The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) announced it has launched what it is describing as the “country’s largest effort to close the homework gap,” and has opened the application window for $7.17 billion of funding through the agency’s Emergency Connectivity Fund.

In light of recent cyberattacks against Federal agencies, the Department of Defense (DoD) is increasing its requirements for private sector contractors to ensure they are adequately securing and protecting contractor and DoD data.

The Federal Communications Commission (FCC), the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), and the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) announced an interagency agreement to coordinate the distribution of Federal broadband deployment funds.

From state and local governments to Federal agencies and the private sector, Active Directory (AD) – Microsoft’s proprietary directory service – is a key component of identity management, enabling administrators to manage permissions and access to network resources for every user across the enterprise.

There’s a long history in the higher reaches of the IT sphere of substantial cross-fertilization in the form of public sector CIOs moving across government levels, transferring among Federal, state and local jurisdictions, and then sometimes landing in the private sector.

Reps. Bill Foster, D-Ill., John Katko, R-N.Y., Jim Langevin, D-R.I., and Barry Loudermilk, R-Ga., have introduced legislation that aims to modernize the United States’ digital identity infrastructure and protect Americans from having their personal information stolen.

Data is at the center of the new race for technological superiority, however, data without analytics, automation, and technical know-how are just numbers on a page. Agencies need new approaches and on June 30 at a ‘Getting Gov the Right Data Skills’ webinar, Federal data experts revealed one method is to upskill an agency’s data workforce.

The Florida Department of Education is collecting data on professional credentialing programs to show how well they align with the demands of employers so the department can make informed decisions regarding policy and resource allocation. 

For once, the biggest problem with engineering effective IT modernization may not boil down to a lack of money to tackle the job. That conclusion was a top-line takeaway from Republicans, Democrats, and private sector experts at a hearing of the House Government Operations Subcommittee hearing today on how the COVID-19 pandemic exposed state and local governments’ antiquated IT systems, and what governments should do about it now that pandemic conditions are easing in many areas.

It was a rare opportunity at Government Technology’s “Seize the Moment” webinar on June 22 to hear Martin O’Malley – twice a government CEO as mayor of Baltimore and governor of the Old Line State – explain the best ways that CIOs can get the attention of their bosses on tech issues.