The City of Philadelphia through an Executive Order issued by Mayor Nutter, recently adopted an Open Data Policy, which can serve as a template for other communities. The Philadelphia Open Data Policy includes the following items: – A commitment to openness and transparency in government; – Establishment of an Open Data Working Group consisting ofRead… Read more »
Steve Denning recently wrote a great post titled How To Make Government Innovative Again. In his post Denning asks the following: Why isn’t the Government generally more agile? Why isn’t innovation part of everything government does? Denning’s answer to these questions are: “Simple. The constraints on talented people who work in government agencies are enormous.”Read… Read more »
My daughter Julia turned six months old the other day. At six months additional shots are required, so on Wednesday May 3rd Julia, Cheryl and I went to the doctor’s office for an appointment. After the shots were done and a very angry Julia let it be known what she thought of this visit, theRead… Read more »
Every year the Reason Foundation releases an Annual Privatization Report 2011 which provides a great overview of the privatization and public-private partnerships taking place in local governments across the country. Highlights include: 57 percent of city finance officers report their cities were less able to meet their financial needs in 2011 than in 2010 whileRead… Read more »
The key to success for many private sector corporations is innovation. Tapping into the knowledge of employees and customers results in improved or new products and services. In times of budget cuts and taxpayer resistance to increased spending, government at all levels needs to tap into creative ideas from employees and citizens as well. Mayor’sRead… Read more »
A few months ago I wrote a post about a Job Fair sponsored by Buffalo Mayor Byron Brown titled Job Fairs Are Great PR For Politicians But Ineffective Otherwise. The Buffalo News recently ran a follow-up article regarding the City of Buffalo Job Fair. While Mayor Brown hyped the fact that 1,500 “good-paying” jobs wereRead… Read more »
The state of Iowa is forming an agency dedicated to enforcing open government. With approval obtained from the state legislature the governor will appoint a nine-member board that includes up to three media representatives and three local government officials. The board will have the ability to fine representatives of many state executive branch departments orRead… Read more »
After a two year investigation, hearing from twenty five witnesses and receiving 5,000 pages of evidence, a Special Grand Jury report in Suffolk County, New York concluded that a small but powerful group of Suffolk County Officials intentionally corrupted and undermined the county Ethics Commission. Some of the amazing findings of the Grand Jury include:Read… Read more »
Over the past ten years the City of Carrollton Texas has grown in population from 80,000 residents to 120,000 residents. The City of Carrollton has also implemented a culture of managed competition estimated to have saved the city $30 million over the last decade. Despite an increase of over 40,000 residents, the city still operatesRead… Read more »
Several years ago I started my first blog Buffalo Ideas, while serving as Chief of Staff to the Buffalo Common Council. After I left the Common Council I moved my blog to Paul Wolf Ideas. Through my 17 years of local government employment I have experienced first hand the good, bad and the ugly ofRead… Read more »