Route Fifty

The Trillion Dollar Question Hanging Over Public-Private Partnerships

With Trump’s infrastructure plans still unclear, this week’s P3C Public-Private Partnership Conference & Expo in Texas is looking at the what ifs. One speaker noted: “an infrastructure plan is not something that can be done by executive order.”

Nextgov

Interior Dept. to Nature: Bring It On, We've Got Drones

The agency’s growing fleet of drones are being used in disaster response, search and rescue and in containing wildfires, mitigating avalanches and monitoring volcanic eruptions.

Route Fifty

Governors Assert Their Role in Federal Health Care, Infrastructure Conversations

"I think the rhetoric of the campaign has hit the reality of governing,” said Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe, also chair of the National Governors Association.

Route Fifty

Trump to Governors: ‘We’re Going to Start Spending on Infrastructure Big’

The president spoke to governors from around the U.S. at the White House on Monday about a range of topics.

Route Fifty

One Lax State Can Make the Other 49 Vulnerable to a Cyberattack

“If it’s your state and your system, they’re going to say, ‘The governor was responsible.’”

Route Fifty

Kentucky Gov. Matt Bevin on Medicaid: ‘We Need to Rethink the System’

GOP and Democratic governors were at odds as they convened for their winter meeting over possible changes to the health care entitlement program.

Route Fifty

CDC: Drug Overdose Deaths Have Doubled Since 1999

The drugs that are killing people have evolved—from pills to heroin to fentanyl.

Route Fifty

Mayors to Congress: We Need to Be a Part of the ACA Conversation

“You’re going to hear from mayors loudly and clearly on these issues because we’re the ones that are going to have to deal with the people.”

Nextgov

Industry Still Waiting on Trump's Cyber Policy with Anxiety, Cautious Optimism

With few tea leaves to read on the new administration’s cyber policy, industry officials are both hopeful and deeply concerned.

Route Fifty

Chicago Clears Red-Light Camera Vendor Involved in Bribery

Also in our State and Local Daily Digest: Arizona proposal on protesters decried by free speech advocates; whooping cough outbreak in Kentucky; activists shut down Portland City Council meeting.

Route Fifty

The Federal Government’s Reversal: Let the States Deal With Transgender Kids

The Departments of Education and Justice released revised guidelines on how schools should handle gender-identity issues.

Route Fifty

Trump’s Unproven Voter Fraud Claims Put Secretaries of State in Spotlight

When top state election officials gathered in D.C. last week, details about the president’s proposed voter fraud inquiry were unclear.

Nextgov

Trump’s New Chief Digital Officer is Already Gone

Gerrit Lansing made the move to the White House in January after serving as the Republican National Committee’s chief digital officer since 2015.

News

A Pep Talk for Federal Employees from NIH’s Collins

Civil servants are “an amazing group of dedicated, talented and hard-working people who are often unappreciated,” he says.

Nextgov

18F Wants to Change the Rules, Not Break Them, Leader Says

Part of hacking government includes finding policies and regulations that are barriers, Technology Transformation Service Commissioner Rob Cook said.

Route Fifty

Welcome to the New and Improved Route Fifty

As we continue to connect state and local leaders across the United States, our laboratory of ideas continues to grow.

Route Fifty

The Worst State Capitals to Live In; Kansas House Overrides Brownback’s Budget Veto

Also in our State and Local Daily Digest: Early impacts of Philly’s soda tax; Florida city faces whistleblower lawsuit; and officials in Mich. city want more halfway house regulations.

News

Mattis Takes on the Pentagon Bureaucracy

The secretary of Defense wants to reform the sprawling department’s business functions and reorganize key executive offices.

Nextgov

Trade Groups: Other Countries Might Mirror DHS' Social Media Vetting For Travelers, And That's a Cyberthreat

DHS Secretary John Kelly's suggestion that foreign travelers may be required to hand over their social media accounts could violate privacy and cybersecurity standards, several trade groups have said.