Government, policy, and civic life — what's changing and what it means for you.

COMMENTARY | Residents receive information through systems that sit between the publisher and public, like AI and search engines. Accountability, then, becomes harder to follow.

A Defense Department official told Nextgov/FCW that the agency is “rolling out additional apprenticeship positions over the next few weeks.”

More state leaders are either banning or severely curtailing workers from using nonpublic information to profit on the platforms amid worries of wagering on government actions.

Lee County residents demand pause on proposed data center, citing noise pollution, environmental impacts and a lack of transparency.

Supporters testified that the FEMA Act would help disaster survivors and local governments more easily access assistance.

The new guidance from FEMA would require states to take various steps on elections before receiving funds. Government groups criticized the move as an overreach.

An opt-out model for court date reminders can help reduce court date no-shows, which have significant time and financial costs for state and local governments.

Kathy Hochul said the one-year ban on hyperscale data centers comes alongside an effort to establish standards for their development and prevent residents footing the bill.

COMMENTARY | The data suggest the workforce reduction reshaped not just the size of government, but the expertise available to carry out its work, one expert argues.

Efforts at the federal level generated a lot of headlines, but at the state level, where the goal is delivery, a lot more progress can be made, said the head of the Georgetown University-based center.

COMMENTARY | The speed of decision-making matters for those in charge of government programs. AI can change that process from months to days, hours or minutes.

COMMENTARY | Residents receive information through systems that sit between the publisher and public, like AI and search engines. Accountability, then, becomes harder to follow.

A Defense Department official told Nextgov/FCW that the agency is “rolling out additional apprenticeship positions over the next few weeks.”

More state leaders are either banning or severely curtailing workers from using nonpublic information to profit on the platforms amid worries of wagering on government actions.

Supporters testified that the FEMA Act would help disaster survivors and local governments more easily access assistance.

The new guidance from FEMA would require states to take various steps on elections before receiving funds. Government groups criticized the move as an overreach.

An opt-out model for court date reminders can help reduce court date no-shows, which have significant time and financial costs for state and local governments.

Kathy Hochul said the one-year ban on hyperscale data centers comes alongside an effort to establish standards for their development and prevent residents footing the bill.

COMMENTARY | The data suggest the workforce reduction reshaped not just the size of government, but the expertise available to carry out its work, one expert argues.

Efforts at the federal level generated a lot of headlines, but at the state level, where the goal is delivery, a lot more progress can be made, said the head of the Georgetown University-based center.

COMMENTARY | The speed of decision-making matters for those in charge of government programs. AI can change that process from months to days, hours or minutes.

State leaders must consider how workforce-related data can identify not only pain points but also solutions, one expert says.

The state will tax data center electricity but plans to reduce emissions at the facilities and secure environmental protections went nowhere.