Podcast
Priorities Podcast
Hosted by StateScoop · EN
Each Wednesday, StateScoop’s Priorities Podcast explores the latest in state and local government technology news and analysis. Listen to in-depth conversations with government and industry’s top executives, and learn about trending stories affecting state and local IT leaders ranging from modernization and digital accessibility to the latest advances in generative artificial intelligence.
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States are trying to reduce SNAP error rates to keep the program alive
Jan 1400:24:57Summary readyChanges to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program brought about by H.R. 1 could mean millions or even billions of dollars of additional costs for states. The civic tech nonprofit Code for America is helping some states reduce their error rates, through technology and process changes, to help them reduce the benefit amount they’d be required to cover, as opposed to by federal dollars, after the Donald Trump administration’s sweeping changes. Rebecca Piazza, executive director of safety net strategy at Code for America, says the expanded work reporting requirements and financial restructuring of the program is putting “a lot more strain on programs and program staff” in the states. “We’re really encouraging states to use data to prioritize where they should be focusing,” she says. “What are the areas of highest impact of bringing down that error rate?” AI and other automation technologies can help, she says, by spotting blurry documents, extracting data from uploaded images of pay stubs or combining multiple applications mistakenly submitted by the same person. This is critical work, she says, because states that aren’t able to reduce their SNAP error rates and lower the benefit amounts they’re required to cover, could put their program “at risk” — for states, SNAP participation is not mandatory. This week’s top stories: Texas Gov. Greg Abbott last week appointed Amanda Crawford, the state’s chief information officer and executive director of the Texas Department of Information Resources as the state’s commissioner of insurance. Officials said they’ll soon announce a replacement to lead the state’s technology department. New York State’s technology office this week announced Eleonore Fournier-Tombs, a United Nations University researcher, has been appointed as chief artificial intelligence officer, replacing Shreya Amin, who spent less than a year in the role. The state also named a new chief digital officer. Florida is strengthening animal welfare protections with the passage of Dexter’s Law, a new statute designed to prevent repeat animal abuse and improve accountability across the state. Named after a shelter dog whose inhumane death in 2023 sparked public outrage, the law responds to growing concerns that individuals convicted of animal cruelty were still able to adopt or obtain pets with little oversight. New episodes of StateScoop’s Priorities Podcast are posted each Wednesday. For more of the latest news and trends across the state and local government technology community, subscribe to the Priorities Podcast on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Soundcloud or Spotify.
Summary'Privacy enforcement really woke up' in 2025
Jan 700:27:25Summary readyLast year was “the year when [privacy] bills came online,” says David Botero, a state data privacy fellow at the nonprofit IAPP. He joins the Priorities Podcast to reflect on a year that he also called “the year of amendments,” in which a handful of states changed their privacy laws in influential ways. He says the year also brought new trends in how sensitive data is classified. The coming year, Botero says, will bring “an expanded right of access for automated decision making” linked to the right of consumers to appeal decisions made by such systems. Cobun Zwiefel-Keegan, IAPP's managing director, says on the episode that it’s “an exciting time” for data-privacy policy. Last year, he says, was the “year that privacy enforcement really woke up in the states for these comprehensive consumer privacy laws.” And this year is continuing to bring change. On Jan. 1, comprehensive data privacy laws in three states — Indiana, Kentucky and Rhode Island — became enforceable, making for a total of 19 such active laws nationwide. Top stories this week: New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy on Monday signed a bill that established an innovation authority in the state Treasury Department and codifies the state’s Office of Innovation. New Jersey Gov.-elect Mikie Sherrill on Monday also announced that Dave Cole, the state’s chief innovation officer, will continue on in his role under her administration. Matt Fraser, who’d served as New York’s chief technology officer since January 2022, under former Mayor Eric Adams, stepped down on Dec. 31. But the city’s technology priorities under newly inaugurated Mayor Zohran Mamdani remain unclear. He named Ruby Choi, OTI’s deputy commissioner for strategic initiatives, as acting CTO, but has revealed little else about his plans for technology policy. There were many big stories in state and local government IT last year, but five stood out from the rest. StateScoop’s Keely Quinlan chronicled them in a piece called “Five state tech stories that made 2025.” New episodes of StateScoop’s Priorities Podcast are posted each Wednesday. For more of the latest news and trends across the state and local government technology community, subscribe to the Priorities Podcast on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts,Soundcloud or Spotify.
SummaryAI, budget and accessibility are rising concerns for state CIOs
Dec 1700:32:27Summary readyThe past year has brought shifting priorities for states’ top technology officials. Artificial intelligence tops the list of annual priorities published by the National Association of State Chief Information Officers. Accessibility is also in the spotlight as states rush to remediate their websites ahead of an April deadline set by the Department of Justice. And budget concerns are mounting. “It’s the reality of what the states are seeing and the CIOs realize that,” NASCIO Executive Director Robinson says on the latest Priorities Podcast. “The warning flags are up in terms of revenue shortfalls. … CIOs are hearing from agency customers that their budgets are going to be tapped.” Following months of protest from state lawmakers, attorneys general and civil rights organizations, President Donald Trump signed an executive order last week banning states from enforcing their laws regulating artificial intelligence, potentially setting the stage for widespread legal challenges. The Dallas City Council voted last week to install cameras backed by artificial intelligence on yard waste and trash collection trucks, in an effort to combat illegal dumping and improve neighborhood cleanliness. The new system is hoped by officials to provide a more accurate picture of what’s happening across the city. New York City officials last week announced the launch of a free digital learning hub for residents of the city’s public housing developments. The resources, which are available thanks to a broadband subsidy program called Big Apple Connect, are designed to help residents complete basic tasks like connect to the internet or use digital devices. New episodes of StateScoop’s Priorities Podcast are posted each Wednesday. For more of the latest news and trends across the state and local government technology community, subscribe to the Priorities Podcast on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts,Soundcloud or Spotify.
Summary
Priorities Special Episode — Elections
Mar 12, 2024Tap to summarizeOn this week’s Priorities podcast, two election experts — Ted Allen, a professor at Ohio State University, and Victoria Bassetti, senior adviser at States United Democracy Center — join us to discuss voting as we head into the 2024 election season. With the U.S. 2024 presidential election 8 months away, this episode addresses how state and local governments are preparing for the upcoming election in their states, including election security, voting administration and recent legislation that’s had an impact on election officials and poll workers nationwide.
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Washington's AI order could boost awareness in government, CIO says
Feb 15, 2024Tap to summarizeOn this week's Priorities podcast, Washington state Chief Information Officer Bill Kehoe says he thinks the state's recent executive order could help agencies better understand the many implications AI has for their operations. https://statescoop.com/washington-governor-signs-ai-order-plotting-yearlong-policy-path/ StateScoop’s Priorities podcast is available every Thursday. Listen more here. prioritiespodcast.com
Transcribe →Why researchers are worried about hackable AI
Feb 1, 2024Tap to summarizeOn this week's Priorities podcast, researchers at the National Institute for Standards and Technology warn of new artificial intelligence threats. https://statescoop.com/nist-security-threats-ai-state-local/ StateScoop’s Priorities podcast is available every Thursday. Listen more here. http://www.prioritiespodcast.com/
Transcribe →Inside Code for America's new food benefits playbook
Jan 11, 2024Tap to summarizeOn this week's Priorities podcast, Code for America's Eleanor Davis and No Kid Hungry's Marisa Kirk-Epstein explain a new playbook designed to help state governments connect students to nutritious food options over the summer. statescoop.com/code-for-america-playbook-summer-ebt-program/ StateScoop’s Priorities podcast is available every Thursday. Listen more here. prioritiespodcast.com
Transcribe →How Nevada’s IT restructuring is improving services
Jan 4, 2024Tap to summarizeOn this week’s Priorities podcast, Nevada CIO Timothy Galluzi says the move of the state’s IT office from the Department of Administration to the Office of the Governor is helping his team become a “great enabler of government services." StateScoop’s Priorities podcast is available every Thursday. Listen more here. http://www.prioritiespodcast.com/
Transcribe →Inside Kansas' approach to artificial intelligence
Dec 28, 2023Tap to summarizen this week's Priorities podcast, two Kansas information technology officials say their state is preparing for the embrace of artificial intelligence as it approaches key state priorities like cybersecurity and digital services. statescoop.com/kansas-generative-artificial-intelligence-policy/ Also on the podcast, Maryland's new CIO Greg Rogers offers his thoughts on how the state can continue to expand and grow its cybersecurity posture. StateScoop’s Priorities podcast is available every Thursday. Listen more here. prioritiespodcast.com
Transcribe →How Scottsdale, Ariz., uses data to monitor short-term rentals
Apr 20, 2023Tap to summarizeOn the Priorities podcast, Scottsdale, Arizona, CIO Bianca Lochner says the city’s GIS and data-driven portal around short-term rentals will allow residents to track where short-term rentals are in the city — and find out what city government can do about it. https://statescoop.com/list/announcing-the-winners-of-the-2022-localsmart-awards/ https://str.scottsdaleaz.gov https://statescoop.com/bloomberg-philanthropies-city-data-alliance/ In the news this week: While more than half of Americans prefer to interact with government agencies online, only about a quarter of them actually use the digital government services agencies develop, according to new research from Deloitte. https://statescoop.com/government-digital-services-online-deloitte-survey/ The Bloomberg Center for Cities officially opened its doors at the Harvard Kennedy School this week. https://statescoop.com/harvard-opens-bloomberg-center-for-cities/ New York City opened its fifth Gigabit Center, this one in Staten Island, this week. https://statescoop.com/fifth-nyc-gigabit-center-opens-staten-island/ StateScoop’s Priorities Podcast is available every Thursday. Listen more here. www.prioritiespodcast.com
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