The Ferguson Group Blog

Wednesday News Roundup

Every Wednesday, the TFG Blog posts a series of articles published over the previous week that discusses topics of interest to local governments. Learn about emerging trends and keep up on key policy issues by browsing the TFG Wednesday News Roundup! 

Connecticut Exchange Leader Named CEO of HealthCare.gov

On Tuesday, the Department of Health and Human Services announced a new CEO for HealthCare.gov. Kevin Counihan, who led one of the country’s most successful Obamacare exchanges, will take over as CEO before the next insurance sign-up season. Read More…

To Prevent Long Power Outages, Communities Look to Microgrids

As severe weather becomes more common, microgrids are gaining popularity as a way to keep the power on at critical facilities during widespread blackouts. Microgrids, which are self-contained systems for generating and distributing power, are especially catching the eye of emergency managers looking to build more resilient and reliable power systems. Read More…

Bold Approach Needed to Tackle City Congestion

New technologies like intelligent software and cloud-based solutions are revolutionizing mobility, ensuring more efficient traffic management in all types of metropolitan areas. Luckily a tight budget doesn’t have to be an obstacle. Self-financing and energy-saving solutions combined with forward-looking parking space and street light management can help the refinancing of traffic infrastructure. Read More…

Charlotte ‘Pay as you Throw’ Hopes to Cut Costs, Increase Recycling

Charlotte, North Carolina – like many other cities – is hoping to cut costs and increase recycling by switching from a flat fee for garbage collection to a new “pay as you throw” fee structure that charges residents on how much garbage they produce. A “pay as you throw” vendor that presented to the city said that the cities using its program have reduced what they send to landfills by an average of 44 percent. Read More…

Mesa Saves $5M Using Volunteers

By creating a community-based volunteer initiative, the city of Mesa, Arizona has saved millions of dollars by having citizens engage in community projects that city-paid workers would have done. Mesa volunteers do everything from run committees, plan city events, clean graffiti, and paint community spaces. Check out how Mesa and other cities are getting their citizens engaged!  Read More…

Wednesday News Roundup

Every Wednesday, the TFG Blog posts a series of articles published over the previous week that discusses topics of interest to local governments. Learn about emerging trends and keep up on key policy issues by browsing the TFG Wednesday News Roundup!

Lawmakers Scrutinize Militarizing Local Police

Images emanating from Ferguson, Missouri of armored vehicles and policemen outfitted with war-like tactical gear has lawmakers in Washington questioning the Defense Department program (1033 program) that allows local police departments to acquire unused defense equipment. Some have called to repeal the program, others say the program needs to be reformed to fit the original intentions of the program. All agree, however, that at the very least the program needs oversight, and lots of it. Read More…

Technology’s Crucial Role in the Fight Against Hunger

It is estimated that a staggering 50 million people in the United States face food insecurity, having to make daily tradeoffs in order to pay for food, or skipping meals entirely to get by. Just as much as innovative policies are needed, crowdsourcing, predictive analytics and other new tools could go far toward finding innovative solutions for America’s food insecurity. Read More…

Water Utilities are Starting to Take Their Own Conservation Advice

Water utilities are often the largest consumers of energy in cities. Between severe droughts in much of the country and strained operating budgets, more and more utilities are recognizing the need to conserve. Gresham, Oregon and Washington, D.C. are examples of cities whose major wastewater treatment projects will produce on site just about all the energy consumed at their facilities. Read More…

Nurturing Development with Performance Based Zoning

Conventional zoning can limit a municipalities’ ability to modernize communities demanding increased walkability, mixed-use construction and improved resource management. As a result, innovative forms of zoning have arisen that adjust regulations to meet the evolving needs of the community. One of these is performance-based zoning; a form of zoning that creates less oversight of the development process but more control over the impact of the end product. Read More…

Bloomberg Offers Grants to Help Cities Innovate

On Wednesday, Bloomberg Philanthropies announced $45 million in grant funding to a program they call Innovation Delivery grants; grants aimed at helping cities create teams that use data and other tools to come up with innovative ideas on how to tackle municipal  government problems. The 10-15 cities selected will earn awards of up to $3 million over a three year period. If your city is interested, click here now for program information. Applications are due on October 6. Read More…

Wednesday News Roundup

Every Wednesday, the TFG Blog posts a series of articles published over the previous week that discusses topics of interest to local governments. Learn about emerging trends and keep up on key policy issues by browsing the TFG Wednesday News Roundup!

Redesigning the Suburbs

As suburban living declines in popularity, local government leaders are looking at “greyfield” sites left behind – the abandoned strip malls, empty parking lots and vacant office buildings – as potential community assets. Some worry that if major changes to development procedures in suburban areas aren’t made, already sprawling cities could become megalopolis’ in coming decades. Read More...

The ABC’s of the P3 Model

America’s infrastructure deficit problem needs fixing. Municipal bonds are an antiquated method for raising capital that only solves part of the problem. Could P3’s be the answer? Here are the basics you need to know. Read More...

Groups Sue EPA for Failing to Make Polluters Pay

Seven environmental advocacy groups have filed a lawsuit against the EPA for failing to issue key rules mandated under the Superfund Act. These rules, the groups argue, would help prevent major spills of hazardous substances. “These rules would also make sure polluters pay to clean up their own messes, instead of skipping town and leaving the cost to the public,” the group said. Read More...

Can You Fight Poverty by Paying Kids to Go to School?

Memphis, TN is testing a poverty program that provides cash incentives to poor parents and their high school-age children for completing tasks that seem second nature to a middle-class family, but may make a big different in fighting poverty in low-income households. For example, a student who earns an acceptable school attendance record gets $40 a month. The reward system, modeled on similar programs in Mexico, Brazil, and Indonesia, is enthusiastically embraced internationally. America is just starting to catch on. Read More...

Report Examines Income Gaps Across Metro Areas

A report published Monday by the U.S. Conference of Mayors analyzes income inequality around America’s metro areas. In addition to findings that conclude income inequality has accelerated as a result of the recession, the analysis projects further inequality in the coming years, calling it a “structural feature of the 21^st century economy.” Read More...

Wednesday News Roundup

Every Wednesday, the TFG Blog posts a series of articles published over the previous week that discusses topics of interest to local governments. Learn about emerging trends and keep up on key policy issues by browsing the TFG Wednesday News Roundup!

‘Pay for Success’: A Better Way to Deliver Social Services?

The idea of Pay for Success programs has been growing in popularity over the past few years from cities coast to coast. Under these programs, governments seek private investors and philanthropic organizations to finance cost-effective, evidence-based social service programs in a wide variety of municipal interests, such as homelessness and healthcare. These investors, however, only receive payments back if the desired results are achieved, shifting the focus from program inputs to the benefits a program produces. Read More…

Philadelphia Opens Innovation Lab for City Employees

Philadelphia may be an old American city, but it is on the cutting edge of municipal innovation. On Friday, Mayor Michael Nutter officially opened an Innovation Lab inside the Philly Municipal Services Building. The Lab is a place where city employees can spend time focusing on innovation, ideation and problem-solving to improve the city. Read More…

Maine Looks to Solar Tech to Grow Food in Winter

The Maine Technology Institute is making agriculture dreams come true, as they recently announced nearly $500,000 in funding to help finance four solar agriculture projects intended to demonstrate that farming can continue through the harsh New England winter. Stakeholders have been interested in this kind of project for years but could not secure funding to make the idea a reality. Being able to grow crops in the winter could have a huge impact on local producers, who are often overlooked by large supermarkets because they are not a reliable supplier all-year-round. Read More…

Software Predicts When, Where Serious Accidents are Most Likely to Occur on Tennessee Highways

As the Tennessee Highway Patrol is demonstrating, predictive analytic software could revolutionize traffic safety by predicting when and where serious traffic accidents are likely to occur based on a multitude of factors, including weather patterns, major event schedules, and historic crash data. The software allows troopers to spot problems ahead of time, helping to either stop predicted crashes from happening, or to be closer to a possible accident scene to help.  Read More…

How Ohio Enhanced its Public Safety Services with a Reduced Budget

In the midst of an $11 million budget cut in 2011, the Ohio Department of Public Safety (ODPS) had to devise a way to adequately provide their services under increasing strains to avoid risking the safety of Ohio citizens. ODPS didn’t end up providing the same level quality of service they did before, they far exceeded it. With the creation of the Critical Information and Communication Center, “the Hub,” the Department has integrated all components of public safety intelligence into one center where intelligence analysts can use the resources from all Ohio law enforcement agencies to quickly and effectively solve public safety issues throughout the state. Read More…