Policy

A proposed $8 billion IT budget, 3 percent lower than current spending, prompted questions from lawmakers about why IT infrastructure and development are targeted for cuts in 2025, while salaries will rise.

If passed, the Affordable Connectivity Program Extension Act of 2024 would appropriate $7 billion for fiscal year 2024 to save pandemic-era funds that helped families connect to the Internet.

While generative artificial intelligence is getting all the headlines, K-12 district leaders still rank cybersecurity, data privacy and staffing as bigger priorities, followed by training and funding.

Bike paths, bus systems, crosswalks and airports — all should work together, transportation leaders said recently. Forging an efficient and seamless network, they agreed, can bring challenges, but opportunities as well.

Pennsylvania state senators are planning to introduce Alyssa's Law, which would require all public schools to be equipped with silent panic alarms that directly notify law enforcement of school-based emergencies.

The bill would have also created a study of current Internet neutrality with the goal of providing consistent consumer rates and mandatory fee disclosures, including total prices.

Legislation pending before Kansas Gov. Laura Kelly, touted to lawmakers by the safety company ZeroEyes, would earmark $5 million in grants for schools to buy security systems that comply with security industry standards.

School bond elections across the state of Texas set the stage for millions of dollars in new student devices, classroom tech and networking equipment, among other upgrades.

The law relieves data centers, hospitals and other critical infrastructure from state regulations around building high-capacity generators. It eases the process, following the abandonment of one such project.

Following a gubernatorial executive order on generative artificial intelligence and new guidelines in March, the state will work with five technology companies to “test, iterate, and evaluate” GenAI and create proofs of concept.

To prepare students for a world of misinformation, legislation expected to pass in early 2025 would establish guidelines to teach digital media literacy in K-12 based on pilot programs at a handful of schools.

Officials have earmarked or allocated $3 billion in funding to build 2,664 miles of network infrastructure, and nearly 4,000 miles has been leased or purchased. This puts aspects of the project more than a year ahead of targets.

Among its directives, the order from the Maryland county’s executive creates an AI task force that will be responsible for drafting strategies, use cases and priorities. “Digital access equity” is central to that work.

Legislation filed last week, if passed, would go toward recruiting school personnel, continuing high school "learning hubs," expanding career and technology education programs, and putting security scanners in schools.

More than three-quarters of Nevadans who have a driver’s license or state-issued ID are already Real ID-compliant. But the state’s deadline of May 7, 2025, gives the just more than 568,000 residents who aren’t about a year to do so.

Generally, only three types of locations are statewide no-fly zones for the aerial devices. And, while the Show Me State has laws on recording people without their consent in private spaces, they don’t cover many drone uses.

As artificial intelligence continues to rapidly evolve, governments across the globe must do what they can to make sure that regulation keeps pace, protecting humanity from potential dangers.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has approved a mandate that will require automatic emergency braking systems for new vehicles by September 2029.