Orange County, Fla., announced Jan. 28 that Alexa users now have access to the “Ask Orange County Government” skill. Alexa, Amazon’s voice commanded virtual assistant, can help residents connect with government services through Orange County’s 311 service. In a statement, the county government noted it is the first in Florida to develop an Alexa skill.
An apparent series of interconnected failures surrounding the use of a key vote-tallying phone app – plus delays associated with a phone-reporting backup system – derailed the reporting of the Iowa Democratic Caucus results last night, even as more states and localities are preparing to add app technologies to some aspects of their election processes.
With today’s Iowa Caucus, the long slog to the 2020 Election is officially underway. In preparation for the General Election this November, West Virginia will become the first state to allow people with disabilities to vote with their smartphones.
Witnesses at today’s House Communications and Technology Subcommittee hearing agreed that closing the digital divide and increasing internet adoption in the U.S. requires a combination of private sector competition, and financial and regulatory help from the Federal government.
Reps. Peter DeFazio, D-Ore., Frank Pallone, D-N.J., and Richard Neal, D-Mass., released a five-year infrastructure investment framework Jan. 29 with $98 billion dedicated to broadband initiatives.
The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) today approved final rules for a program that will funnel $20.4 billion over ten years to communications service providers to extend fast broadband services to unserved and underserved areas of the U.S.
Scholars at the Brookings Institution are suggesting that Congress invest in a $100 billion package to support 10 potential technology growth centers and foster innovation outside of traditional tech hubs like Silicon Valley.
While AT&T is on track to meet all nationwide First Responder Network Authority (FirstNet) milestones, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) this week flagged schedule, communication, and end-user satisfaction management issues that it said could stop the program from reaching its full potential.
California Secretary of State Alex Padilla announced Jan. 24 that he had “conditionally” certified Los Angeles County’s new publicly-owned voting system.
Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) Director Chris Krebs told the nation’s mayors this week that Federal government needs to ensure that state and local governments have the resources needed to combat growing cybersecurity concerns, and said that heightened security threats from Iran and elsewhere may help provide governments with the leverage to get that done.
