State and Local

At its core, the backlash against Flock has little to do with automated license plate readers. Instead, amid growing opposition to AI and federal law enforcement, Flock cameras have suffered from being in the wrong place at the wrong time.

More troubling than any effects on competition the decree will have is what it does to antitrust itself: It uses competition law to enact industrial policy goals that have little to do with competition.

For policymakers to bolster the global competitiveness and innovation capacity of their regions, they must first understand their regions’ strengths and weaknesses. This report—by 11 think tanks from the Global Trade and Innovation Policy Alliance (GTIPA)—benchmarks 213 regions of 13 transatlantic countries using 14 commonly available innovation indicators.

Data centers can deliver substantial tax revenue, jobs, infrastructure investment, and lower utility costs when communities adopt policies that capture their benefits while managing local impacts.

Montgomery County’s new data center moratorium will do little for the environment, but plenty to weaken growth, deter investment, and undermine the infrastructure powering AI.

The Commission should thoughtfully consider AT&T’s petition because it could catalyze the retirement of outdated copper networks, accelerate network modernization, and advance the transition to a modern, all-IP communications ecosystem.

Technology exists, and policy instruments are available, to develop a new, state-led model of water governance for data centers and other large industrial users. What’s missing is institutional coordination, regulatory specificity, and a set of standardized mechanisms and metrics.

Rather than creating a new funding program for the Multi-State Information Sharing and Analysis Center, Congress should incorporate its funding into the reauthorization of the State and Local Cybersecurity Grant Program. This approach would preserve critical cybersecurity services while improving coordination between the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency and the Center for Internet Security.

Alex Ambrose speaks about wearable AI in emergency response on the panel "Governance, Oversight, and Accountability in Technology Enabled Emergency Management," hosted by the NALEO Institute on Technology and AI in Emergency Management.

Cities that are successfully scaling AI are investing in workforce upskilling alongside governance and technology deployment. Case studies from Washington, DC, San Jose, Seattle, and Cleveland show that employee training and AI literacy are critical to turning pilot projects into lasting improvements in public service delivery.