Weekly

Priorities Podcast

Each Wednesday, StateScoop’s Priorities Podcast explores the latest in state and local government technology news and analysis. Listen to in-depth conversations with government and industry’s top executives, and learn about trending stories affecting state and local IT leaders ranging from modernization and digital accessibility to the latest advances in generative artificial intelligence.

Inside Washington state’s award-winning procurement and innovation programs

Wendy Wickstrom, of WaTech, and Nicholas Stowe, Washington state's outgoing chief technology officer, share how a procurement challenge and an innovation and modernization program are ensuring the…

Nov 19, 2025

The shutdown led states to ‘fundamentally rethink’ their relationships with the federal government

Justin Marlowe, professor at the University of Chicago's public policy school, says the government shutdown has accelerated a decades-long trend of states relying less on the federal…

Nov 12, 2025

Redesigning a ‘repetitive and clunky’ learning program with AI

Indiana’s Robert Fulk shares how AI fueled a training program revamp. Results for America’s Patrick Carter shares why he thinks evidence-based policymaking is on the rise.

Nov 5, 2025

How Kansas lost the ‘weird shortcodes’ and modernized its UI system

Kansas Labor Secretary Amber Shultz outlines a two-year project that transformed the state's unemployment insurance system.

Oct 29, 2025

What happens to disaster relief during a shutdown?

Ratna Dougherty, an assistant professor at the University of South Florida, discussed the impact of the federal government shutdown on FEMA and disaster relief. The shutdown also…

Oct 22, 2025

‘Uncertainty’ is the word of the year for state CIOs

Doug Robinson, executive director of the National Association of State Chief Information Officers

Oct 15, 2025

Inside NYC’s Digital Inclusion Week

Digital Inclusion Week is underway in New York. Paolo Balboa, the city's chief digital equity officer, breaks down why internet is a "basic commodity" that everyone should…

Oct 8, 2025

Why geography matters in emergency messaging

James Barros, administrator of the Emergency Management Agency in Hawaii, says emergency alerts should consider users' locations.

Oct 1, 2025

Your Hosts

Jake Williams

Vice President — Content & Community

@jakewilliamsdc

Jake Williams is the vice president of content and community for StateScoop and EdScoop. He's spent nearly a decade in the government IT market, covering the ins and outs of state and local government, as well as higher education. He started his journalism career in his native Pennsylvania and has also worked as a reporter for Campaigns & Elections magazine.