Last night I ran into a political science student who will be graduating this December, like I am. I asked her what she would do after graduation, and not surprisingly she overlooked the question, like I usually do when someone asks for my post-graduation plans “Do you know Ashley?” said my friend. “I envied herRead… Read more »
The Washington Post reports today that the Secret Service is gearing up for a busy 2012. The Director of the Secret Service, Mark Sullivan, stated that 2012 will be “a very demanding and challenging year.” The Secret Service will have to continue to provide security for President Obama, Vice President Biden and their families, theRead… Read more »
It’s been an eventful few weeks in my neck of the woods. Let’s recap: 1.) Aug. 19: Thousands of motorcycle riders paid tribute to 9/11 with a massive ride through Northern Virginia, including Fairfax Co., causing major communications needs for commuters. 2.) Aug. 23: A once-in-a-lifetime earthquake strikes and rattles Virginia. 3.) Aug. 25-29: HurricaneRead… Read more »
The Joint Select Committee on Deficit Reduction, often called the “supercommittee,” met for the first time last Thursday. The 12-member committee is tasked with trimming $1.5 trillion from the federal budget over the next 10 years, and they must make that decision by Thanksgiving. If a decision cannot be made amongst the bipartisan committee, $1.2Read… Read more »
Deltek Associate Research Analyst Lindsay Clifton reports. Fairfax County’s FY 2012 balanced budget weighs in at $6.1 billion with the county turning a corner to produce a budget surplus. The budget will keep spending to a bare minimum by funding all necessary operational requirements and priorities and not expanding any current programs. As Fairfax CountyRead… Read more »
How can organizations reach beyond their traditional smokestacks and silos? Coordination mechanisms have existed for years, notes Naval Postgraduate School author Nancy Roberts, but they haven’t been used. But the availability of new web-based tools and the pressures from cost cuts, the war on terror, and emergency management may have created a new environment forRead… Read more »
This post is a repost of Greg Michener’s blog on ObservingBrazil.com. Check out the blog for other insights on Brazil government. Brazil unveiled tentative plans to make good on the Open Government Partnership (OGP), a multi-country, multi-stakeholder international initiative to advance greater transparency, openness, accountability, and participation in government. Brazil and the U.S. are theRead… Read more »
This summer, Google decided to take a stab at the social networking market, and created “Google+”. After accumulating over 18 million users in just a few months, it is reasonable to believe that Google+ is on the way to being as popular as other social networking sites such as Twitter, Foursquare, and Facebook. So nowRead… Read more »
In its first 15 months, Clipper card usage has grown to 500,000 transactions per weekday, according to the Metropolitan Transportation Commission (CA), but problems with the Bay Area regional farecard persist. Passenger complaints include unyielding turnstiles, overcharging, and out-of-service scanners. Officials from MTC, Bay Area Rapid Transit, San Francisco Muni, and Caltrain downplay the glitches,Read… Read more »
Federal agencies, like private sector companies, must be responsive to customer needs by offering information via mobile applications to serve the needs of the public. Developing public facing mobile applications are important for the same reasons that it is important for agencies to improve communications and public outreach of all kinds. Most federal agencies areRead… Read more »