{"id":71806,"date":"2025-07-09T15:30:58","date_gmt":"2025-07-09T19:30:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/statescoop.com\/?post_type=podcast&p=71806"},"modified":"2025-07-09T15:30:59","modified_gmt":"2025-07-09T19:30:59","slug":"what-could-texas-learn-from-north-carolinas-flood-warning-system","status":"publish","type":"podcast","link":"https:\/\/statescoop.com\/radio\/what-could-texas-learn-from-north-carolinas-flood-warning-system\/","title":{"rendered":"What could Texas learn from North Carolina\u2019s flood warning system?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Over the July 4th weekend, extreme rainfall in Central Texas caused catastrophic flooding along the Guadalupe River, leaving over 100 people dead and 160 people missing. Amidst the devastation, one question remains: in an area known as \u201cflash flood alley,\u201d why wasn\u2019t there a flood warning system in place? This week, the Priorities Podcast reruns an episode from last year that centered on the alerts issued in another disaster, in North Carolina. A system there uses data from stream gauges, small devices that measure the water level and discharge of rivers and streams, for flood forecasting and disaster preparedness, which helped in the response to Hurricane Helene.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Top stories this week:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

On Monday, ranking members of Congress sent a letter<\/a> to the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, demanding to know why the agency hasn\u2019t responded to their recent inquiries about how its supporting state and local election offices. Democratic leaders Rep. Joseph D. Morelle and Sen. Alex Padilla wrote that they\u2019re seeking \u201curgent updates\u201d to the status of numerous election security policies and programs available under previous administrations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A new California bill aims to address<\/a> the harmful impacts of \u201ccompanion\u201d chatbots, artificial intelligence-powered systems designed to simulate human-like relationships and provide emotional support. The bill would require companies running companion chatbots to remind users that they\u2019re talking to a machine, not a person and clearly state that chatbots may not be suitable for minors. If passed, it would be among the first laws in the country to regulate AI companions with clear safety standards and user protections.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In signing the state\u2019s two-year budget last week, Connecticut Gov. Ned Lamont authorized<\/a> funding for the Voting Rights Act. The act offers voter protections, including legal tools to fight discriminatory voting rules in court, expanded language assistance for voters who struggle with English and a data portal to host all of the state\u2019s election results and demographic information.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

New episodes of StateScoop\u2019s<\/em> Priorities Podcast<\/em><\/a> are posted each Wednesday.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

For more of the latest news and trends across the state and local government technology community, subscribe to the Priorities Podcast on<\/em> Apple Podcasts<\/em><\/a>,<\/em> Google Podcasts<\/em><\/a>,<\/em>Soundcloud<\/em><\/a> or<\/em> Spotify<\/em><\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Last September, North Carolina used a variety of sensors to respond to Hurricane Helene. Could Texas learn from that disaster in the aftermath of its deadly floods?<\/p>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":71807,"template":"","meta":{"disable_grayscale_images":true,"grayscale_contrast":0,"sponsored_content":null,"display_author_bio":true,"footnotes":""},"categories":[23264],"tags":[73,226,3646,9222,25178,25722],"people":[],"special-report":[],"authors":[4678],"show":[23743],"class_list":["post-71806","podcast","type-podcast","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-priorities-podcast","tag-texas","tag-north-carolina","tag-hurricane","tag-flooding","tag-hurricane-helene","tag-disasters","author-statescoop-staff","show-priorities"],"yoast_head":"\nWhat could Texas learn from North Carolina\u2019s flood warning system? | StateScoop<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Last September, North Carolina used a variety of sensors to respond to Hurricane Helene. 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