Backyard city hall

Local governments are releasing data in the hopes (and fears) that citizens will make it meaningful and "perhaps think differently about their city and its government." New York Times published a story today on city governments' release of formerly hard-to-get data sets which might change the way local governments "deliver programs, services and promises."

Advocates of these open-data efforts say they can help citizens figure out what is going on in their backyards and judge how their government is performing...

By releasing data in easy-to-use formats, cities and states hope that people will create sites or applications that use it in ways City Hall never would have considered.

Twitter in Congress

The Congressional Research Service (CRS) analyzed how members of Congress used Twitter during two one-week periods in July and August 2009. Among the data: as of Aug. 2009, 127 Representatives and 31 Senators were registered with Twitter and issued approximately 1,187 tweets during those periods. Of six categories that CRS used--position taking, press or web links, district or state activities, official congressional action, personal, and replies--the most frequent tweets were for press and web links.

From data collected on Sept. 2, 2009, on followers: Congress had a total of 1.7 million+ followers. Representatives had followers ranging from 130 to 13,000+, with the median Representative having 1,617 followers. Senators had followers ranging from 353 to 1.2 million+, with the median being 3,998 followers.

CRS concluded:

As Members continue to embrace new technologies, their use of Twitter and other forms of social media may increase. These mediums allow Members to communicate directly with constituents (and others) in a potentially interactive way that is not possible through mail or e-mail. For Members and their staff, the ability to collect and transmit real time information from constituents could be influential for policy or voting decisions.

Social Networking and Constituent Communication: Member Use of Twitter During a Two-Week Period in the 111th Congress, R40823 (pdf, 15pp/185kB), from Open CRS, Sept. 21, 2009

Climate decisions

National Academies created the Panel on Strategies and Methods for Climate Related Decision Support "to provide a framework and a set of strategies and methods for organizing and evaluating decision support activities related to climate change." In evaluating the growing need for climate-related decision support, the Panel offers:

Both conceptually and practically, people and organizations will have to adjust what may be life-long assumptions to meet the potential consequences of climate change. How and where should bridges be built? What zoning rules may need to be changed? How can targets for reduced carbon emissions be met? These and myriad other questions will need to be answered in the coming years and decades.

The published study "drawing on evidence from past efforts to organize science for improved decision making, develops guidance for government agencies and other institutions that will provide or use information for coping with climate change."

Informing Decisions in a Changing Climate, National Academies Press (available online as an Open Text Document)
2009, 200 pages

Tube session

YouTube's blog, Broadcasting Ourselves;), posts today of their new portal into the channels of U.S. Congress, one for the House and one for the Senate. According to YouTube:

As the 111th Congress kicks into gear, many of your elected leaders are starting their own YouTube channels. They're posting videos direct from their Washington offices, as well as clips of floor speeches and committee hearings alongside additional behind-the-scenes footage from Capitol Hill.

The New York Times (NYT) reports "several members of Congress have channels on YouTube." Congressional members from New York, Minnesota, Texas, Tennessee, Oklahoma, Missouri, Montana, California are a few already with channels. Hawaii members do not currently post.

YouTube's glossary states that "A channel is a user's page. It contains a user's profile information, videos, favorites, etc."

Just in ...

Engines of Democracy: Politics and Policymaking in State Legislatures, by Alan Rosenthal of the Eagleton Institute of Politics, likens the state legislature to the Little Engine That Could. "The legislature (and not the executive or the judiciary) is truly the engine of democracy." Acknowledging that state constitutions also provide for executive and judicial branches of government, "Yet in the order in which provisions are specified in constitutions, the legislative branch comes first, ahead of the executive and judiciary. The legislature is not only the first branch of government, it is the branch closest to the people." 466 pp.
JK2488 R68 2009 (ISBN 978-0-87289-459-4)


State & Local Government Procurement: A Practical Guide. Considered the flagship publication of the National Association of State Procurement Officials (NASPO), this updated guide covers, among other subjects, emerging issues such as:

• Pervasiveness of information technology and its implications
• Streamlined procurement processes and emphasis on performance-based contracting
• Convergence of federal and international policies and practices
• Vendor opposition to terms and conditions
• Growth of green purchasing, immigration enforcement and other social policies

422 pp.
JF1525 P85 N37 2008


Encouraging Bicycling and Walking: the State Legislative Role from the National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL) reports on recent trends in bicycling and walking and examines state legislative activity in funding, planning, and safety.

• Funding - Reviews efforts to finance biking and walking infrastructure and programs, including funding stream mechanisms
• Planning - Examines how states have integrated biking and walking into transportation plans and projects
• Safety - Discusses increasing safety for pedestrians and bicyclists, including creating new laws; increasing penalties; targeting enforcement; and increasing responsibility for motorists, pedestrians, and bicyclists

76 pp.
HN85 N37 (08-4)

Recent GAO reports

From the Government Accountability Office (GAO):

STATE AND LOCAL FISCAL CHALLENGES: Rising Health Care Costs Drive Long-term and Immediate Pressures, GAO-09-210T (pdf, 16pp/356kB), Nov. 19, 2008

GAO's statement addresses three key points:

• State and local governments' long-term fiscal challenges
• Rapidly rising health care costs which drive long-term fiscal difficulties
• Considerations involved in targeting supplemental funds to states through Medicaid during economic downturns:
  • delivering assistance as soon as needed
  • targeting assistance according to the extent of each state's downturn
  • temporarily increasing federal funding so that it turns off when states' economic circumstances improve
  • triggering so starting and ending points of assistance respond to indicators of economic distress

CONFIRMATION OF POLITICAL APPOINTEES: Eliciting Nominees' Views on Management Challenges within Agencies and across Government, GAO-09-194 (pdf, 155pp/1.13MB), Nov. 17, 2008

This report contains 35 appendixes, one for each of 28 major executive departments and agencies, and seven major government management areas. Each appendix lists key issues needing attention and a series of questions that Senate committees can use to assess nominees of the incoming administration in confirmation hearings.


Energy Efficiency: Potential Fuel Savings Generated by a National Speed Limit Would Be Influenced by Many Other Factors, GAO-09-153R (pdf, 10pp/304kB), Nov. 7, 2008

The report draws two conclusions:

• Reducing a vehicle's speed can potentially increase its fuel economy, depending on the vehicle's characteristics. Factors that enhance fuel economy: engine efficiency (e.g., fuel injection), electronic and computer controls, more efficient transmissions, and hybrid technology. Factors that decrease fuel economy: increases in vehicle weight, performance, and accessory loads.
• A reduced speed limit is only one of many factors that could affect total fuel use. Other factors include: drivers' compliance with a reduced speed limit, congestion in urban areas, road and weather conditions, driver behavior (driving less, buying fuel-efficient vehicles, aggressive driving), proper vehicle maintenance.

The Nation's Long-Term Fiscal Outlook: September 2008 Update, GAO-09-94R (pdf, 15pp/328kB), Nov. 6, 2008

GAO uses two fiscal simulations of what might happen to federal deficits and debt levels under varying assumptions. "Baseline Extended" follows the Congressional Budget Office's (CBO) September baseline estimates for 10 years and holds revenue and spending constant. The "Alternative" simulation is based on historical trends and recent policy preferences. GAO bases its simulations on Social Security and Medicare Trustees' projections and CBO's Medicaid projections. According to GAO, "Under either set of projections, the long-term outlook is unsustainable."

State and federal e-gov

The Brookings Institution published a report assessing state and federal electronic government in 2008. It ranks websites based on 18 criteria such as access to publications, databases, and audio and video clips; no ads or user fees; and having privacy and security policies; and additionally the number of online services executable on the site. Among the states, Delaware is first, while Hawaii ranks 46th. The top federal site is USA.gov.

Author Darrell West concludes with ways to improve e-gov, among them that websites should have: strong privacy and security policies, agency layouts similar to the portal page, navigational guides and site maps, search engines, and foreign language accessibility.

State and Federal Electronic Government in the United States, 2008 (pdf, 19pp/544kB), Aug. 26, 2008

Executive Summary

Just in...

A Spark Is Struck! Jack Hall and the ILWU in Hawaii by Sanford Zalburg. Jack Hall not only led the ILWU in Hawaii from 1944 to 1969 but made the union a powerful force through one of Hawaii's most transformative eras. This is a new edition of Zalburg's still definitive 1979 biography. 558 pp. (HD6509 H25 Z34 2007) (ISBN 0979064784)

See Star Bulletin review, 2.24.2008


Who Owns the Crown Lands of Hawaii? by Jon M. Van Dyke. The author, a University of Hawaii (UH) law professor, presents the complex history of crown lands, almost a million acres, which belonged to the monarchy. Crown lands are part of "ceded lands," a longstanding and contentious issue in the executive, legislative, and judicial arenas. 485 pp. (KFH451 V36 2008) (ISBN hardcover: 0824832100; paperback: 0824832117)

See Advertiser commentary, 2.13.2008


State-by-State Report on Authentication of Online Legal Resources was published by the American Association of Law Libraries (AALL) to answer the question, "How trustworthy are state-level primary legal resources on the Web?" Among the report's findings: "No state's online primary legal resources are authenticated or afford ready authentication by standard methods." 241 pp. (KF242 A12 M37 2007)

Also available online (pdf, 256pp/12MB)

Guide to Hawaii government

The 13th edition of Guide to Government in Hawaii has just been published. The Guide is a companion volume to the Directory of State, County and Federal Officials. Both are publications of the Library. The Guide describes state and county departments and their organization and agencies of the federal government having offices in Hawaii. Organizational charts of the state government, state departments, and the counties are also included.

Guide to Government in Hawaii (pdf, 255pp/2.2MB)
(available for complete download or by agency)