The Latest

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    Permission granted by Frederick County, Maryland
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    Nominate a project for the 2026 Smart Cities Dive Community Project Awards

    The awards will highlight innovation and effective use of technology to solve real community problems.

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    Getty Images
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    How Charleston, South Carolina, is setting the stage for thousands of affordable homes by 2032

    An “aggressive” new housing strategy includes pre-permitting city land and preapproving housing designs to fill gaps more quickly, the mayor said. 

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    Permission granted by Dan Zukowski
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    To help public agencies reduce roadway risk, platform combines diverse datasets

    The Safety Hub tool from Replica and Arity gives communities “the insight they need to act before tragedy occurs,” Arity’s president said.

  • Russ Vought OMB Trump spending
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    Andrew Harnik via Getty Images
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    Lawsuit targets fair housing rule change

    The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s final rule amending how the Equal Credit Opportunity Act is applied “effectively guts” fair lending protections, according to four plaintiffs.

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    Spencer Platt/Getty Images via Getty Images
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    Homelessness dropped 3% last year after record highs: HUD

     A 4% decrease in people seeking emergency shelter was the largest contributor to the decline, according to the annual report.

  • A blue vehicle on a flatbed truck along a highway with other cars.
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    The image by Mliu92 is licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0
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    Waymo rolls out purpose-built robotaxis

    New autonomous vehicles featuring Waymo’s latest software are expected to perform better in harsh winter conditions.

  • A sprawling water treatment plant on the shore of a large body of water.
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    Justin Sullivan/ via Getty Images
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    Cities push Congress to avert water infrastructure funding cliff

    With enhanced funding from the Biden-era infrastructure law set to expire and proposed federal cuts on the table, local government and water groups are urging lawmakers to reauthorize key drinking water and wastewater programs.

  • A man in a suit wearing sunglasses with two uniformed people alongside at a podium speaking to a group of people.
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    Retrieved from U.S. Department of Transportation/X.
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    Washington Union Station renovation gets $466M from US DOT

    The Department of Transportation will take a lead role in redeveloping the station and increasing its revenue potential.

  • Tall green grass stands in front of a calm lake on a sunny day with a sailboat and canoe on the lake in the distance.
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    Getty Images
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    A housing raffle is one community’s effort to ensure new homes go to current residents

    Elk Grove Village, Illinois, created a “first-of-its-kind” public-private partnership to give residents first dibs on a new batch of single-family homes.

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    Getty Images
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    How 2 cities are rethinking hiring approaches to fill public works jobs

    Baltimore cut hiring bottlenecks, while Columbus, Ohio, partnered with a women’s prison to connect overlooked workers to city careers, Work for America case studies found.

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    Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images via Getty Images
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    To expand housing, Maryland is turning to its largest landowner: itself

    New laws zone land near transit for housing and delay local impact fees for developers.

  • A person stands at a podium with the seal of the Philadelphia mayor, surrounded by other people.
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    Permission granted by Philadelphia City Council
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    Philadelphia clean energy campaign turned millions invested into billions saved. Here’s how.

    By blending public and private financing, green banking and a coalition of labor, housing and community partners, the city generated 11,000 jobs and $1.4 billion in energy savings — with minimal federal dollars, an economic impact report found.

  • Aerial view of bumperto bumper traffic on an 8-lane freeway.
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    Mario Tama via Getty Images
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    California considers high-speed buses

    Buses traveling at 120 mph on dedicated freeway lanes would connect San Francisco and Los Angeles in just over three hours, a California Department of Transportation research report estimates.

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    George Frey / Stringer via Getty Images
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    Data centers raise temperatures up to 4 degrees in nearby neighborhoods: study

    Thermal plumes from four data centers near Phoenix threaten to raise the energy burden on surrounding neighborhoods during the extended summer cooling season, researchers found.

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    (2026). "Full Committee Markup Part 2 May 21, 2026" [Video]. Retrieved from T&I Committee Republicans/YouTube.
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    Surface Transportation Legislation

    Transit, Amtrak cuts advance in House appropriations bill

    The one-year bill cuts public transit funding by 22%, Amtrak by 69% and Capital Investment Grants by 78% for fiscal year 2027 but puts “a historic amount of funding” into bridges.

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    Permission granted by City of Los Angeles
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    Los Angeles is reimagining parks as water infrastructure

    The network of park-based stormwater capture projects is designed to help replenish aquifers, improve water quality and enhance climate resilience in underserved neighborhoods.

  • A rendering of a small green house with solar panels on the roof and large glass windows.
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    Retrieved from New York City Department of Housing Preservation and Development on May 27, 2026
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    Preapproved housing designs can cut costs — and cities are embracing them, Pew says

    Front-loading the permit approval process can shave months off of preconstruction timelines and cut architectural and design costs, according to a new report.

  • A sign that says "Target Field Station" in front of an industrial facility
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    Retrieved from Hennepin County.
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    Community groups sue EPA to tighten its incinerator rules

    A coalition is again taking the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to court over its Clean Air Act rules for large municipal waste combustors, two months after the agency finalized the regulation. 

  • A U.S. flag flies over rusty beams on a concrete bridge under construction.
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    Getty Images
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    As ARPA winds down, small cities ace the infrastructure funding test: NLC

    Strong property tax revenue and federal recovery funds allowed many smaller municipalities to use cash rather than debt for projects, positioning them well for the future, a National League of Cities report shows.

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    Getty Images
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    ClearGov launches interactive AI platform to communicate city budgets

    Rochester Hills, Michigan, received hundreds of resident comments in a pilot effort to reach its “silent majority,” a case study found.

  • A white vehicle outfitted with many sensors stopped at a curb in with people and buildings in the background.
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    Permission granted by Dan Zukowski
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    Tracker

    Robotaxis: The latest developments

    Waymo recalls 3,800 robotaxis to prevent the vehicles from entering flooded areas and halts freeway use in four cities.

    Updated May 26, 2026
  • An aerial still of a residential neighborhood showing the roofs of single-family homes, lush trees and grass on a sunny day.
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    Getty Images
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    Municipal groups push for ROAD to Housing Act approval

    The latest version of the landmark housing bill appears to be nearing the finish line in Congress and includes a “major win for counties,” one group said.

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    Getty Images
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    Green infrastructure

    How 4 cities are reshaping parks into strategic climate and community infrastructure

    Urban parks can boost resilience, improve stormwater management and advance neighborhood equity, strengthening social cohesion in the process, the parks’ developers say. 

  • A man walks up a ramp to a transit bus on a tree-covered street with a young girl and another man to the side.
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    Courtesy of Tri Delta Transit
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    Keolis awarded fifth transit operating contract in California

    With the addition of Tri Delta Transit in Eastern Contra Costa County, Keolis will operate services for 15 U.S. transit systems.

  • A construction worker as seen from below, stepping over a gap while carrying a piece of lumber.
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    Justin Sullivan via Getty Images
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    HUD releases housing regulation ‘best practices’ for state, local governments

    The recommendations follow a Trump order to cut red tape but stop short of density directives for municipalities.