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Three Must-Have Local Government Web Search Tools
If you frequently need to search the Web for information about how other local governments in Washington or other parts of the country are dealing with particular issues, or if you often need to search...
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More “Must Have” MRSC Research Tools and Resources
In my last blog post, I shared some of my favorite local government Web search tools for accessing local government Web sites in Washington and across the country as well as tools for searching...
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Do We Have Too Many Local Governments in Washington?
We recently had the pleasure of meeting with some staff members from the Governments Division of the U.S. Census Bureau who were visiting the state to talk with local government officials about the...
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A Simple Technique for Improving Council Decision Making
One of the things that has always fascinated me as a student and observer of local government has been the process that local legislative bodies use to discuss, debate, and formulate policy decisions....
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Improving Citizen Outreach and Engagement
I have had the pleasure over the last eight years of serving as a member of the city of Kirkland Planning Commission. At our annual retreat a couple weeks ago, we were discussing ways to improve...
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Who Says You Can’t Fight City Hall?
urban myth (plural urban myths) A widely circulated story, often believed to be true by the teller, but usually distorted, exaggerated or fabricated for sensational effect …. Wiktionary.org We have all...
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More Sage Advice for Councils and Commissions
MRSC has been fortunate to have so many generous Council/Commission, HR, Finance, Planning, and Open Government Advisors over the years who have been willing to share their time and expertise writing...
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New Resources on Council/Commission Meetings and Public Hearings
City council or county council/commission meetings and public hearings provide the settings for councils and commissions to discuss and develop key policies and make important legislative and...
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Resources for Community Leaders
What does it take to be a successful community leader? What are the attributes and skills that are required for a local government elected or appointed official to be effective in the offices they have...
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Kirkland Takes Online Citizen Engagement to a New Level
For many years, I have been following the efforts of Washington local governments to provide citizens with greater access to information and services using information technology, initially through the...
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In Case You Missed Them – MRSC’s 2013 Webinars
MRSC presented several training webinars in 2013 designed specifically for Washington local government officials and staff. If you didn’t have the opportunity to attend the live events, recorded copies...
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New and Noteworthy Washington Local Government Website Features
Courtesy of medithIT I have been a long-time observer of how local governments are using their websites to enhance the delivery of local government services and their interactions with citizens. It has...
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Open Government Training Resources and Opportunities
Courtesy of Evan Carroll The “Open Government Trainings Act,” ESB 5964 (Laws of 2014, ch. 66), which becomes effective on July 1, 2014, requires that all members of governing bodies, elected local and...
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Seeing is Believing – CIP Interactive Map Applications
I’m going to take a wild guess and speculate that most local governments do not see long lines of citizens outside of their city halls or county courthouses anxiously waiting to read the latest updates...
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Emerging Issue: Police Body Cameras in Washington State
Police body cameras have surged in popularity. Photo courtesy of West Midlands Police. The recent fatal shooting of the unarmed black teenager Michael Brown in Ferguson, Missouri, has greatly...
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Top Picks from MRSC News and Blog Posts
Each week I scan the Web for interesting and useful news, blog posts, articles, and reports from a variety of local government related sources and post them to the “In Focus” section of MRSC’s...
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The Exciting Possibilities of Crowdsourcing
Crowdsourcing is the process of obtaining needed services, ideas, or content by soliciting contributions from a large group of people, and especially from an online community, rather than from...
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Top Picks from MRSC’s News Scan
Each week I scan the Web for interesting and useful news, blog posts, articles, and reports from a variety of local government related sources and post them to the “In Focus” section of MRSC’s...
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