Government Experience

The county, through its Trailability Program, is using off-road TerrainHoppers to make trails accessible to people with disabilities; this year, GPS will enable solo rides. The county is also sharing scenery information via auditory devices.

18F, a digital consulting office within the General Services Administration, is at work on three projects with federal agencies, it said this week in announcing its 10th anniversary. The office has completed 455 initiatives in 10 years.

Portico, the Landmarks Preservation Commission’s new portal, features an online assistant to help expedite modernization for historically significant buildings and sites. It replaces a system that had only recently begun moving off paper.

The IRS launched the pilot program known as Direct File in a dozen states this year, including Texas, and about 50,000 people who are residents of those states have used it so far.

Longtime executive Miriam Barcellona Ingenito, undersecretary at the Government Operations Agency, discussed the state’s IT landscape Tuesday at the California Public Sector CIO Academy. Mission-driven solutions, she said, are key.

Pennsylvania Lottery upgrades also include test environments, communications networks and back-office systems, in a migration starting late Monday and lasting much of Tuesday. The purchase of many game tickets will be impacted.

The Syracuse, N.Y., Office of Analytics, Performance and Innovation and its partnership with the Department of Public Works demonstrates the cascading effects of what happens when traditional services go digital.

As the state of South Dakota works to transform outdated IT systems, enhance cybersecurity and explore emerging technologies, state IT leadership is keeping the citizens’ experience at the heart of these efforts.

Members of the National Association of Counties were in Washington, D.C., to urge Congress to extend funding for a program providing subsidies to help low-income households afford broadband Internet service.

Just over a year since the launch of Atlanta’s new Office of Technology and Innovation, city tech leaders reflect on the role of the office in the city's work to build a broader technology ecosystem.

Ashley Bloom, the state's first chief IT accessibility officer, shared that she is approaching the role with the mindset that accessibility should be integrated into all of the state's IT work.

For proponents, the new software has been a $102 million lift that brings better security, record-keeping and management to the state, making Idaho one of the first states to implement a fully cloud-based system.

League City, Texas, has added a new app, called Talk About Town, on its community engagement site where residents can give feedback on the kind of businesses they want to see in the future.

A University at Albany research team conducted a study on how 22 state government agencies are harnessing chatbot technology, uncovering valuable insights into the challenges faced and lessons learned.

The city of Chicago’s recently established Department of Technology and Innovation aims to transform the way city agencies work with one another and the way the city provides services to constituents.

The 2024 Government Innovation Challenge and Pitchfest puts gov tech startups in touch with potential local government partners to address pressing public-sector issues. The event will be held in Kansas City, Mo., on April 30.

AI-powered chatbots and translation tools are just some of the offerings available to state and local governments looking to connect with residents and increase civic participation.

The U.S. General Services Administration has chosen to collaborate with four states to pilot a text notification platform geared toward enhancing internal and external communication surrounding federal benefits services.