Data & Analytics

Accurate U.S. crime data demands more state participation

FBI Director Christopher Wray discussed federal data reporting from state and local jurisdictions, and how advanced technologies stand to help.

  • By Alexandra Kelley

HUD offers $2.8B for evidence-based homelessness solutions

Applicants for grants under the agency’s Continuum of Care program must support their proposals with data showing local homelessness challenges and program service metrics.

  • By Chris Teale

Data-driven HR management faces uphill climb

While data can help state and local human resources agencies make better decisions, legacy technology, skills gaps and staff resistance can stand in the way, a new report says.

  • By Chris Teale

Averting the next pandemic with real-time health data

The Center for Public Health Data would aggregate federal, state and local health data and make it accessible in real time so it can be used for decision-making as health threats unfold.

  • By Susan Miller

NACo guide demystifies GIS for elected leaders

The National Association of Counties said its “layman’s guide” will help new officials understand the technology’s impacts and its return on investment.

  • By Chris Teale

Election info must be more accessible to disabled, survey says

Understanding how to better communicate with voters with disabilities – regardless of access to the internet – is crucial to making elections more accessible.

  • By Susan Miller

Preventing wildfires could start with data from controlled burns

Sage combines machine learning with data from edge sensors to provide on-the-spot detection, monitoring and analysis of a burning area.

  • By Susan Miller

City tests smart, low-cost traffic cameras

A pilot in Phoenix will test solar-powered computer-vision cameras that passively capture, analyze and deliver data that can help improve pedestrian safety.

  • By Susan Miller

Heat.gov offers real-time data, resources to combat extreme heat

The website for the distribution of extreme heat-related information includes interactive data, tools, maps, forecasts and other resources.

  • By Edward Graham

Citizen scientists, Latino residents to track air quality in East Las Vegas

A community-led project in Southern Nevada is betting local Latino households and vendors can develop community-driven solutions to poor air quality using data collected from their own neighborhoods.

  • By Jennifer Solis, Nevada Current

Algorithm predicts racial segregation in cities

The machine learning algorithm interprets the changes in the decade between censuses and makes predictions about residential segregation.

  • By Susan Miller

ShotSpotter tech takes a hit

A report from the Surveillance Technology Oversight Project says the gunshot detection system used in 130 cities “fails as an investigative tool.”

  • By Susan Miller

Curb management data monetizes parking, boosts safety

Pittsburgh’s three-month pilot with Automotus has increased short-term parking efficiency, automated payments and delivered data the city can use to maximize revenue and inform parking policy.

  • By Stephanie Kanowitz

Watchdog says that racial and ethnic gaps remain in CDC's COVID-19 data

Centers for Disease Control data on race and ethnicity about COVID-19 is sometimes "missing, inconsistent or inaccurate," an inspector general report says.

  • By Natalie Alms
Featured eBooks

Mayors' initiative to harness data to improve government functions, constituent services

The new effort, funded by Bloomberg Philanthropies, has 22 members in the initial cohort and is expected to grow to 100 mayors during the next two years.

  • By Molly Bolan

E-bike pilots deliver micromobility travel insights, CO2 savings

Colorado is collecting and analyzing e-bike travel data to learn how residents are using the fastest-growing form of electric vehicle transport and reducing their energy consumption.

  • By Susan Miller

State launches center of excellence for human services analytics

The Center of Excellence on Health and Human Services Analytics and Application is the latest project from MD THINK, Maryland’s cloud-based shared services platform for multi-agency health and human services data and applications.

  • By Susan Miller

EWarrant platform simplifies uploading data into background check systems

Ohio’s new eWarrants interface is designed to improve the accuracy of state and federal background checks and streamline the process for filing warrants and protection orders.

  • By Susan Miller

Bad data and old tech limit COVID exposure tracking on flights

The system CDC uses to gather and share data on air passengers is outdated, making it hard to provide the information state and local public health authorities need for contact tracing.

  • By Natalie Alms

Mobile sensors collect community air quality data

New York’s new monitoring program uses sensor-equipped fleet vehicles to collect billions of high-resolution measurements that are then analyzed for a better understanding of pollution in disadvantaged communities.

  • By Susan Miller

Health agency looks to data governance to streamline services

After struggling to work with nearly 70 disparate databases and paper-based grants management, the Washington, D.C.’s Department of Behavioral Health will map its data sources into an integrated technology engine that will ease information sharing and analysis.

  • By Stephanie Kanowitz