The Biden Administration and U.S. Department of Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack have announced $714 million in grant funding aimed at connecting thousands of rural residents across the U.S. with broadband technology.

NASA has awarded seven Women’s Colleges and Universities (WCUs) $5 million in funding to research and develop strategies that increase retention of women in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) degree programs and careers.

The National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) received 127 applications requesting $1.39 billion to support testing and research and development activities related to open and interoperable wireless networks.

The panel discussion entitled “Evolving Cybersecurity for Evolving Threats” featured New Hampshire Chief Information Officer Denis Goulet, and Steve Hodges, Chief Information Security Officer (CISO) with the Georgia Technology Authority. The panel also included Maria S. Thompson, State and Local Government Executive Government Advisor – Cybersecurity at Amazon Web Services, and Matt Singleton, Executive Strategist at CrowdStrike.

The National Association of Counties (NACo) has formed an Artificial Intelligence (AI) Exploratory Committee. The committee will examine emerging policies, practices, and potential applications and consequences of AI.

In a move to strengthen cybersecurity and citizen trust, Schenectady County, N.Y., has transitioned its official website, as well as email addresses, to a .gov domain. Only qualified U.S.-based government agencies can use .gov domains, which require stricter security controls.

The U.S. Department of Treasury has approved Federal funding for broadband infrastructure projects in Delaware and Idaho. The funds come from the American Rescue Plan’s Capital Projects Fund (CPF), part of President Biden’s Investing in America Agenda.

Montana Gov. Greg Gianforte signed a bill last week banning TikTok in the state, making the Treasure State officially the first in the nation to ban the popular social media app.

Sen. Mark Warner, D-Va., recently announced $1.8 million of funding or Virginia universities to research and develop AI capabilities to mitigate cyberattacks. 

A bipartisan group of policymakers recently introduced a House bill that aims to eliminate duplicative broadband programs at the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA).