Digital Services

A newly launched program in Fairfax County, Va., is offering small businesses technical assistance in a range of areas, helping them enhance their website, e-commerce capabilities, digital presence, and more.

The new office will broaden and restructure city service options for residents, while also building a collaborative team to meet government agency IT needs throughout the city. Its work begins officially in the new year.

While the city is without a formal plan for artificial intelligence, the budget for the upcoming year includes having the IT department investigate potential applications for the technology.

Assistive technology like screen readers for the blind help people with disabilities use computers and smartphones, but they can be tripped up if webpages or documents are improperly formatted.

The city has announced the testing of a new video-based system that will allow all 20 council representatives to interact with the public. The six-month pilot will cost $12,000.

With every new technology that hits the public sector, from cloud computing to AI, agencies grapple with how to make it work toward achieving their core goal: an accessible, secure government experience.

One of the benefits platform’s newest hires — a Granicus veteran — talks about how the company is trying to improve government disbursements. Web design and agency partnerships are among the important tools.

For the first time since 2007, NASCIO’s annual survey of state IT leaders was tied between two top priorities. That spot, normally dominated by cybersecurity and risk management, was joined this year by digital government and services.

Comcast has donated $30,000 to the Aurora Public Library District Foundation for a digital navigator program that will offer residents access to skill-building and Internet resources.

As experts recently discussed at Code for America’s FormFest 2023 event, the digitization of government forms and processes can create more equitable access to government services for constituents.

How do some agencies create apps residents like to use? The minds behind some of the highest-rated 311 apps share best practices and recommendations to improve performance and citizen experience.

A Lauderdale County, Miss., grand jury is recommending that the Meridian Police Department improve its surveillance and body camera systems and video storage to deter crime and assist with investigations.

Career Ready DC, a new AI-matching technology platform from the DC Department of Employment Services and Eightfold AI, aims to help match residents with employment opportunities more efficiently and equitably.

The chair of the Wisconsin Governor’s Task Force on Workforce and Artificial Intelligence shares how the state is aiming to be one of the first states to harness the power of AI by redefining the workplace.

The new product embeds in Microsoft 365 and can save officials from labor-intensive work to save minutes, correspondence and other documents. Other companies, too, have found opportunity in this gov tech niche.

Edinger, the former CIO of the city and county of Denver, shared his priorities as he takes over from outgoing CIO Anthony Neal-Graves. He said special attention will be paid to empowering staff and process improvement.

The app, dubbed MySCCounty+, allows residents to purchase and store digital permits and other credentials on their electronic devices. The app builds off of an earlier iteration that was launched in 2015.

Two weeks after a ransomware attack, Huber Heights officials say the Income Tax Division is back online and the city's payroll was processed successfully last week. It is unclear if the attack exposed resident data.