Commentary EVs are coming in a big way – Will charging infrastructure be ready? 24th May 2022 The California Air Resources Board recently announced a new goal of tripling electric vehicle (EV) sales over the next four years, reaching 35 percent of all new vehicle sales in the state by 2026. An executive order is already in place dictating that zero-emission vehicles will be 100 percent of all new vehicle sales in […]
Commentary Looking to increase civic engagement? Support the local press 9th May 2022 The McGregor Mirror in Texas; The Mayo Free Press in Florida; The Olive Hill Times in Kentucky; The Progress Review in Iowa: What do all of these news outlets have in common? They’re all defunct; closed in the last year due to declining revenue and budget shortfalls. Over the last 50 years, the journalism industry has […]
Article How to accelerate SLG cloud modernization through emerging technology solutions 18th April 2022 State and local government (SLG) leaders have been on the road to IT modernization for more than a decade. First appearing on NASCIO’s State CIO Top Ten Priorities list in 2010, IT modernization has ranked a top-three priority every year since. For some organizations, the pandemic served as a catalyst for cloud adoption and as-a-service […]
Article Setting the (government) records straight 12th April 2022 In the digital age, government records management teams must balance both physical, paper copies of documents and electronic copies. Because of how much falls under the umbrella of records management, there are a variety of challenges that records administrators face when it comes to managing records. The three most common problems that arise—making records more […]
Article How local governments can overcome federal grant roadblocks 7th April 2022 As the nation begins to recover from the pandemic and prepares for the possibility of another harmful variant, it’s critical that local governments access all available federal grant funds they’re eligible for to meet community needs. For the past two years, many local governments shifted budgets to combat COVID-19. Federal grants like those outlined in […]
Commentary Adaptive reuse and municipal facilities: Strengthening mutual trust 6th April 2022 Every community has its share of underutilized buildings—empty warehouses, shuttered schools, abandoned grocery stores and retail strip malls, and aging postal facilities—that have reached the end of their useful lives. Many pose safety concerns, while others often become magnets for crime. With the cost of construction increasing year after year, many municipalities are taking another look […]
Commentary Municipal broadband: Using today’s technology to support your community’s future 1st April 2022 Amidst the ups and downs of the COVID-19 pandemic, one thing that remains constant is your community’s need to stay connected. But stay-at-home, work-from-home and learn-from-home measures have highlighted a glaring gap in the availability and distribution of reliable, high-speed internet networks, and many citizens and businesses are still unable to access the online resources […]
Article ARPA opens doors to modernizing the infrastructure of government itself 24th March 2022 U.S. cities, counties, tribes and other local governments are now in the process of digesting about $148 billion of the $1.9 trillion in investment from the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (ARPA). Infrastructure as recognized traditionally (highways, public housing) and less traditionally (solar installations, EV charging stations) tend to dominate the imagination. These are […]
Article Deming’s 14 points of management for procurement professionals 22nd March 2022 Public procurement’s focus over the last decade, has been that of “digital transformation” with a keen eye on the new technologies and tools available to public procurement leaders. Although such “transformation” is of keen interest and vital to moving public procurement ahead, there are some fundamental managerial truths about “organizational transformation” that have been around […]
Commentary Building trust: Moving away from self-administration 11th March 2022 Trust is the fundamental currency of leadership. This is particularly true in the public sector, where elected officials, appointed commissioners and public administrators are entrusted with the safety and well-being of their constituents. From neighborhood associations to city councils, county boards, state legislatures and Washington, D.C., the U.S. has many forms of government. But as […]
Young Leaders Episode 4 – Cyril Jefferson – City Councilman, High Point, North Carolina 13th October 2020