State Government

The new release from the National Association of State Chief Information Officers provides guidance for state CIOs, and an overview of how agencies are navigating the landscape of agentic artificial intelligence tools.

State Sen. Barry Finegold, of Andover, and his counterpart from Lawrence, examined the changing role of artificial intelligence and its potential. He uses AI to write speeches, Finegold said.

Colin Ahern takes over as the state’s first director of security and intelligence. He brings two decades of Army, private-sector and public agency experience to the new job, which focuses on high-level risks.

The Department of Information Resources Governing Board has passed rule changes expected to guide how state agencies handle AI oversight, data governance assessments and digital accessibility.

The country’s long-simmering tension between security and privacy is ratcheting up this year in statehouses, as mass data collection and surveillance technology become ubiquitous.

The state Department of Job and Family Services received a national award for integrating artificial intelligence to enhance its handling of state unemployment services. Uses include speeding up call processing.

Plus, Massachusetts is opening applications for its Digital Accessibility and Equity Governance Board, Denver launched a streaming platform, experts dub fiber broadband deployment as essential, and more.

Research from the Center for Long-Term Cybersecurity at UC Berkeley shows that those states passed a total of 99 bills, with the majority of them passing between one and three pieces of legislation.

Officials have formally named Bryce Bailey the state’s chief information security officer, elevating him from the interim role after nearly a month in place. Cybersecurity, he said, “is a long game.”

The state will widen its use of an American Sign Language app across all agencies and buildings, in an effort to bring new levels of service for people who are hard of hearing.

States have until April to meet the federal mandate established under the Americans with Disabilities Act, requiring all digital products be accessible for people with disabilities. Readiness levels vary.

Two proposed laws now under consideration have differing approaches to the technology campuses. One would have a state authority certify projects. The other would require new renewable energy sources.

Jennifer Pittman-Leeper is GovRAMP’s new field CISO, which is an advisory role. Meanwhile, the nonprofit organization has now added North Carolina to the states that it provides cybersecurity guidance.

In the next aspect of its National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure work, the state will accept proposals to build EV stations in its southeast area. Applications in three other regions should open later this year.

As one of its first operational AI projects, Mississippi’s Innovation Hub is piloting Procurii, a chatbot designed to address knowledge gaps. The proof of concept is intended to augment tech procurement processes.

State Educational Technology Directors Association (SETDA) Executive Director Julia Fallon says Congress may need to identify legislative means outside of E-rate to solve the home connectivity issue for students.

The move places the state among a growing group of governments using the shared authorization framework to reduce duplicative vendor security assessments. GovRAMP evolved from StateRAMP last year.

A new report by CALSTART indicates transitions to electric trucks are facing some of the same headwinds as the light-duty vehicle market. In certain states, however, their numbers are stronger than expected.