentary, click here to view our guidelines.

Highlights

The new public safety workplace: Designed for officer wellness

It’s a shocking reality that, according to statistics from the Ruderman Family Foundation...

Bridging America’s infrastructure gap

Jill Jamieson, managing director of commercial real estate firm Jones Lang LaSalle explains...

The rise of automatic license plate recognition

Automatic license plate recognition (LPR) technology is becoming popular because it...

Protecting your state and local government against ransomware attacks

Security researchers have repeatedly warned the public sector about their data vulnerabilities. Yet they continue to get hammered by cyberattacks launched by hackers demanding ransom for their hijacked systems. A few recent attacks making headlines: Lake City, Fla., a community of about 12,000 people, paid roughly $462,000 in bitcoins following a ransomware attack. This follows […]

Commentary

Three ways to protect your city government from a ransomware attack

A ransomware attack on the city of Baltimore took place on May 7, 2019, and left citizens unable to pay parking fines and some tax and utility bills online. In its aftermath, city government employees are struggling to provide citizens with even the most basic of digital public services. City officials depend on IT systems […]

Commentary

Using technology to create a space for better benefit program delivery

In a time where ‘instant’ is the norm, there is tremendous opportunity to improve the speed and efficiency of benefits programs. In fact, a recent survey conducted by Equifax found that 50% of benefit administrators say streamlining internal processes and efficiencies is a top priority for their departments. Similarly, 63% of local government agencies would […]

How do you reach the next generation? Through their phones, of course

Smart Cities Council Global Managing Editor Kevin Ebi explains the importance of engaging Generation Z through their smartphones.

Commentary

5 steps to protect municipal IT systems from a cyberattack

Municipalities continue to be prime targets for cybercriminals. Unfortunately, many cities and county governments are just one click away from a ransomware infection. If not caught quickly, the loss of encrypted files can grind everyday constituent services to a halt and erode public trust. Remediation, as municipalities such as Baltimore are finding, is often an […]

Commentary

How young graduates are helping local governments build climate resilience

It’s a hopeful, if anxious, time for many recent college graduates. In addition to worries about jobs and loan payments, today’s graduates face a challenge unknown to generations before them: the possibility of catastrophic climate change. The forecasts are increasingly dire. A recent UN report says we have little more than a decade to head […]

Commentary

Smarter salt spreading technologies balance environment concerns and safer roads

Our nation’s increasingly harsh winters demand an effective and affordable means of de-icing roadways in order to help us get around safely. To date, the most viable solution continues to be sodium chloride (road salt). The problem is that these chemicals make their way into the environment through runoff from rain, melting snow and ice, […]

Commentary

How local governments can harness AI

On February 11, 2019, President Trump issued an Executive Order on Maintaining American Leadership in Artificial Intelligence (AI), placing AI front-and-center of government IT priorities. But while much attention is placed on national AI strategy and adoption, state and local governments would also do well to consider how the technology can help deliver value to […]

Commentary

How to best manage resources and road networks

Many of our public agencies suffering from the same, chronic infrastructure problem: Rapidly deteriorating roadways, due to irresponsible management of limited maintenance budgets. However, public agencies can capitalize on best practices and create a data-driven approach to restore America’s failing local infrastructure once and for all. The first step involves changing mindset. Many agencies still […]

Commentaries

Commentaries are contributed, non-commercial and educational articles that subject matter experts write for American City & County. If you would like to submit an exclusive commentary, click here to view our guidelines.

Highlights

The new public safety workplace: Designed for officer wellness

Bridging America’s infrastructure gap

The rise of automatic license plate recognition

Protecting your state and local government against ransomware attacks

Commentary

Three ways to protect your city government from a ransomware attack

Commentary

Using technology to create a space for better benefit program delivery

Sponsored

How do you reach the next generation? Through their phones, of course

Commentary

5 steps to protect municipal IT systems from a cyberattack

Commentary

How young graduates are helping local governments build climate resilience

Commentary

Smarter salt spreading technologies balance environment concerns and safer roads

Commentary

How local governments can harness AI

Commentary

How to best manage resources and road networks

Sponsored

5 ideas from Silicon Valley on making your city more innovative

White Papers

Communicating in Crisis – How Preparedness Leads to Successful Crisis Management

How can I control and reduce the costs of my recycling program?

A retiree health care solution for today’s economy

Events

ICMA Annual Conference 2019

NLC City Summit 2019

Twitter

Shots have been fired from #SanFrancisco at the #NRA buff.ly/34yXIhI https://t.co/Ueptp0zC4V

A #workforce with high #education levels can yield multiple #economic and #financial benefits, but not every #city… twitter.com/i/web/status/1…

This #WhitePaper from @OnSolve details the best practices and information you need to know to make a successful… twitter.com/i/web/status/1…

The #Chicago government has imposed a hiring freeze as it faces a major shortfall in its #budget… twitter.com/i/web/status/1…

Former @maricopacounty #Sheriff @RealSheriffJoe who was known for his harsh #TentCity jails and later received a pa… twitter.com/i/web/status/1…

Download this #WhitePaper to take a fresh look at the costs of #recycling from the perspective of a… twitter.com/i/web/status/1…

The #FBI and state agencies in #Texas are investigating a coordinated #ransomware attack that struck 23 small citie… twitter.com/i/web/status/1…

From @ontariosystems' Jeremy Rust: " #Courts must consider implementing new #technology that will allow for more ef… twitter.com/i/web/status/1…