NATOA’s Broadband Principles (July 24)
The National Association of Telecommunications Officers and Advisors (NATOA) has published their concise “Broadband Principles,” outlining the need for a national broadband policy and for local governments to take all possible steps to provide fiber to the premises for their communities.

Ahead of the Curve (July 24)
Long before it was cool to be green, King County, Wash., Executive Ron Sims was interested in environmental issues. More from American City & County.

Older Cities Hold On to More People, Census Shows (July 24)
Newly released U.S. Census Bureau population data for U.S. cities show a new twist on a well-known theme that could be good news for older cities hoping to reverse population declines of the past. More from Brookings.

Walk Score: Every Big-City Neighborhood in America (July 24)
Here it is … the largest 40 cities in America, ranked by their walkability. Plus, every single neighborhood in those cities -- all 2,508 of them -- rank-ordered for your walking pleasure. More from Sightline.

Will Employers Want Aging Boomers? (July 24)
A new report from the Urban Institute examines the current employer demand for older workers and explores how demand may be changing over time. More from the Urban Institute.

Hybrid Police Patrol Vehicles Praised (July 24)
You’ve seen the headlines. Hybrids work! Hybrids save money! Hybrids save fuel, and hybrids reduce pollution! But you wonder, do they really? More from Public Management.

New Rules for Gas Distribution Pipelines (July 24)
The federal Pipelines and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration is in the final stages of a rulemaking process for integrity management rules for natural gas distribution systems. Cities that operate their own natural gas distribution systems need to pay attention to this issue. Cities served by small gas distribution companies might consider contacting them to make sure they are aware of the coming regulations.

Diversity and the Changing Face of Suburbia (July 24)
American suburbs have grown so immense and diverse, now housing more than half the U.S. population, that no out-of-date stereotypes can capture their complexity, meaning or future direction. More from Next American City.

The Role of Transit in Emergency Evacuation (July 24)
A new report from the Transportation Research Board (TRB) explores the roles that transit systems can play in accommodating the evacuation, egress, and ingress of people from and to critical locations in times of emergency. More from the TRB.

Budget Suggestions for 2009 (July 18)
MRSC's Budget Suggestions for 2009 ( 1.2 MB), MRSC Information Bulletin No. 531, is now available online. It contains budget calendars for cities and counties; summaries of 2008 legislation; revenue and inflation forecasts; and articles for those interested in city and county financial issues.

A New ‘Metropolitics’ — Are We Ready? (July 17)
The time may be ripe for a new metropolitics, a radical new “deal” between the federal government and America’s metropolitan regions. More from Nation's Cities Weekly.

The Cracks are Showing (July 17)
America’s tradition of bold national projects has dwindled. With the country’s infrastructure crumbling, it is time to revive it. More from The Economist.

Zero-Carbon Cities (July 17)
As cities around the world look to slash their carbon emissions, several new cities provide a glimpse of the strategies and challenges of designing cities for the post-carbon age. More from Urban Land.

Revolution in the Stacks (July 17)
To appeal to a new generation, some libraries are positioning themselves as places to create content. More from Governing.

Financial Insight: Key for Tough Times (July 17)
Knowledge is power: State and local officials are handicapped by their lack of good financial data. More from Management Insights.

GIS - More than Mapping (July 17)
From the basic to the complex, GIS is helping communities in a variety of ways. It is even saving lives. More from Planning Magazine.

Parks & Recreation - Climbing-Wall Creative (July 17)
Indoor climbing walls are no longer a recreation center oddity. Have your programming ideas kept pace with this ubiquitous amenity? More from Parks & Recreation.

Soaring Fuel Costs Draining Government Budgets (July 17)
With soaring fuel costs, local government budgets are being gouged and concerns of negatively impacting service levels are at the forefront of our daily operations. More from the Alliance for Innovation Newsletter.

Home Prices Drop More Steeply Outside Cities (July 17)
In some parts of the country, house prices are dropping faster outside cities rather than inside them. NPR's Morning Edition Co-host Ari Shapiro talks to William Frey, a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution, about the housing markets that are cooling fastest, and why.

Quick Links to City/County Information (July 17)
MRSC recently expanded the types of key documents (e.g., budgets and comp plans) and services (e.g., council broadcasts and online service request forms) that we track in our "city profiles" page. Use these profiles for quick access to city and town documents and services. For county information, see our "county profiles" page.

Websightings - Summer Festivals and Events (July 03)
Now that it’s summertime, we are featuring Web listings of community festivals and events this month:

• National Recreation and Parks Association, July is Parks and Recreation Month
• Summer Music Festivals, 2008, Allmusic blog – Listed by state

Washington State Listings

• Washington Festivals and Events Calendar
• Washington State Tourism, Experiencewa – Search for events in Washington
• Washington State Events, Worldweb.com (listed by community)
• Events at Washington State Parks

Communities in Washington State

• Bremerton Special Events page
• Centralia Parks and Recreation Calendar of Events
• Dayton Festivals
• Ferndale Calendar of Events, July 2008
• Forks Events Calendar, July 2008
• Kent Community Calendar and Kent Arts at Cornucopia Days
• Kirkland City Calendar
• Olympia Festivals and Community Events
• Redmond Recreation and the Arts (See Seasonal Fun)
• Richland Community Events, July 2008
• Seattle Festivals and Fairs
• Shoreline Special Events
• Snohomish Events Calendar, July 2008

Innovation in Public Management: What the Future Will Demand of Us (July 03)
One of the key challenges for today’s public manager is to learn to harness the power of innovation and apply it to solving the simplest as well as the most complex problems of the local government workplace. More from Public Management.

10 Greenest Places to Retire (July 03)
Parks can make even the densest and driest locales seem like cities in gardens. More from U.S. News.

Climate Protection Strategies - Best Practices Guide (July 03)
A new report prepared for the U.S. Mayors Climate Protection Summit in Seattle, Climate Protection Strategies and Best Practices Guide, reviews efforts by cities to conserve energy and reduce the greenhouse gas emissions that threaten our planet.

Justice Department Issues New ADA Regulations (July 03)
The Department of Justice’s Civil Rights Division recently issued a notice of proposed rulemaking designed to update the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) regulations dealing with state and local government services. More from Nation's Cities Weekly.

Fit for Duty? (July 03)
The U.S. population in general is not as fit as it should be—and police officers are no exception. More from The Police Chief.

Sustainable Community Development Code -- Beta (July 03)
The Rocky Mountain Land Use Institute has released a beta version of the Sustainable Community Development Code, a guidebook that provides extensive resources encompassing the broad scope of sustainable living.

Workplace Rule for Outdoor Heat takes effect July 5 (July 03)
With temperatures reaching near-record levels in many parts of the state this week, the Department of Labor and Industries (L&I) is reminding employers that a permanent outdoor heat rule takes effect Saturday, July 5.

Official 2008 Population Figures Released by OFM (July 03)
The population figures used for distribution of state-shared revenues were released by the Washington State Office of Financial Management (OFM) on June 30. Detailed information on population estimates for cities, towns and counties may be found on OFM's Official April 1, 2008 Population Estimates Web page.

Gentrification: Not Ousting the Poor? (July 03)
A new study conducted by University of Colorado at Boulder, University of Pittsburgh and Duke University says that the scourge of gentrification is greatly exaggerated. More from Time.