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

Cloud security is key to cybersecurity resilience in state and local governments

The evolution of cloud technologies and the magnitude of what they are enabling in state and...

North Port, Florida utilities department depends on SCADA and remote alarm notification

Located on the Gulf of Mexico between Tampa and Sarasota, North Port, Fla., has 80 miles of...

October is Cyber Security Awareness Month—So what’s new?

October is Cybersecurity Awareness Month. The first question comes to mind is what has happened...

Commentary

Navigating through the “new normal” of travel and infrastructure as cities reopen

The onset of the COVID-19 pandemic disrupted local, regional and global travel patterns in unprecedented ways. By April, vehicle miles traveled plummeted across the globe. In the United States, drivers covered 70 percent fewer miles than before the pandemic. Public transit systems too saw massive declines, as workers either stopped commuting entirely or turned to […]

Article

Looking for money in local budgets: IT asset management in a post-pandemic world

State and local governments have been hit hard over the last 18 months. Since those jurisdictions often require balanced budgets, emergency spending during the pandemic must be offset by either budget cuts or tax increases. In fact, a Washington Post analysis shows that in 2020, the majority of states saw their tax revenues shrink with […]

Article

Accelerating the transition to digital citizen services

When the pandemic first took hold in the United States, the traditional means of providing local government services to citizens was disrupted and, in some cases, grounded to a halt. This accelerated the call for governments to deliver digital services to citizens, with constituents seeking a similar seamless online experience when accessing government services as […]

Article

How public electric utilities can leverage federal broadband grants

In a recent article for American City and County, “How local governments can prepare for the new federal broadband grants,” I mentioned that in my experience, publicly owned utilities have made excellent partners in broadband deployments. This article expounds on that thesis and makes the argument that more public electric utilities should examine how they […]

Article

The art of the public art installation: Building a vision with communities

Some of us view public art installations simply as points of interest when we tour unfamiliar neighborhoods. But there’s nothing simple about these installations. For municipalities, they can foster a sense of community and belonging, or they can backfire and become a source of controversy. It’s critical, therefore, that municipalities choose public art with care […]

Article

Digital supply chain challenge to cities and counties—another cyber minefield to navigate

As cities and counties have steadfastly turned to managed service providers for enhanced improvements and security for their networks, a new type of cyberthreat has emerged to greatly undermine trust. The irony here is that many turned to managed service providers who promised greater cyber security and hardened system protections. Perhaps managed services sounded too […]

Article

Three ways cities can support a modern workforce

The U.S. workforce is changing. In 2020, millions of American workers were thrust into an unprecedented working environment that resulted in working from home and new, forcibly accrued skills. One and a half years later, the experiment isn’t ending. For most of the country, the test run is looking more like the long run. As […]

Article

5 ways counties can mitigate remote access security risks

Cyberattacks against the nation’s counties are on the rise. Since 2017, attacks rose an average of almost 50 percent—although this metric is likely to be a fraction of the true number, as these attacks often go unreported. With last year’s shift to more work from home and virtual learning, counties are finding themselves more exposed. […]

News

Remembering 9/11: The impact, then and now

Sometimes, an event marks history with such ferocity that innumerable mundane occurrences taking place simultaneously are indelibly stamped in the memory of every person living at the time—each unique to the individual. These instances define a generation and change a nation’s trajectory in the broader scheme of human civilization: Pearl Harbor; the moon landing; the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks. Two decades on from that infamous day, when four commercial flights were hijacked by terrorists and nearly 3,000 people perished in New York City, Washington, D.C., and Shanksville, Penn., Americans are still haunted by the images of dust-covered victims stumbling from the wreckage—they’re still […]

Article

Reporting requirements for the American Rescue Plan Act money—what cities and counties should consider

Funding provided through the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) provides communities with an unprecedented opportunity to impact the lives of their citizens through prudent spending in the following four categories: To respond to the COVID-19 public health emergency and/or its negative economic impact. To respond to essential workers during the COVID-19 public health emergency by […]

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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

Cloud security is key to cybersecurity resilience in state and local governments

North Port, Florida utilities department depends on SCADA and remote alarm notification

October is Cyber Security Awareness Month—So what’s new?

Commentary

Navigating through the “new normal” of travel and infrastructure as cities reopen

Article

Looking for money in local budgets: IT asset management in a post-pandemic world

Article

Accelerating the transition to digital citizen services

Article

How public electric utilities can leverage federal broadband grants

Article

The art of the public art installation: Building a vision with communities

Article

Digital supply chain challenge to cities and counties—another cyber minefield to navigate

Article

Three ways cities can support a modern workforce

Article

5 ways counties can mitigate remote access security risks

News

Remembering 9/11: The impact, then and now

Article

Reporting requirements for the American Rescue Plan Act money—what cities and counties should consider

WHITE PAPERS

IPAWS Emergency Notification Helps Bring Home Missing Family Member

How Your Municipal Website Can Encourage Local Business

State of Public Sourcing – Back to Business: Fast and Focused

Events

Podcast

Young Leaders Episode 4 – Cyril Jefferson – City Councilman, High Point, North Carolina

Young Leaders Episode 3 – Shannon Hardin – City Council President, Columbus, Ohio

Young Leaders Episode 2 – Christian Williams – Development Services Planner, Goodyear, Ariz.

Twitter

Cloud security is key to cybersecurity resilience in state and local governments dlvr.it/SB6w6X

Webinar: Engaging constituents might be a priority for local administrators, but is that really what citizens want? dlvr.it/SB6Hfx

Beyond COVID-19: How government agencies must innovate for the future dlvr.it/SB2gXC

Integrative software programs stitch together plethora of government service applications dlvr.it/SB2VNf

Majority of Los Angeles County residents face high risk to climate hazards, new study shows dlvr.it/S9zMk9

Has a public official or leader in your community gone above and beyond the call of duty and meaningfully impacted… twitter.com/i/web/status/1…

Has your city or county completed a project in the last 18 months that you believe is worthy of recognition? Nomina… twitter.com/i/web/status/1…

Report: Green infrastructure projects can mitigate flooding, increase resiliency in underserved communities dlvr.it/S9yGf5