ProGov21 Policy Library

Online and Observed: Student Privacy Implications of School-Issued Devices and Student Activity Monitoring Software

Type Policy Brief or Report

Year 2021

Level School District

State(s) All States

Source Center for Democracy & Technology

Policy Areas Education, Data & Technology

During the COVID-19 pandemic, many school districts have introduced student activity monitoring software and other digital tools aimed at facilitating remote classroom management and driving student engagement. Though helpful, these tools can also be intrusive. This report examines...

The Right to Know: How to Fulfill the Public’s Right of Access to Police Records

Type Policy Brief or Report

Year 2019

Level City or Town, County, State

State(s) California

Source American Civil Liberties Union of California

Policy Areas Democracy & Governance

Democracy depends on the public’s right to know what its government is doing so it can hold officials accountable. California voters recognized the fundamental importance of public access to documents by enshrining the right of access in the state constitution. But the right of access...

A Public Interest Primer on Charter Schools

Type Policy Brief or Report

Year 2020

Level City or Town, County

State(s) All States

Source In the Public Interest

Policy Areas Education

The rapid growth in the number of charter schools amounts to the privatization of public education. These schools receive public education money and because of this are often referred to as “public schools,” but this is a mischaracterization. Charter schools are privately operated...

Social and Behavioral Sciences Team 2016 Annual Report

Type Policy Brief or Report

Year 2016

Level National

State(s) All States

Source National Science and Technology Council

Policy Areas Democracy & Governance, Housing, Public Safety, Health, Finance & Procurement, Economic Justice, Civil Rights, Environment & Natural Resources, Energy, Education

The Social and Behavioral Sciences Team 2016 Annual Report highlights SBST's progress implementing the President's directive over the past year in eight key policy areas: promoting retirement security, advancing economic opportunity, improving college access and affordability, responding...

Tracking Body Camera Implementation

Type Fact Sheet or Infographic

Year 2015

Level City or Town

State(s) All States

Source Campaign Zero

Policy Areas Public Safety, Data & Technology

Body cameras are rapidly becoming the norm in communities across the country. Campaign Zero reviewed available police department body camera policies from the largest 30 cities in America to determine whether this new technology is being implemented in ways that ensure accountability...

1997 Ramsey County Ordinance 480 Requiring Candidates to File a Campaign Finance Report

Type Ordinance or Resolution

Year 1997

Level County

State(s) Minnesota

Source Ramsey County Board of Commissioners

Policy Areas Democracy & Governance

This ordinance requires committees and candidates to file a campaign finance report within 14 days of having donations or reimbursements in excess of $750. The campaign or committee must continue to file reports before January 31st, and for candidates who will appear on the ballot...

Cutting Corners: How Government Contractors Harm the Public in Pursuit of Profit

Type Policy Brief or Report

Year 2016

Level City or Town, State

State(s) All States

Source In the Public Interest

Policy Areas Finance & Procurement

Government contractors are incentivized to cut corners to show that they are a “cheaper” alternative to non-contracted works, often resulting in deception and lack of transparency that harms workers, the public, and the environment, while leading to cost overruns. Public officials...

Fair Elections Program Contribution Limitations and Requirements

Type Ordinance or Resolution

Year 2022

Level City or Town

State(s) District of Columbia

Source City of Washington, D.C.

Policy Areas Democracy & Governance

This ordinance limits campaign contributions from non-resident donors to an aggregate dollar amount and requires campaigns to maintain identification records for non-resident donors. ...

Long Beach Resolution Promoting Language Accessibility

Type Ordinance or Resolution

Year 2013

Level City or Town

State(s) California

Source City of Long Beach

Policy Areas Civil Rights, Democracy & Governance, Community Development

This resolution delineates requirements for Long Beach government efforts to increase language accessibility. According to this ordinance, all public contact positions shall have access to a directory of qualified bilingual staff; departments shall share employee translation and interpretation...

The Other Environmental Regulators: How States Unevenly Enforce Pollution Laws

Type Policy Brief or Report

Year 2021

Level State

State(s) All States

Source Good Jobs First

Policy Areas Environment & Natural Resources

Upon the creation of the Clean Air Act, the Clean Water Act and the Toxic Substances Control Act, Congress granted the EPA primary responsibility for meeting anti-pollution goals, but allowed the EPA to delegate enforcement authority to state agencies. However, some state enforcement...

Memphis Blues: How Corporate Property Tax Breaks and Stadium Subsidies are Sapping the City’s Fiscal Strength

Type Policy Brief or Report

Year 2014

Level City or Town

State(s) Tennessee

Source Good Jobs First

Policy Areas -

The City of Memphis has deliberately avoided its municipal pension obligations at the same time it has granted a series of costly property tax abatements, such as payments in lieu of taxes (PILOTs), to large corporations and sports franchises. For every year between 2009 and 2012,...

2004 Los Angeles Big Box Zoning Ordinance 176166

Type Ordinance or Resolution

Year 2004

Level City or Town

State(s) California

Source Los Angeles City Council

Policy Areas Environment & Natural Resources, Community Development, Public Spaces, Economic Justice

This ordinance requires planned superstores to complete an economic impact analysis before seeking approval for their projects. These reports shall identify whether the superstore would result in the physical displacement of any jobs and businesses; the demolition of housing; the...

2013 San Francisco Ordinance 121017 Regulating Open Data Requirements

Type Ordinance or Resolution

Year 2013

Level City or Town, County

State(s) California

Source San Francisco Board of Supervisors

Policy Areas Democracy & Governance, Data & Technology

This ordinance amends a prior open data policy that empowered San Francisco's Committee on Information Technology to establish rules and standards applicable to all city departments regarding the release of data to the city's online data portal. This ordinance establishes the positions...

Madison Network Security Policies and Procedures

Type Policy Brief or Report

Year 2022

Level City or Town

State(s) Wisconsin

Source City of Madison

Policy Areas Data & Technology, Democracy & Governance

Data de-identification is the process of modifying or removing personally identifiable information from datasets in a way that minimizes the risk of unintended disclosure of individuals' identities. This report outlines the fundamentals of data de-identification within the educational...

A County Manager’s Guide to Shared Services in Local Government

Type Policy Brief or Report

Year 2013

Level County

State(s) All States

Source IBM Center for the Business of Government

Policy Areas Democracy & Governance

Shared Service Agreements are contracts or agreements that expand access to quality services while promoting collaboration and innovation between multiple local governments. This guide outlines best practices for establishing these agreements, highlights successful case studies, and...

2020 Seattle Ordinance 119803 Police Name Tags

Type Ordinance or Resolution

Year 2020

Level City or Town

State(s) Washington

Source Seattle City Council

Policy Areas Public Safety

In 2000, the Seattle City Council passed legislation that requires police officers to wear unobscured name tags that display an officer’s first initial and last name. This ordinance amends the Seattle Municipal Code by prohibiting officers from using a mourning band to cover the serial...

Blocked: Why Some Companies Restrict Data Access to Reduce Competition and How Open APIs Can help

Type Policy Brief or Report

Year 2017

Level National

State(s) All States

Source Center for Data Innovation

Policy Areas Data & Technology

Businesses in the real estate, financial services, and air travel industries have taken steps to limit third-party access to their data in ways that restrict competition, reduce market transparency, and harm consumers. In order to prevent this behavior, this report recommends that...

Turnaround: Fixing New York City’s Buses

Type Policy Brief or Report

Year 2016

Level City or Town

State(s) New York

Source Transit Center

Policy Areas Transportation & Mobility

Bus ridership in New York City is rapidly declining. In order to attract riders, buses must become faster, more reliable, and more attractive as a transit option. This report lays out best practices to improve New York’s ailing bus system. Strategies focus on redesigning the bus network...

Closing the Books: How Government Contractors Hide Public Records

Type Policy Brief or Report

Year 2015

Level State

State(s) All States

Source In the Public Interest

Policy Areas Finance & Procurement

This report provides case studies that illustrate how private contractors hide three key types of information: the fees they charge the public, how they spend public funds, and details on the quality of public services. Decision-makers should adopt strong sunshine laws that require...

Big Business Bias: Employment Discrimination and Sexual Harassment at Large Corporations

Type Policy Brief or Report

Year 2019

Level State, National

State(s) All States

Source Good Jobs First

Policy Areas Economic Justice, Civil Rights, Public Safety

An examination of federal and state court records shows that the vast majority of large corporations throughout the U.S. economy have made payments to plaintiffs in at least one employment discrimination or harassment lawsuit since the beginning of 2000. These include individual and...

The New Math on School Finance: Adding Up the First-Ever Disclosure of Corporate Tax Abatements’ Cost to Public Education

Type Policy Brief or Report

Year 2018

Level City or Town, State, School District

State(s) All States

Source Good Jobs First

Policy Areas Economic Justice, Education

The Governmental Accounting Standards Board (GASB) Statement 77 requires most state and local government bodies, including school districts, to annually disclose the costs of corporate tax abatements. As a result of the new rule, thousands of America’s public school districts are...

Making Smart Decisions About Smart Cities

Type Policy Brief or Report

Year 2017

Level City or Town

State(s) California

Source American Civil Liberties Union of California

Policy Areas Finance & Procurement, Data & Technology

“Smart city” products are often touted as cost-efficient solutions to providing government services and addressing societal challenges, but in reality these technologies are no more intelligent than the data and algorithms behind them. Like other tools, their effectiveness depends...

Why You Should Be Wary of Privatization

Type Policy Brief or Report

Year 2020

Level City or Town

State(s) All States

Source In the Public Interest

Policy Areas Finance & Procurement

While privatization occurs under different names, such as outsourcing, contracting out, and public-private partnership, it always removes a public good from public control and places it under the control of a private entity. The specifics of these deals vary, but the consequences...

City of Saint Paul: Limited English Proficiency Plan

Type Policy Brief or Report

Year 2011

Level City or Town

State(s) Minnesota

Source City of Saint Paul

Policy Areas Community Development, Economic Justice, Civil Rights

One in five City of Saint Paul (City) residents speaks a language other than English in their homes. This means that increasingly City employees are providing services to individuals who may be limited English proficient (LEP). This Limited English Proficiency Plan outlines and describes...

2012 New York City Initiative 801 Requiring Police Officers to Identify Themselves in Interactions

Type Ordinance or Resolution

Year 2012

Level City or Town

State(s) New York

Source New York City Council

Policy Areas Civil Rights, Public Safety

The initiative requires all NYPD officers to identify themselves in every law enforcement related interaction. The initiative requires officers to state the reason for the contact and provide contact information for the civil review board when the contact does not end in arrest....

ProGov21 Policy Library

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