Finance

Gov. Gavin Newsom this week signed Senate Bill 101 omnibus, formalizing the approval of the $310.8 billion state budget. The legislation outlines hundreds of millions for broadband expansion and IT efforts in the state.

The federal government has announced that Washington state will get more than $1.2 billion to expand Internet access. But how big of an impact will the money actually make for residents?

The city has signed a 10-year, $39 million contract with Axon Enterprises for the latest models of body cameras, in-vehicle cameras and Tasers as they become available.

The state is set to receive more than $196.5 million from the National Telecommunications and Information Administration as part of the $42.45 billion Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment program.

The National Telecommunications and Information Administration announced a $1.16 billion allocation to the state to close the digital divide. Not everyone is convinced it’s enough to bridge the gap.  

The ENMR Telephone Cooperative is set to receive $49.5 million from the National Telecommunications and Information Administration to expand high-speed Internet in eastern parts of New Mexico.

The company has launched Socium Ventures, which will focus on emerging businesses, including in the gov tech space. Cox already backs OpenGov and Carbyne, and now seeks to benefit more from its existing relationships.

The technical plans for a project to improve the Ashtabula County court records system was approved this week despite concerns on the part of some that the work could prompt potential litigation.

U.S. Senate Majority Leader Charles Schumer and U.S. Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand announced a more than $14.5 million investment to expand broadband access across the north country region.

AT&T recently awarded a $100,000 grant to the local Westside Future Fund as part of AT&T’s $2 billion commitment to increase Internet accessibility and affordability in underserved communities.

Legislation authored by Sen. Jacky Rosen, D-Nev., will see $43.5 million in federal funding sent to the state. The money will fund the Internet expansion to schools, libraries, community centers, and government offices.

One of the nation’s largest libraries has nearly doubled its collection spending in the last five years in an attempt to keep up with patrons’ digital demands. But the push has introduced new headaches.

The state published the 2023-2024 Budget Act earlier this week and, if approved by lawmakers, it will fund IT projects at the Department of Social Services, the Department of Motor Vehicles and other state entities.

Centre County Commissioners have voted to advance broadband expansion project proposals from two Internet service providers. The county will apply for part of $200 million in state funding for the final proposals.

The $20 million contract meant to connect every Cleveland resident to high-speed Internet was put on hold this week when concerns were raised about whether the nonprofit DigitalC has the capabilities to see the work through.

Progress continues for the state of Illinois’ multiple-year digital transformation undertaking, which aims to simplify processes and positively impact state employees across the state’s agencies.

A recent audit of six IT projects within the past two years found many were over budget or delayed. The state’s CIO, Shawn Nailor, acknowledged the findings, tempering them with the progress his relatively young agency has made in recent years.

Sen. Joe Manchin announced the addition of some 86,000 unserved locations to West Virginia’s portion of the FCC broadband map. The map will be used to distribute funding to areas in need of Internet expansion.