Local Government

An interactive online map shows progress made by a handful of Internet service providers laying fiber optic cable to reach homes and businesses in southeast Michigan with high-speed Internet.

Cuts to CISA and the FBI’s Foreign Influence Task Force have secretaries of state and municipal clerks worried about the security of voter registration databases and other critical election systems.

A 2023 Michigan law gives the state authority to permit large-scale wind, solar and energy storage projects, but local governments can retain some permitting authority by passing their own compatible ordinances.

Since the manufacturer filed for bankruptcy, only a handful of Miami-Dade County’s 75 electric buses are in service, and none of Broward County’s fleet of 42 electric buses managed to run routes earlier this month.

Hundreds of technology partners focused on the public sector gathered outside Washington, D.C., for the annual Beyond the Beltway event, an industry-focused forecast of what 2025 looks like for state and local IT.

Local governments use BS&A software for budgeting, taxes, licensing and other activities. Boyce, strong in Indiana, sells similar services to cities, schools and utilities. The deal follows a big investment in BS&A.

A funding freeze for the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is holding up an estimated $500 million allocated to clean energy projects, and federal officials are ignoring court orders to restore access to the funding.

A Washington, D.C.-based nonprofit has created a platform where government workers and others can share how federal contract terminations, staff cuts and data issues impact their work without using personal information.

The Seattle-based company has said operations in the Gilliam County city of nearly 600 could be many years off, but planning for the installation is already underway. It could deliver millions of dollars a year to the city and county.

The city’s new chief information security officer was previously its deputy CISO. He takes over a role vacated by Shannon Lawson in October, bringing with him two decades’ experience in the public and private sectors.

The city has strengthened its cybersecurity efforts, using artificial intelligence to analyze more than 1 million pieces of incoming communication and protecting employees from impersonation attempts and data theft.

Officials were able to take down a server, make repairs and restore service after an attempt to extort money through an attack on the police department’s system. For now, the department is filing paper police reports.

Tucked away in a small room, a band of data analysts are putting technology to use to help solve crimes in real time — without leaving their desks.

The Technology Council of Central Pennsylvania serves 150 member entities representing more than 1,700 people. The goal, its president said, is to identify local problems — and offer local answers.

The city has announced a data breach impacting Social Security and driver’s license numbers, credit card information and other data for nearly 18,000 people. There’s no indication of actual or attempted misuse.

The Eureka City Council tossed a contract to install 21 automated license plate reader cameras throughout the city at a Tuesday meeting, with a vote that came after public opposition to the tech.

The state has been successful at reducing its cyber vulnerabilities by nearly 50 percent in the last year, its CISO said, as it undertakes a statewide strategy to grow a cybersecurity culture.

The county’s board of commissioners has approved a service agreement with a new vendor to upgrade software at its building department. The move will facilitate work with cities and conversations with customers.