California

Panelists at the California IT in Education conference said school IT leaders will face myriad budgeting challenges in the years ahead, but careful planning, partnerships and consultants could help get them through it.

The San Joaquin Joint Powers Authority has led a rebrand of the Amtrak San Joaquins rail service to the Gold Runner. The endeavor, which follows the electrification of Caltrain, is intended to improve connectivity.

Between 2019 and 2025, California paid four tech companies over $450 million to build out its Next-Generation 911 system, but it didn't work as planned. A pivot to a new plan could cost hundreds of millions more.

Overhauling government procurement is a complex task that requires clarity of purpose, especially for large-scale IT projects. Lessons from California offer examples of how to weigh priorities and navigate trade-offs.

Some education officials say building trust with parents and students has been key to the success of California's Phone-Free School Act, and will be essential in the conversations to come.

The first power projects in PG&E’s pipeline to serve data centers could appear on the grid as soon as next year, as the utility titan races to meet the tech industry’s hunger for the data hubs.

With some significant bills around cellphones and social media already signed, and the wide-open governor's race still looming, the next few years in California politics could be consequential for ed tech.

The Lagunitas Creek Spawner Dashboard is a resource offered by the Marin Municipal Water District, and it shows nesting grounds for coho, chinook, pink and chum salmon as well as steelhead trout.

A multistate agreement between New York, California, Connecticut and Illuminate Education reinforces growing expectations that technology vendors take stronger measures to protect student information.

Demonstrating equity, transparency and accountability can guide AI in delivering value, Jaime Wascalus, CIO for Saint Paul, Minn., said Thursday during the second annual GovAI Coalition Summit.

Northern California prosecutors used artificial intelligence to write a criminal court filing that contained references to nonexistent legal cases and precedents, says a Northern California district attorney.

The city’s new request for information invites innovators — from startups to major tech firms — to apply artificial intelligence solutions to city operations, public access and transparency challenges.

California's tech companies, the epicenter of the state's economy, sent politicians a loud message this year: Back down from restrictive artificial intelligence regulation or they'll leave.

With the average cost of breaches on the rise, cybersecurity must be regarded like any other disaster, according to the Local Government Cybersecurity Alliance. Residual costs of incidents must be accounted for, a co-founder said.

Chief Data Officer Jason Lally, who had been in state service for a total of about four years, announced he has departed from the role. Gov. Gavin Newsom had appointed him to the position in June 2024.

An additional layer of tech is helping the state’s Employment Development Department, targeted by fraudsters during the COVID-19 pandemic, smooth out identity verification and make defenses harder to penetrate.

As the invasive insect spreads, putting plant populations like grapevines and their related industries at risk, governments at all levels are using technology like drones and GIS to monitor the issue.

The program, Cafecito y Computadoras — “Coffee and Computers” in Spanish — offers bilingual classes that combine digital fundamentals with AI literacy for up to 300 residents.