The pandemic is forcing states to accelerate upgrades to critical IT systems, which in turn is compromising personal data and upending normal procurement steps.

Oklahoma officials said they didn't have time to replace the 1980s-era mainframe that its unemployment system relies on, but they were able to layer in cloud-based software to streamline claims approvals.

Robin Carnahan and Waldo Jaquith want states to stop "reinventing the wheel" with each new technology procurement and instead work together to create software they can share.

Governors continue to apologize for computer systems that continue to have new problems as the pandemic wears on.

As state and local governments begin growing comfortable with their new working environments, concerns about the future abound.

The unemployment surge hit all states' systems hard, but it's also separating those who've prioritized their technology upgrades from those who haven't.

In a letter to congressional leadership, a group of senators requested funding and waivers on barriers preventing collaboration between levels of government.

CIOs are rapidly delivering services where they're needed in states that have invested in IT, but they're also bracing for uncertain economic times ahead.

Digital transformation and IT modernization was in government once the purview of a select few. Now the pandemic is showing how it affects everyone.