Policy

The proliferation of Internet ads and Big Tech’s staggering pandemic profits have fueled bipartisan efforts to tax digital ads or find other ways to capture revenue from tech companies’ mining of personal information.

The budget for Oklahoma's upcoming fiscal year includes $42 million that will be given to companies that expand Internet access in rural areas. About one-fifth of Oklahoma homes don't have broadband.

Economists at the University of California in Santa Cruz found that enrollment in the state's community colleges decreased by 12 to 15 percent last year. They believe that struggles with online learning played a role.

A career readiness center in Illinois is moving forward without a $7.5 million state grant. The center represents a collaboration between 14 school districts, business groups and Lake Land College.

Marquette University is now the third private institution in Wisconsin to announce it will require students to be vaccinated, while the University of Wisconsin in Madison is considering a requirement for dorm residents.

To address inequities in learning loss during the pandemic, which largely stemmed from poor access to broadband and technology, the state has set guidelines for districts and accelerated learning programs this summer.

With many third graders failing standardized tests after months of learning from home, several states are weighing whether to hold students back or let them pass and focus on intervention next year.

Spot, a robot dog produced by Boston Dynamics, has been employed by a few police departments over the last couple of years, raising the antennas of surveillance critics. Does Spot have a future in public safety?

Maryland is one of the first states in the country to set rules limiting how police can use the popular websites and their databases, doing so by passing new legislation related to the matter just this year.

Gov. Steve Sisolak has pulled a controversial proposal that would allow tech companies to form local governments throughout the state. Instead, it will now be carried out as a study.

With $300 million to spend on expanding broadband service across the state, the Kentucky Infrastructure Authority plans to solicit Internet businesses on how to best proceed in anticipation of awarding bids on projects.

The Pennsylvania Association of Intermediate Units and Penn State Extension are gathering data about numbers of students, household devices and Internet access that may later aid the distribution of grant funds.

It's been a decade since Maine authorized charter schools, and today they teach less than 2 percent of the state's public school students. Graduation rates have been lower, while student performance has been mixed.

The legislation will help address increasing costs faced by broadband providers in recent years, and ensure residents in rural parts of the state have access to reliable Internet service, sponsors of the bill have said.

The Metropolitan King County Council unanimously voted today to prohibit county departments, including the sheriff's office, from using facial recognition tech. If signed by the county executive, the measure becomes law.

State agencies in Kansas must have a telework policy if they intend to continue allowing telework for their employees after June 13. Some believe telework can help agencies compete for talent with the private sector.

As part of Gov. Brian Kemp's 2022 fiscal budget for Georgia, Athens Technical College will receive money for a new 45,000-square-foot building that will house programs for industrial systems technology and mechatronics.

Colorado lawmakers decided to tackle data privacy again this year with SB21-190, which unanimously passed the Senate last week. If it makes it to Gov. Jared Polis, Colorado would be the third state to pass such a law.