Sen Harris Wants to Give States Millions to Overhaul Tech

Democratic presidential candidate Sen Kamala Harris (D-CA) is introducing the Digital Service Act of 2019 on March 14 that would give state and local governments access to a pool of $15 million a year in grant funding, which they could use to set up tech teams and overhaul the often outdated tools and websites their constituents use every day. The bill is modeled after the United States Digital Service, an elite team of geeks inside the White House working on ways to make federal government technology less clunky and confusing—and maybe even good. Launched in 2014, USDS is one of the few Obama-era passion projects to survive the Trump administrationp similar teams. Under the bill, government officials would be able to apply for two-year grants, ranging from $200,000 to $2.5 million per year, based on their population. USDS would be responsible for distributing the grants, giving preference to state and local governments, as well as Indian tribes, with a proven track record of investing in tech and modernizing government.