Local Government

Clean energy and transportation goals could get a boost from the charged atmosphere around preparation for the next Olympics, in Los Angeles. Advocates say much remains to be done to electrify vehicles and infrastructure.

States and locals are increasingly creating and filling roles focused on advancing the responsible use of artificial intelligence. Long Beach, Calif., is the latest to recruit for a “pivotal” AI position.

The city’s Common Council has approved its police department’s plan to use a nearly $1.15 million state block grant to upgrade technology. The money should pay for 40 to 50 surveillance cameras and 10 license plate readers.

The county’s commission will hold a public hearing on the proposed moratorium Sept. 12 — when it will also consider an application for a direct air carbon capture facility. Officials put a moratorium on direct air capture facilities in July.

Research from CivicPulse shows many of the 1,219 U.S. counties with no public electric vehicle charging infrastructure are mostly rural with fewer than 25,000 residents. But more populous counties, too, lack chargers.

The Connective, a regional smart city consortium in the Phoenix, Ariz., metropolitan area, is working to help local governments deploy scalable technology solutions. Its events bring together private- and public-sector leaders.

The rise of artificial intelligence in the public sector has given birth to various programs designed to train officials about the details of the tech. The latest example focuses on county officials.

Cambridge, Mass., wants to persuade more property owners to change from heating oil to electric heat to soften the impacts of climate change. A city official and a BlocPower executive explain how that can be done.

Government and industry leaders are working to better understand how data collection may not effectively document what people with disabilities need. They're improving the process by doing a better job of gathering information.

The money, delivered Wednesday by a Congressional representative, comes amid struggles at an electric school bus factory, from complications with a federal subsidy rollout. It will go toward five zero-emission buses in Calumet City.

The new 2023 Shared Micromobility State of the Industry Report finds slightly more people made use of it in the U.S. last year — even as the number of devices in service fell by more than 3.5 percent.

The Texas capital received a nearly $48 million federal grant, to help develop programs to reduce traffic congestion and pollution. Encouraging sustainable transportation choices during major highway builds may be a side benefit.

Mayor Justin M. Bibb has chosen Stephanie Wernet, a veteran technologist most recently at Breakthrough Public Schools, as Cleveland's next chief innovation and technology officer. The city enlarged the job's responsibilities this spring.

The city-county is recruiting for a chief information security officer; a recruitment for a chief data officer is expected to follow. The restructuring is intended to reflect the significance of each area.

Similar to cities and states, the National Telecommunications and Information Administration recommended governments be open toward artificial intelligence — but called for risk monitoring in larger AI models.

Plus, a broadband report card ranks ARPA-funded projects, more states see their initial proposals for BEAD funding approved, $2.7 million will support libraries’ digital literacy programming, and more.

Sunny Isles Beach, Fla., CIO Derrick Arias offers his account of triaging the July CrowdStrike/Microsoft event and what his team will take from the experience to apply when — not if — they experience another outage.

The National Association of Counties’ AI Exploratory Committee has released a report for local governments on integrating artificial intelligence. It offers use cases, and examines risks and opportunities.