New York CIty Council Member Ben Kallos

Technology

<P>Technology is the great equalizer. In a world where knowledge is power, the Internet provides access to an information superhighway where anyone can learn anything from a better golf swing to a new programming language which provides them with a marketable skill and access to new jobs.</P><P>As a student at the&nbsp;<a href="http://www.bxscience.edu/&quot; target="_BLANK"><strong>Bronx High School of Science</strong></a>, having access to the Internet gave me the opportunity to found a technology consulting firm, featured in the&nbsp;<a href="https://kallosforcouncil.com/press-clip/new-york-times-after-school-job…; target="_BLANK"><strong>New York Times</strong></a>. My firm went on to provide services to the&nbsp;<a href="http://www.giants.com/&quot; target="_BLANK"><strong>New York Football Giants</strong></a>,&nbsp;<a href="http://www.pfizer.com/&quot; target="_BLANK"><strong>Pfizer Pharmaceuticals</strong></a>,&nbsp;<a href="http:/www.northshorelij.com&quot; target="_BLANK"><strong>North Shore University Hospital</strong></a>&nbsp;and the State University of New York at&nbsp;<a href="http://www.albany.edu/&quot; target="_BLANK"><strong>Albany</strong></a>&nbsp;and&nbsp;<a href="http://www.buffalo.edu/&quot; target="_BLANK"><strong>Buffalo</strong></a>. After financing my education, I used these skills to found&nbsp;<a href="http://www.wikilaw.org/&quot; target="_BLANK"><strong>WikiLaw.org</strong></a>, which has recently partnered with&nbsp;<a href="http://www.jurispedia.org/&quot; target="_BLANK"><strong>Jurispedia.org</strong></a>&nbsp;for a global shared law,&nbsp;<a href="http://www.votersearch.org/&quot; target="_BLANK"><strong>VoterSearch.org</strong></a>&nbsp;to help 12 million New Yorkers verify their voter registrations, and <A HREF="http://openlegislation.org&quot; TARGET="_BLANK"><STRONG>OpenLegislation.org</STRONG></A> to put all the voting records for the New York City and State Legislators online for free.</P><P>As your City Council member I will leverage technology to make our government is <strong>transparent, accountable, and open</strong>. We will make City Hall <strong>transparent</strong> by adopting&nbsp;<a href="http://www.opengovdata.org/&quot; target="_BLANK"><strong>Open Government Data Principles</strong></a>, so that information like our laws and our budgets will be made freely available to the public to use in making government <strong>accountable</strong> with projects like <a href="http://www.opencongress.org/&quot; target="_BLANK"><strong>Open Congress</strong></a>, <a href="http://public.resource.org/&quot; target="_BLANK"><strong>Public.Resource.org</strong></a> and <a href="http://www.sunlightny.com/&quot; target="_BLANK"><strong>Project Sunlight</strong></a>. I will also fight to open the flood gates of knowledge by supporting our public libraries and advocating for free universal wireless so that every New York City resident has the same opportunity to learn from these valuable resources. I will also advocate for use of&nbsp;<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Free_and_open_source_software&quot; target="_BLANK"><strong>Free and Open Source Software (FOSS)</strong></a>&nbsp;in government to save billions a year, reinvigorate New York City's technology sector, and to create new jobs in a City that once boasted "<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Silicon_Alley&quot; target="_BLANK"><strong>Silicon Alley</strong></a>."</P><P><EM>Many of the ideas from this platform have already been partially adopted by Mayor Mike Bloomberg as part of his initiative for a "<A HREF="http://www.nyc.gov/html/om/html/2009b/pr432-09.html&quot; TARGET="_BLANK"><STRONG>Connected City</STRONG></A>."</EM></P>

TechPresident NYC Tech Group Seizes on de Blasio Agenda with Call for Traffic Accident Data by Miranda Neubauer

NYC Tech Group Seizes on de Blasio Agenda with Call for Traffic Accident Data
Miranda Neubauer

BetaNYC, New York City's Code for America brigade, is embracing the prospect of change under the administration of Mayor Bill de Blasio by seizing on his agenda priority to prevent pedestrian fatalities to renew its call for the city and the NYPD to release traffic data in a more usable format.

TechPresident Ready to Launch, A New Platform to Ask Elected Officials Anything by Miranda Neubauer

Ready to Launch, A New Platform to Ask Elected Officials Anything
Miranda Neubauer

A new platform officially launching Monday hopes to provide voters with the opportunity to pose questions to elected officials and other prominent figures every day of the year, in some ways echoing an ongoing Ask Me Anything concept.

NYC.gov Office of the Mayor Mayor Bloomberg Unveils Connected City Initiative by Stu Loeser

Mayor Bloomberg Unveils Connected City Initiative
Stu Loeser

New Technological Capabilities, Spanning All Aspects of City Services, Will Make City Government More Accessible and Accountable 

Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg today announced the Connected City Initiative, a series of technology programs to transform the ways in which New Yorkers can interact with – and expect the delivery of services from – City government. Building upon successful projects that have made New York City a pioneer in using technology to improve public services, the Mayor outlined a series of initiatives to make City government more accessible and accountable. They include providing a new iPhone application for New Yorkers to report issues and send photos to 311 with specific location details using GPS technology – an idea championed by Council Speaker Christine C. Quinn and Council Member Gale Brewer; increasing the number of New Yorkers with access to Electronic Health Records; and eliminating many of the bureaucratic barriers to starting a small business. Additional aims include increasing the use of social networking to improve government efficiency; making the City more sustainable by consolidating data centers citywide and promoting the use of electronic mailings; and increasing broadband adoption among low-income New Yorkers. The Mayor made the announcement at the IBM SmarterCities Forum in Manhattan.

 

“Every day, new technological innovations help make information flow faster, systems work better and our lives a little easier,” said Mayor Bloomberg. “But often, when it comes to adopting new technology, governments lag behind the private sector and even the casual consumer because they are unwilling or unable to try something new and change the way things have always been done. That’s small-minded thinking. In serving the public, government should constantly be looking for new and better ways to provide information and services. The creation of 311 was a major advancement in that effort, but we never stop looking for ways to improve. The programs of the Connected City Initiative represent the latest steps we’re taking to employ technology to serve New Yorkers better.