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In a year where businesses had to shut their doors, millions of Americans hunkered down at home, and many took to the streets in a variety of protests, we wanted to see how the priorities of local elected officials had been shaped by these events.

In CivicPulse’s second annual report in this series, we show that public safety departments continue to lead the way in software acquisition. Meanwhile, there has been an overall decline in the prioritization of software in local government since the beginning of the pandemic.

Bright Line Watch partnered with CivicPulse to survey 212 local government policymakers from across the country on election confidence to see whether local officials — who played a key role in the 2020 election — were more confident in the integrity of the electoral system than the general public.

What are the priorities for the new round of relief funding that local governments may receive in 2021? CivicPulse, in collaboration with Stanford University’s Bill Lane Center for the American West, surveyed 494 local government officials to ask about the status of existing COVID-19 relief funding and where future funds might be spent. With new funds on the horizon, local governments are still spending existing funds and see priorities shifting and broadening.

In this report series, CivicPulse asked local officials about how they are handling the COVID-19 pandemic. Our first report looks at officials' response to the pandemic, how they are getting information, and what they wish state and federal governments knew. Our second report focuses on compliance with measures intended to fight COVID-19, and how local governments are promoting these measures.

Drawing on a variety of data sources, including from a CivicPulse survey conducted in March 2019, this report by Bright Line Watch assesses how local policymakers, political donors, and the American public think about the performance of democracy in the United States. You may be surprised to find out who is the most optimistic.

The Legitimacy in Global Governance research program (LegGov) is a research program that offers systematic, comparative analysis of legitimacy in global governance. This report investigates how people around the world — including American state legislators and staffers who took part in a CivicPulse survey — think about international institutions like the United Nations and World Trade Organization.

This CivicPulse report investigates the possibility of gun control on a local level, analyzing local policymakers responses to questions about gun ownership. 

 In July 2021, CivicPulse surveyed a national sample of 584 local government officials to identify trends in IT in the wake of Covid-19 and to better understand their priorities looking ahead to 2022.  

While the gender gap among elected officials at the federal and state levels has been well documented, far less is known about gender representation in local government.

How will COVID-19 affect local government budgets? CivicPulse asks local elected officials to  project how spending will change over the next year across twelve different program and functional areas. This CivicPulse Insights report was developed with Power Almanac.

Millions of Americans are cut off from high-speed internet – and from crucial parts of society. How are local governments filling the gap?

What do local government policymakers want in a new infrastructure bill? CivicPulse surveyed over 400 local government officials to ask the infrastructure priorities for their local communities. The survey showed strong support for the inclusion of funding for roads, water, electricity, and broadband. In contrast, support for mass transit was limited to larger cities, and support for clean energy was highly divided by partisanship.

This report from GFOA and Lightcast assesses the state of public sector finance employment. The report draws on demographic benchmarking of local government financial leadership conducted by CivicPulse earlier this year.

How do local government officials' approach urban innovation in their cities, and how are these processes different between municipalities?

CivicPulse, in collaboration with Stanford University’s Bill Lane Center for the American West and Northwestern Pritzker School of Law, surveyed over 350 heads of local law enforcement agencies to find out where anti-lockdown protests were most common last spring. These findings could help predict where we might see them again this winter.

New data release of the gender composition of the top finance/budgeting officials in over 21,000
local governments shows women are well represented in this important leadership position.

CivicPulse asks local officials about how compliance with measures combatting COVID-19 might change over time, and how their governments have been promoting these measures.

CivicPulse asks local officials about their response to the COVID-19 epidemic, how they are learning about the crisis, and what they wish the state and federal governments knew.

CivicPulse partnered with The Atlas, Engaging Local Government Leaders, CivicPlus, and RouteFifty to survey of local government officials about the lasting impacts of COVID-19 on their governments. Close to 600 survey respondents provided their views on how their government has responded to the pandemic, and what changes are likely to remain.