The Ferguson Group Blog

Technology in Local Communities

Local communities utilize new technologies on a daily basis to improve their service to citizens. The TFG Blog's Technology in Local Communities is a bi-monthly review that highlights examples of these innovative partnerships.

 

Esri Enables Federal Agencies to Open GIS Mapping Data to the Public

Mapping software giant Esri is now allowing users to choose an open data license that will make more public geospatial data to the public for free. If federal, state and local governments agree to release their data, it could mean a huge surge in the amount of ArcGIS data available to researchers and developers. Read More…

Surveillance Regulation Plays Catch-Up To Technology

While there are valid uses of surveillance technology, some say it has advanced faster than government is able to regulate it. As Congress begins discussing the topic, some states are already taking action. Read More…

Winds of Change: Floating Power Turbines Envisioned Off Oregon Coast

A Seattle Energy company received initial approval to build five floating wind turbines 16 miles off the Oregon coast. The massive project, which garnered the attention of the Administration of the Department of Energy, will generate 30-megawatts of electricity.  The $200 million project is expected to be operational by 2017. Read More…

U.S. Agency Ordered to Cancel License Plate Database Plan

Just days after the Immigration and Customs Enforcement Agency released a solicitation to access or buy databases for tracking license plates nationwide, its mother agency, the Department of Homeland Security, directed the cancellation of the request after it garnered significant criticism from privacy advocates. The use of license plate data has been used successfully to solve many different kinds of crimes, but privacy advocates argue that law enforcement could easily misuse the information.  Read More…

How to Jump-Start Analytics in Your City

The New York City Mayor’s Office of Data Analytics has become a groundbreaking program in the municipal analytics word for its development process and its real-world successes.  Program officers describe how they did it, and what other cities can do to follow their success. Read More…

States Brace for Clash between Utilities, Solar Advocates

The growing popularity of solar panels at homes and businesses is becoming a problem for states, which are caught in a battle between solar and utility advocates over rollover credits, or net-metering.  Utilities say that solar customers aren’t paying their fair share, and want surcharges for solar consumers to make up for it.  Advocates, however, remind regulators that solar only produces about 1 percent of total energy production in the U.S. Read More…

Chairman Hosts Twitter Town Hall on Water Infrastructure and Jobs

House Transportation and Infrastructure (T&I) Committee Chairman Bill Shuster (R-PA) is hosting a Twitter Town Hall on Tuesday, September 17^th to highlight the connections between the federal government’s investment in water infrastructure and jobs and economic growth.  The T&I Committee is attempting to move the Water Resources Reform and Development Act (WRRDA) this month and the Chair hopes that expanding the understanding of how important the bill is to the economy will increase support within the House. The latest WRRDA bill includes several reforms that supporters say will streamline project approvals and cut government red tape.  Leading into Tuesday’s Town Hall, he issued a YouTube video to set the stage.  On Tuesday, he expects to field a host of questions.  The Town Hall starts at 4:30pm (EST), and the hashtag is #WRRDA.  The last time Congress passed a water resources authorization bill was in 2008, overriding a veto from then-President Bush. 

Upcoming Climate and Energy Webcasts for State and Local Governments

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA),the Department of Energy (DOE), and others will host ten webinars this month to assist state and local governments as they explore and plan climate change and clean energy efforts. The webcasts will highlight resources available to local governments and present examples of successful programs and policies implemented on the state and local level.

April 3, 1:00-3:00 PM (EDT) – Draft National Rivers and Streams Assessment 2008-2009: A Collaborative Survey - This webcast seminar will discuss the Draft National Rivers and Streams Assessment (NRSA). The NRSA is a study on the health of the nation’s rivers and streams, from the largest “great rivers” to the smallest headwater streams. To register for this webcast, click here.

April 3, 2:00-3:30 PM (EDT) – TAP/NASEO Webinar: State Energy Planning - This webinar is sponsored by the U.S. Department of Energy Technical Assistance Program and the National Association of State Energy Officials (NASEO). NASEO representatives will discuss their recent analysis of 39 state energy plans and accompanying Guide to State Energy Planning. This webinar will focus on the necessary steps to create an effective state energy plan, will feature states that have recently completed the process, and highlight best practices from NASEO’s research. Click here to register!  

April 3, 2:00-3:30 PM (EDT) – CHP Webinar: Enabling Resilient Energy Infrastructure – Our recent natural disasters have highlighted the need to protect critical infrastructure facilities, to better prepare for energy emergencies and long-term electric grid outages, and to consider how to rebuild a more resilient grid. This webinar will highlight the role for combined heat and power (CHP) systems in critical infrastructure resiliency, business continuity, and emergency planning and operations. To learn more about CHP by participating in this webinar, click here!

April 4, 1:00-2:00 PM (EDT) – The Role of Alternative Fuel Vehicles in Emergency Preparedness - This webinar will cover the important role that alternative fuel vehicles played in the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy. Learn about energy assurance plans at the state and local level and how transportation technologies can play a part in these plans and in future emergencies. Click here to join the webinar on April 4^th!

April 5, Noon-1:00 PM (EDT) – Urban Growth Trends in U.S. Metropolitan Regions: A Tale of Two Cities - In the past few months, the Office of Sustainable Communities and the National Center for Smart Growth have released papers examining growth patterns in large U.S. cities. The two papers are based on different sets of data and cover different periods and in some cases report different results. Join this webcast to learn the results of these two research projects by clicking here.

April 9, 1:00-2:00 PM (EDT) - Long-Term Power Purchase Agreements for Wind Power: University Perspectives – This webinar will examine how colleges and universities can procure wind power via long-term power purchase agreements (PPAs). Webinar participants will learn about wind PPAs; the potential for wind PPAs to reduce energy costs and reduce an institution’s carbon footprint; and the influence of long-term contracts on decisions by project developers to build new generation facilities, such as wind farms. To register for this webinar, click here!

April 10, 1:00-2:00 PM (EDT) – Workshop Planner/ Adaptation Strategies Guide - This webinar will highlight both the Workshop Planner and the Adaptation Strategies Guide, and how a water sector utility can use them both when developing adaptation plans. To for more details and to participate on this webinar, click here.

April 11, 2:00-3:30 (EDT) – Financing Energy Upgrades for K-12 School Districts - In April, DOE and the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory will release “Financing Energy Upgrades for K-12 School Districts,” a guide to tapping into funding for energy efficiency and renewable energy improvement in schools. This webinar will introduce key financing principles and the range of options available to schools, as well as feature several schools districts who have successfully implemented projects using a diverse set of financing approaches. To register for this informative webinar, click here.

April 17, 1:00-2:30 PM (EDT) - Climate Change Adaptation for State and Local Governments, Part 2: Overcoming the Uncertainty Barrier to Adaptation - This is the second in a three-part webcast series. In Part II, experts and local government staff will address the challenge of planning for climate change in the face of uncertainty. Click here to register.

April 24, 11:00 AM–12:30 PM (MDT) – Tribal Renewable Energy Series Webinar: How Power Marketing Administrations Market Power and Work with Tribes - This webinar will discuss ways to promote tribal energy sufficiency and foster economic development and employment on tribal lands using renewable energy and energy efficiency technologies. Tribal leaders and staff who are interested in registering should click here.

Wednesday News Roundup

Every Wednesday, The Ferguson Group blog will be posting a series of articles published over the previous week that discuss topics of interest to local governments. Learn about emerging trends and keep up on key policy issues by browsing the TFG Wednesday News Roundup!

The Farm Bill Expires This Week. Does It Matter?

With the passing of the CR, Congress has extended their authority to authorize funding through March 27^th 2013, or until they can finalize appropriation laws.  Included within the CR is the funding that will allow programs, funded through the farm bill, to continue.  Read More…

DHS ‘fusion centers’ portrayed as pools of ineptitude, civil liberties intrusions

After the release of a two year examination report, the Senate investigators concluded that the Department of Homeland Security’s fusion centers do little to decrease terrorism, and are a drain of taxpayer dollars.  The Department of Homeland Security was quick to defend their fusion centers citing instances in cities that processed more than 22,000 suspicious activity reports.  Read More…

New Grant to Open Legislatures, Make Cities More Interactive

The executives behind Open Congress are expanding their site to encompass a local-government version of their current legislative tracking platform.  This will allow people in certain cities to track legislation, send emails to their lawmakers, and connect with people in their town over bills and laws.  Read More…

What Makes the Best Government Website?

Last month Government Technology release its 16^th annual “Best of the Web” survey of state and local government websites.  There were almost 100 entries and a panel of judges scored each one on amount of impact and efficiency.  Read More…