Wildfires have ravaged Northern California this fall, leaving more than 100,000 residents temporarily or permanently displaced. To improve communication with residents, and lessen the workload for damage inspectors, the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection partnered with GIS software developer Esri on a new interactive map that communicates the status of the homes and buildings across Napa and Sonoma counties.

On Monday Cisco announced that Michigan is the first state to join Cisco’s State Digital Acceleration (SDA) program, a 3-year targeted collaboration program to advance the state’s digital agenda. Cisco announced the SDA initiative in Detroit at the 2017 North American International Cyber Summit hosted by Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder.

State and local governments can now apply for the Smart Cities Council’s 2018 Readiness Challenge Grant. Five grant recipients receive a year’s worth of free mentoring; a custom-designed, on-site Readiness Workshop; and membership in the Smart Cities Leadership Circle.

For the last eight years, Grant Thornton has helped the National Association of State Chief Information Officers conduct its annual CIO Survey. Released earlier this month, the annual survey gives CIOs around the country an opportunity to voice their thoughts and opinions on matters of high importance. Graeme Finley, principal of Public Sector at Grant Thornton, gave MeriTalk State & Local a behind-the-scenes look at the survey, as well as his thoughts on this year’s findings.

While states are still in the process of deciding whether they are opting in or opting out of FirstNet, AT&T and FirstNet are moving ahead with public safety and innovation. The two organizations have launched an application developer program focused on first responders. 

NIC this month launched the first digital personal government assistant, Gov2Go, at the annual NASCIO conference. Gov2Go, which is hosted on Microsoft’s Azure public cloud, centralizes services citizens need at the local, state, and Federal level. While the platform was already in use in a few states, the recent launch marks the nationwide rollout.

This hurricane season has already been one of the most destructive on record. Verizon is stepping up its efforts to support public safety and relief efforts in storm-battered states. Most importantly, the company is focused on repairing damaged communications networks and infrastructure to help governments focus on other restoration efforts.

The National Association of State CIOs recognized excellence in state technology at all levels at the recently wrapped NASCIO 2017 annual conference. Four awards were announced: the State Technology Innovator Awards, the 2017 NASCIO State IT Recognition Awards, the Thomas M. Jarrett Cybersecurity Scholarship, and the Corporate Longevity Awards.

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