Local Government

Formerly deputy CIO for the state’s most populous county, Leek takes over a job last held by Nadia Hansen, who left for the private sector. Digital equity stands as one of the priorities of his new position.

The deal — taking place at a busy time for M&A in gov tech — comes as more agencies are turning to virtual and digital tools for public meetings and archiving. Rock Solid announced the acquisition amid a rebranding.

During its regular meeting this week, the Columbus City Council gave the green light to accept a $65,720 grant from the Nebraska Crime Commission for the purchase of an Avatar III robot.

Officials in the state have designs on growing the off-shore wind energy industry. The city of Salem will get a $45 million cut to transform empty land into a wind turbine marshalling yard.

Plus, new initiative seeks to bolster digital success among Latinos, several federal agencies enter into a new collaboration on broadband funding, an Oregon coalition is tackling broadband mapping, and more.

Thirteen newly installed cameras will capture vehicle information, not people or faces, and send instant alerts to police when a stolen car or wanted suspect from a state or national database enters town, police officials said.

Sindhu Menon has left her CIO position in Raleigh, N.C., for a CIO role in Harris County, Texas, where she will help revamp its IT department. Raleigh CISO Rob Reynolds has taken over interim CIO duties.

A new memorandum instructs CISA to “engage with” state and local governments by late fall about quantum computing risks. Federal officials, meanwhile, are looking for new ways to build a quantum-focused workforce.

The massive deal — the largest for government technology — was completed just more than a year ago. Now financial results are starting to tell the story about the acquisition, and soon tech buyers will notice changes.

County commissioners heard an update on the project to extend Internet service to under- and unserved parts of Cass County. The work is being done by Miami-Cass County REMC, a member-owned electric utility company.

High-speed broadband is now a must-have utility for communities hoping to attract and retain residents and businesses, so the Mercer County Commission has started advertising for companies willing to provide service.

The Biden administration has taken its first steps toward releasing $45 billion of federal funding for broadband and digital equity, with the money going first to state governments tasked with executing the vision.

Officials in Westmorland County will use $600,000 of ARPA funding to help identify areas without adequate Internet access, develop a broadband plan for the county, and partnerships with private companies to expand service.

County commissioners have plans to spend $10 million in federal ARPA funding to supply high-speed broadband to households lacking adequate Internet access. Some 45 percent of residents currently lack access.

The town has opted for a cyber recovery vault, along with machine learning and artificial intelligence tools, to streamline its recovery in case of a cyber attack. The move also stems the tide of ad hoc IT implimentations.

The newly purchases equipment will be used for the first time during the June 28 primary election. Danville is one of the last cities in the state to adopt the technology, according to election officials.

As insurance costs and requirements rise, some municipalities are looking to self-insurance and service providers’ cyber incident warranties to help in cases of ransomware and other incidents.

The City Council recommended a $605,242 contract with Chicago-based CityBase Inc. to develop a website officials said would be an upgrade from what the city has now, and is unique to Aurora.