TriMet’s Twitter town hall attracts a handful of tweeters
TriMet (OR) scheduled a Twitter chat with general manager Neil McFarlane to discuss a projected budget shortfall, but the turnout was less than expected. Original post
Tech
5 actions human services agencies should take now to make the most of the ACA
The Affordable Care Act (ACA) will expand health coverage in the United States by more than 35 million people. This expansion requires states to take a fresh look at eligibility and customer service operations, and develop new business processes for interacting with stakeholders. Existing IT systems are outdated, and under-resourced state agencies are challenged byRead… Read more »
Navigating the New GovLoop Redesign
If you have been on GovLoop recently (or even if you haven’t), you have probably noticed a few changes around the site. We appreciated your patience as we rolled out the seven new community pages last week, but the fun doesn’t end there! In addition to the launch of the newly focused GovLoop community pages,Read… Read more »
Field trip: City Hall
Pre-field trip: Debate on dress code – Blazers vs. Track Jackets Travel: Muni with clipper card tutorials for the bikers. SF City Hall Wiki trivia: Dome is the fifth largest in the world. Conference room: Freezing, fellows glad they had track jackets. Speakers: Steve Cawa – Chief of Staff to Mayor Lee Jay Nath –Read… Read more »
Is Social Media Useful for Engaging Your Constituents?
Town hall meetings, Twitter, hotlines, e-mail… The list of potential lines of communication goes on. There are more open lines of communication between agencies and the citizens they serve than ever before. Since the advent of the Internet, they are constantly evolving, particularly social media, to better serve the public will. But are we betterRead… Read more »
Purchasing preferences for veteran-owned businesses on the rise
Deltek Sr. Analyst Kyle Ridley reports. As the unemployment rate for Iraq- and Afghanistan-era veterans continues to climb, more states and localities are establishing purchasing preferences for veteran-owned businesses (VOBs). Current-war veteran unemployment is more than four percentage points higher than the national average of 8.5 percent. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, 13.1Read… Read more »
GovBytes: Street Surveillance – Good Governance or Poor Policy?
In a post 9/11 world, surveillance is becoming prominent as more resources are allocated to fighting terrorism. There are those who oppose surveillance, such as street cameras, out of fear that the government is becoming too powerful. There is also concern that increased surveillance may be bad fiscal policy. Government Technology reported that a 2005Read… Read more »
No rules here – we’re trying to accomplish something!
Edison’s quote about trying to accomplish things has always been one of my favourites. For me it highlights the problems that can occur when rules, guidelines and parameters are applied to something as fluid as engaging online. One of the things I find people ask for most when devising a ‘social strategy’ are previous examplesRead… Read more »
Beachfront, or Socialfront Property for Rent – No Bedbugs!
(From the Kings of Metaphor at KME…why should all the physical land, property owners and developers have all the fun?) That’s right, we’ve got some amazing un-real estate now for rent, in all the great places. Whether you’re looking for a quick getaway, or longer-term (monthly contracts available) socialfront property – we’ve got attractive optionsRead… Read more »
Esri Federal GIS Conference: I Have No Idea What GIS Is
Lately, we’ve been talking about Esri’s upcoming Federal GIS Conference, and I know what a lot of you may be thinking: “A conference completely devoted to discussing GIS sounds really cool, but I don’t know anything about GIS!” Is this you? Maybe you know of GIS, but feel like you don’t know enough to diveRead… Read more »