February 4, 2026 • 13 mins
Alex and Amy talk about NASCIO's recently released 2026 federal advocacy priorities--as well as our personal goals for the new year.
Find the priorities here: https://www.nascio.org/government-affairs/federal-advocacy-priorities/
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Episode Transcript
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Amy Glasscock (00:05):
Hi, and welcome to NASCIO Voices, where we talk
all things state IT.
I'm Amy Glasscock in Lexington,Kentucky.
Alex Whitaker (00:11):
And I'm Alex Whitaker in Washington, D.C.
Today we are talking with avery special guest, me.
Amy Glasscock (00:16):
That's right.
Today our very own AlexWhitaker, Government Affairs
Director at NASCIO, will talkabout the newly released 2026
NASCIO Advocacy Priorities andjust might give us a preview of
what to expect from Congress andthe administration this year.
Alex Whitaker (00:31):
That's right, and there's a lot going on in DC
right now, though.
So why don't we just get rightto it?
Amy Glasscock (00:36):
Sounds good to me.
So, Alex, first tell us aboutNASCIO's advocacy priorities,
you know, just the basics.
What are they and why do werelease them?
Alex Whitaker (00:45):
Yeah, sure.
So we have been doing NASCIOadvocacy priorities for uh for a
long time.
Certainly before I came, beforeMr.
Matt Pincus uh was here, even.
So we've been doing these for afew years.
And what they are is just sortof a standing set of four to
five, and sometimes a littlemore, sometimes even a little
less, principles that we use toguide our advocacy over the next
(01:06):
year.
And so what they are is theyare selected, and they're sort
of suggested by NASCIO staff andthen approved by the CIOs,
specifically the executivecommittee, but they're reviewed
by all the membership.
And they they are the thingsthat we are going to focus on
over the next year with bothCongress and federal agencies.
And again, these are federallyfocused.
They are not everything that wedo in a given year.
(01:26):
Um, just because something isnot on the advocacy principles
doesn't mean that we don't getinvolved with it.
And I'll go into a little bitmore detail later about other
things that we do.
But they are the things that wesay, look, these are the the
respective sort of combinedpriorities of our membership and
the things that we really wouldlike to see Congress and the
agencies support or pass or orin some situations um don't do
over the next year.
(01:47):
And it might be legislation, itmight be regulations.
So that's what they are, andthose are kind of the basics.
And we release them at thebeginning of every year, and
again, they sort of guide whatwe do over the following months.
Amy Glasscock (01:58):
Gotcha.
Okay.
So tell us about the 2026advocacy principles.
What's what's happening thisyear?
Alex Whitaker (02:05):
Yeah, so we see a lot of the same.
There is a big change, whichI'll talk about in a minute.
Um, but really we are keepingsome of the really basic things
that we uh I say basic, butthey're very important, but what
we kind of call them meat andpotatoes what we do.
So, first, we are, of course,keeping language to reauthorize
the state and localcybersecurity grant program.
And I think anybody who's alistener of this program will
(02:26):
know that the grant program issomething that Nastio has been
really committed to.
We've seen a lot of tremendoussuccess in the states and with
local governments about puttingthis money to good use.
I talk about the money a lot,but the other things we talk
about are kind of therelationships that are being
built, both between state andlocals and between states and
Congress, kind of talking aboutthe needs of cybersecurity.
Um, we have seen a lot of greatprogress from Congress over the
(02:49):
last year.
I want to thank our friends inSenator Hassan's office, with
Congressman Garbarino as well,and the committee staff over on
the House side.
There are two legislativevehicles working their way
through Congress right now.
Um, NASCIO doesn't think thateither of them are perfect, but
that's okay.
We want to keep working withour partners to make it sure
that it works for state.
So we will continue working onreauthorizing state and local
cybersecurity grant program.
(03:10):
Um, and of course, artificialintelligence is back as well.
That was one we introduced lastyear.
And I think that reflects someof the concerns that we have
about federal policy.
You know, NASCIO has beendiscouraged a little bit with
the executive order that iseffectively a state moratorium
on state regulations concerningAI.
We're gonna continue to pushback against that, both from
(03:31):
executive order but also inCongress as well.
Um, and again, the thing that Ialways want to say here is that
NASCIO is not against federalpolicy concerning artificial
intelligence.
You know, that that's not wherewe are.
But we want to make sure thatany federal policy that is
enacted, it is done inconsultation in conjunction with
the states.
Um, because states have done somuch proactively to develop and
(03:51):
implement good AI policy.
And we don't want to see thatroll back.
Um, and then finally, too, wealso are supporting broader
adoption of.gov.
We think.gov is such a greatand cost-effective way to
improve cybersecurity.
That's been up there, I think,for years.
Don't expect that to change.
And then the one that is a bitmore, a bit more of a tongue
twister, but it's harmonizingdisparate federal cybersecurity
(04:12):
regulations.
If regulatory harmonization isyour thing, definitely encourage
you to check out the one pagerthere.
But we do want to see moreregulatory harmonization when it
comes to cybersecurity reactionof the federal government
because it makes it so much, youknow, I say easier, but it's
it's not just that we're tryingto make things easier for
states, but it makes it moreeffective, both when it comes to
the spending aspect of ofcomplying with all these
(04:33):
regulations, and we think itjust makes things more secure to
have kind of one federalstandard.
Um, so those are four of thebig ones that we are really
concerned about, and we're gonnakeep working on.
Amy Glasscock (04:43):
Awesome.
I mean, who doesn't love someregulatory harmonization?
Should be everyone's thing.
Alex Whitaker (04:48):
Yeah.
Amy Glasscock (04:49):
Okay, and so you mentioned that there's a new
priority this year.
Tell us about that.
Alex Whitaker (04:52):
There is.
So what we're doing is wepreviously last year, and I
think for two years, we had hadum some language about
strengthening and improving thefederal cybersecurity workforce.
Now we're removing thatadvocacy principle.
But I want to be very clearNASCIO is not done with
advocating for a uh moreresources for states to hire the
workers that they need forcybersecurity needs.
(05:13):
But what we're doing is we'reremoving that language and we're
replacing it with an advocacyprinciple that champions
reauthorization of the firstresponder network authority, or
it's more commonly known asFirstNet.
We're doing that for tworeasons.
One, there's not a lot of kindof comprehensive federal action
right now when it comes tostrengthening the cybersecurity
workforce.
We can talk more about thatlater, but then you know that's
(05:35):
just something that we we don'tsee as much of an appetite about
addressing that.
Again, doesn't mean it's notimportant, doesn't mean that
NASCIO is not going to beworking on it, but we do see
that FirstNet is up forreauthorization this year.
FirstNet has been an extremelyeffective tool for states when
they're responding to disasters,both man-made and otherwise.
So that would of course includea cybersecurity disaster if it
(05:56):
came to it.
And we want to make sure thatFirstNet is supported and
reauthorized.
And we see that really um thestates, the local governments,
everyone is really committed tothat.
I think it's likely, but it'snot a done deal.
So we want to express to ourfriends in Congress that NASCIO
supports that, that we've seen alot of effective uh effective
uses by FirstNet so far.
And we thought it was importantenough to make it an advocacy
principle.
(06:16):
So that's one of the thingswe'll be champion this year.
Amy Glasscock (06:18):
Great.
So, you know, how have thesebeen received so far now that we
have them out there, and howwill they feature in the work
that you're doing for NASCIO?
Alex Whitaker (06:26):
Yeah, so um, you know, normally we have a big
in-person event that would havehappened last week where we have
a strategic partners briefing.
Um, NASCIO's strategic partnersare incredibly important to us.
Those are groups like NationalConference of State
Legislatures, the budgetofficers, all kinds of other
groups who we work with toadvocate for a lot of things
that I've mentioned already.
(06:46):
But of course, the massivesnowstorm got in our way last
year, and even Doug Robinsondidn't come to DC.
And when Doug Robinson is nottraveling, you know that it's
serious.
Um, we did a pivot to a Zoomvirtual event where we briefed
our strategic partners and werolled out these uh advocacy
principles.
Again, I I know we're all sickof Zoom events, but it it
actually went very well.
(07:07):
And I think it was one of thoseinstances where you know we're
we're glad to be doing inperson, but Zoom still does have
a a lot of relevance for us.
So had our virtual event, we'vegotten a lot of great reactions
so far from friends in Congressand the agencies as well as
others.
Um, we've talked a lot ofpublications about it.
So overall, the reaction's beengreat.
I think that um people are arealways sort of in the same way
that you're glad to see NASCIO'stop ten priorities from the
(07:30):
CIOs.
I think that having the abilityto say here's what the CEOs are
really focused on from acongressional and in a federal
and agency perspective is veryhelpful.
So good feedback so far.
And they're gonna feature inthe work that we're doing.
Again, it's just such a helpfulthing for me in federal affairs
to be able to say to ourpartners in Congress, look, here
are the top things that we'refocused on.
And we we know there's a lotgoing on, but here's where the
(07:52):
COs are really focused.
Here's how the money is gonnabe put to the best use, here are
the most efficient things.
Um let's just kind of speakwith a very clear voice, which
is so helpful in DC,particularly these days.
Amy Glasscock (08:03):
Yeah, absolutely.
Well, that's all very exciting.
And uh before we move on to DCat large, is there anything else
you want to mention about thepriorities?
Alex Whitaker (08:12):
Yeah, so I mean, one of the things I want to say
is I I've said this a couple oftimes, but um, these aren't the
only things that we work on.
So if you are a NASCIO partner,if you are a a a member, or if
you're just somebody who'd liketo know more about NASCIO,
please feel free to reach out.
You know, some of the thingsthat we're also we we always
want to be is um responsive andadaptive.
So if there are other thingsthat come up on the radar and
you think, hey, NASCIO shouldknow about this, or here's a way
(08:34):
that NASCO can be helpful, um,please let us know.
Because you know, we alwayswant to be as helpful as we can
and on kind of whatever's goingon in DC.
So if there's anything else,let us know because we're always
happy to have anotherconversation about ways that we
can be helpful in a federalprocess.
Amy Glasscock (08:47):
Awesome.
All right, so now that we'vegot the 2026 NASCIO advocacy
priorities washed out, tell uswhat we might expect from
Congress and this administrationover the next year or so.
Alex Whitaker (08:57):
Yeah, well, let me first say any predictions are
non-binding.
So please no one come back andsay I told you so in a month or
a year.
Uh, because predicting anythingis, of course, really tough
right now.
You know, we are technically inthe midst of a government
shutdown, which is kind offlying under the radar.
We think we're gonna get aspending deal, but we don't
know.
And I think that thatuncertainty is gonna be really
(09:17):
indicative of of how things aresort of shaping out over the
next year.
So there are things that aregonna be outside of our control
when it comes to shutdowns,spending battles.
Um, we've also got majormidterm elections in November,
which not just for Congress, andwhere you could see flips in in
the House and potentially theSenate as well, but we have a
huge number of governors' racesthat are up in November too.
(09:38):
So I think that the politicsare really gonna dominate the
landscape in combination withthe spending battles.
But it's not all bad news.
I mean, we have seen somereally great, I mentioned
earlier, some really greatmovement on getting state and
local cybersecurity grantprogram reauthorized.
There have been short-termextensions included in both the
last government shutdown dealand this one.
So that's hopeful.
(10:00):
Again, NASTEO wants a long-termreauthorization, but I think
the fact that those keep gettingincluded show that Congress
would love to get this done aswell.
So I think that we're gonnahave some good, I hope and think
we'll have some good news onSLCGP this year.
On artificial intelligence,too.
Look, again, I just want to beso clear that we are not against
the idea of federal policy onAI.
(10:20):
We're just against blanketmoratoriums.
And I think that people inCongress are hearing that.
Legislatively, thesemoratoriums have been defeated
every time that they've beenincluded in major deals.
So I think that's indicative ofof where um some of our friends
in Congress are.
We're also really, I thinkwe've seen great movement on
the.gov domain option.
So again, there's gonna beuncertainty based on spending,
(10:42):
based on politics, uh, butthat's not really gonna stop
NASCIO from working on thethings that are important to us
and to CIOs.
And I and I do think we'll havesome good news over the next
few months.
Amy Glasscock (10:50):
Yeah, absolutely.
Well, as always, it's going tobe a busy year for you.
So any other parting thoughtsbefore we wrap up?
Alex Whitaker (10:58):
No, I don't think so.
Um, you know, mostly again,like I said, please feel free to
reach out.
We're always happy to chat withanyone about things that are
going on in Congress.
And yeah, I think that's thethe big stuff.
It's gonna be a a wild ridethis year, but um maybe we can
check back in a few months and Ican give another update on how
things are going in Congress.
Amy Glasscock (11:16):
Absolutely.
Okay, well, since it's just thetwo of us, I think we can skip
the regular lightning round forthe day, but we have to do at
least one fun question, right?
I mean, why else are peoplelistening and stuff?
Right.
And since we're 2026 focused inthis episode, do you have any
goals or resolutions that youwant to share for 2026?
Alex Whitaker (11:32):
Yeah, so 2025, it was all about the number of
books that I had read.
I wanted to read more and I Ihad a number, I got that goal,
but this year I've got some likespecific books I want to read.
Like I've never read Lord ofthe Rings, I've never read that
really long, intimidatingchurnal grant book.
So that's that's kind of thegoal this year.
I'm trying to go for qualityover quantity.
(11:53):
What about you?
Amy Glasscock (11:54):
Yeah, that that's a good one.
Uh yeah, that's interesting.
I maybe you you I'm sure you dothis too.
My husband also like writesdown all the books that he reads
throughout the year, and so Istarted doing that too, just to
kind of I feel like it'llencourage me to read more in a
variety of things.
So yeah, I've been able to reada few books already.
One was really long.
Uh I don't know if you've heardof this book.
(12:15):
It's called The Secret Historyby Donna Tartt.
It was written in 1992, but Ifeel like it's been getting some
like buzz again lately.
I don't know.
I saw it pop up a couple timesand I read it and it was really
long.
Alex Whitaker (12:25):
So I'm I'm I'm interested.
I'm not putting it on my list.
I've got too many long ones,but I'm glad you were able to
get through this.
Amy Glasscock (12:32):
Yeah, it's uh you'll have to look into it.
It's pretty good.
Um just you know, sort of thosethose normal uh resolutions
that people have to, you know,be healthier and move more and
get strong and all of thosethings.
Alex Whitaker (12:45):
Um reading and we'll we'll we should have a
NASCIO uh lifting umcompetition, workout at our next
session.
Amy Glasscock (12:54):
Yeah.
That's awesome.
And then of course, sort of hadthis long ongoing uh renovation
of our attic in our house.
And so being able to finishthat this year is uh my sort of
main goal.
Alex Whitaker (13:08):
I love the Instagram updates.
I mean, it feels like you'rereally making progress.
I'm living like a year.
Amy Glasscock (13:12):
We've got drywall, so yeah, it's all
downhill from here, right?
All right.
Well, thanks so much for therundown.
I know NASCIO's advocacy has alot going on this year.
And if you want to read more,you can read the priorities in
full and download our one-pagePDFs on the NASCIO website.
Alex Whitaker (13:29):
Yeah, absolutely.
Like I said, busy year, but umit's an exciting year too.
I think we have a lot that wecan accomplish.
Amy Glasscock (13:34):
All right, thanks, Alex.
Alex Whitaker (13:36):
Got it.
Thanks again for listening toNASCIO Voices.
NASCIO Voices is a productionof the National Association of
State Chief InformationOfficers.
Learn more at NASCIO.org.
Amy Glasscock (13:46):
We'll be back soon with more great IT content,
and don't forget to like andsubscribe wherever you listen to
podcasts.
Hi, and welcome to NASCIO Voices, where we talk
all things state IT.
I'm Amy Glasscock in Lexington,Kentucky.
Alex Whitaker (00:11):
And I'm Alex Whitaker in Washington, D.C.
Today we are talking with avery special guest, me.
Amy Glasscock (00:16):
That's right.
Today our very own AlexWhitaker, Government Affairs
Director at NASCIO, will talkabout the newly released 2026
NASCIO Advocacy Priorities andjust might give us a preview of
what to expect from Congress andthe administration this year.
Alex Whitaker (00:31):
That's right, and there's a lot going on in DC
right now, though.
So why don't we just get rightto it?
Amy Glasscock (00:36):
Sounds good to me.
So, Alex, first tell us aboutNASCIO's advocacy priorities,
you know, just the basics.
What are they and why do werelease them?
Alex Whitaker (00:45):
Yeah, sure.
So we have been doing NASCIOadvocacy priorities for uh for a
long time.
Certainly before I came, beforeMr.
Matt Pincus uh was here, even.
So we've been doing these for afew years.
And what they are is just sortof a standing set of four to
five, and sometimes a littlemore, sometimes even a little
less, principles that we use toguide our advocacy over the next
(01:06):
year.
And so what they are is theyare selected, and they're sort
of suggested by NASCIO staff andthen approved by the CIOs,
specifically the executivecommittee, but they're reviewed
by all the membership.
And they they are the thingsthat we are going to focus on
over the next year with bothCongress and federal agencies.
And again, these are federallyfocused.
They are not everything that wedo in a given year.
(01:26):
Um, just because something isnot on the advocacy principles
doesn't mean that we don't getinvolved with it.
And I'll go into a little bitmore detail later about other
things that we do.
But they are the things that wesay, look, these are the the
respective sort of combinedpriorities of our membership and
the things that we really wouldlike to see Congress and the
agencies support or pass or orin some situations um don't do
over the next year.
(01:47):
And it might be legislation, itmight be regulations.
So that's what they are, andthose are kind of the basics.
And we release them at thebeginning of every year, and
again, they sort of guide whatwe do over the following months.
Amy Glasscock (01:58):
Gotcha.
Okay.
So tell us about the 2026advocacy principles.
What's what's happening thisyear?
Alex Whitaker (02:05):
Yeah, so we see a lot of the same.
There is a big change, whichI'll talk about in a minute.
Um, but really we are keepingsome of the really basic things
that we uh I say basic, butthey're very important, but what
we kind of call them meat andpotatoes what we do.
So, first, we are, of course,keeping language to reauthorize
the state and localcybersecurity grant program.
And I think anybody who's alistener of this program will
(02:26):
know that the grant program issomething that Nastio has been
really committed to.
We've seen a lot of tremendoussuccess in the states and with
local governments about puttingthis money to good use.
I talk about the money a lot,but the other things we talk
about are kind of therelationships that are being
built, both between state andlocals and between states and
Congress, kind of talking aboutthe needs of cybersecurity.
Um, we have seen a lot of greatprogress from Congress over the
(02:49):
last year.
I want to thank our friends inSenator Hassan's office, with
Congressman Garbarino as well,and the committee staff over on
the House side.
There are two legislativevehicles working their way
through Congress right now.
Um, NASCIO doesn't think thateither of them are perfect, but
that's okay.
We want to keep working withour partners to make it sure
that it works for state.
So we will continue working onreauthorizing state and local
cybersecurity grant program.
(03:10):
Um, and of course, artificialintelligence is back as well.
That was one we introduced lastyear.
And I think that reflects someof the concerns that we have
about federal policy.
You know, NASCIO has beendiscouraged a little bit with
the executive order that iseffectively a state moratorium
on state regulations concerningAI.
We're gonna continue to pushback against that, both from
(03:31):
executive order but also inCongress as well.
Um, and again, the thing that Ialways want to say here is that
NASCIO is not against federalpolicy concerning artificial
intelligence.
You know, that that's not wherewe are.
But we want to make sure thatany federal policy that is
enacted, it is done inconsultation in conjunction with
the states.
Um, because states have done somuch proactively to develop and
(03:51):
implement good AI policy.
And we don't want to see thatroll back.
Um, and then finally, too, wealso are supporting broader
adoption of.gov.
We think.gov is such a greatand cost-effective way to
improve cybersecurity.
That's been up there, I think,for years.
Don't expect that to change.
And then the one that is a bitmore, a bit more of a tongue
twister, but it's harmonizingdisparate federal cybersecurity
(04:12):
regulations.
If regulatory harmonization isyour thing, definitely encourage
you to check out the one pagerthere.
But we do want to see moreregulatory harmonization when it
comes to cybersecurity reactionof the federal government
because it makes it so much, youknow, I say easier, but it's
it's not just that we're tryingto make things easier for
states, but it makes it moreeffective, both when it comes to
the spending aspect of ofcomplying with all these
(04:33):
regulations, and we think itjust makes things more secure to
have kind of one federalstandard.
Um, so those are four of thebig ones that we are really
concerned about, and we're gonnakeep working on.
Amy Glasscock (04:43):
Awesome.
I mean, who doesn't love someregulatory harmonization?
Should be everyone's thing.
Alex Whitaker (04:48):
Yeah.
Amy Glasscock (04:49):
Okay, and so you mentioned that there's a new
priority this year.
Tell us about that.
Alex Whitaker (04:52):
There is.
So what we're doing is wepreviously last year, and I
think for two years, we had hadum some language about
strengthening and improving thefederal cybersecurity workforce.
Now we're removing thatadvocacy principle.
But I want to be very clearNASCIO is not done with
advocating for a uh moreresources for states to hire the
workers that they need forcybersecurity needs.
(05:13):
But what we're doing is we'reremoving that language and we're
replacing it with an advocacyprinciple that champions
reauthorization of the firstresponder network authority, or
it's more commonly known asFirstNet.
We're doing that for tworeasons.
One, there's not a lot of kindof comprehensive federal action
right now when it comes tostrengthening the cybersecurity
workforce.
We can talk more about thatlater, but then you know that's
(05:35):
just something that we we don'tsee as much of an appetite about
addressing that.
Again, doesn't mean it's notimportant, doesn't mean that
NASCIO is not going to beworking on it, but we do see
that FirstNet is up forreauthorization this year.
FirstNet has been an extremelyeffective tool for states when
they're responding to disasters,both man-made and otherwise.
So that would of course includea cybersecurity disaster if it
(05:56):
came to it.
And we want to make sure thatFirstNet is supported and
reauthorized.
And we see that really um thestates, the local governments,
everyone is really committed tothat.
I think it's likely, but it'snot a done deal.
So we want to express to ourfriends in Congress that NASCIO
supports that, that we've seen alot of effective uh effective
uses by FirstNet so far.
And we thought it was importantenough to make it an advocacy
principle.
(06:16):
So that's one of the thingswe'll be champion this year.
Amy Glasscock (06:18):
Great.
So, you know, how have thesebeen received so far now that we
have them out there, and howwill they feature in the work
that you're doing for NASCIO?
Alex Whitaker (06:26):
Yeah, so um, you know, normally we have a big
in-person event that would havehappened last week where we have
a strategic partners briefing.
Um, NASCIO's strategic partnersare incredibly important to us.
Those are groups like NationalConference of State
Legislatures, the budgetofficers, all kinds of other
groups who we work with toadvocate for a lot of things
that I've mentioned already.
(06:46):
But of course, the massivesnowstorm got in our way last
year, and even Doug Robinsondidn't come to DC.
And when Doug Robinson is nottraveling, you know that it's
serious.
Um, we did a pivot to a Zoomvirtual event where we briefed
our strategic partners and werolled out these uh advocacy
principles.
Again, I I know we're all sickof Zoom events, but it it
actually went very well.
(07:07):
And I think it was one of thoseinstances where you know we're
we're glad to be doing inperson, but Zoom still does have
a a lot of relevance for us.
So had our virtual event, we'vegotten a lot of great reactions
so far from friends in Congressand the agencies as well as
others.
Um, we've talked a lot ofpublications about it.
So overall, the reaction's beengreat.
I think that um people are arealways sort of in the same way
that you're glad to see NASCIO'stop ten priorities from the
(07:30):
CIOs.
I think that having the abilityto say here's what the CEOs are
really focused on from acongressional and in a federal
and agency perspective is veryhelpful.
So good feedback so far.
And they're gonna feature inthe work that we're doing.
Again, it's just such a helpfulthing for me in federal affairs
to be able to say to ourpartners in Congress, look, here
are the top things that we'refocused on.
And we we know there's a lotgoing on, but here's where the
(07:52):
COs are really focused.
Here's how the money is gonnabe put to the best use, here are
the most efficient things.
Um let's just kind of speakwith a very clear voice, which
is so helpful in DC,particularly these days.
Amy Glasscock (08:03):
Yeah, absolutely.
Well, that's all very exciting.
And uh before we move on to DCat large, is there anything else
you want to mention about thepriorities?
Alex Whitaker (08:12):
Yeah, so I mean, one of the things I want to say
is I I've said this a couple oftimes, but um, these aren't the
only things that we work on.
So if you are a NASCIO partner,if you are a a a member, or if
you're just somebody who'd liketo know more about NASCIO,
please feel free to reach out.
You know, some of the thingsthat we're also we we always
want to be is um responsive andadaptive.
So if there are other thingsthat come up on the radar and
you think, hey, NASCIO shouldknow about this, or here's a way
(08:34):
that NASCO can be helpful, um,please let us know.
Because you know, we alwayswant to be as helpful as we can
and on kind of whatever's goingon in DC.
So if there's anything else,let us know because we're always
happy to have anotherconversation about ways that we
can be helpful in a federalprocess.
Amy Glasscock (08:47):
Awesome.
All right, so now that we'vegot the 2026 NASCIO advocacy
priorities washed out, tell uswhat we might expect from
Congress and this administrationover the next year or so.
Alex Whitaker (08:57):
Yeah, well, let me first say any predictions are
non-binding.
So please no one come back andsay I told you so in a month or
a year.
Uh, because predicting anythingis, of course, really tough
right now.
You know, we are technically inthe midst of a government
shutdown, which is kind offlying under the radar.
We think we're gonna get aspending deal, but we don't
know.
And I think that thatuncertainty is gonna be really
(09:17):
indicative of of how things aresort of shaping out over the
next year.
So there are things that aregonna be outside of our control
when it comes to shutdowns,spending battles.
Um, we've also got majormidterm elections in November,
which not just for Congress, andwhere you could see flips in in
the House and potentially theSenate as well, but we have a
huge number of governors' racesthat are up in November too.
(09:38):
So I think that the politicsare really gonna dominate the
landscape in combination withthe spending battles.
But it's not all bad news.
I mean, we have seen somereally great, I mentioned
earlier, some really greatmovement on getting state and
local cybersecurity grantprogram reauthorized.
There have been short-termextensions included in both the
last government shutdown dealand this one.
So that's hopeful.
(10:00):
Again, NASTEO wants a long-termreauthorization, but I think
the fact that those keep gettingincluded show that Congress
would love to get this done aswell.
So I think that we're gonnahave some good, I hope and think
we'll have some good news onSLCGP this year.
On artificial intelligence,too.
Look, again, I just want to beso clear that we are not against
the idea of federal policy onAI.
(10:20):
We're just against blanketmoratoriums.
And I think that people inCongress are hearing that.
Legislatively, thesemoratoriums have been defeated
every time that they've beenincluded in major deals.
So I think that's indicative ofof where um some of our friends
in Congress are.
We're also really, I thinkwe've seen great movement on
the.gov domain option.
So again, there's gonna beuncertainty based on spending,
(10:42):
based on politics, uh, butthat's not really gonna stop
NASCIO from working on thethings that are important to us
and to CIOs.
And I and I do think we'll havesome good news over the next
few months.
Amy Glasscock (10:50):
Yeah, absolutely.
Well, as always, it's going tobe a busy year for you.
So any other parting thoughtsbefore we wrap up?
Alex Whitaker (10:58):
No, I don't think so.
Um, you know, mostly again,like I said, please feel free to
reach out.
We're always happy to chat withanyone about things that are
going on in Congress.
And yeah, I think that's thethe big stuff.
It's gonna be a a wild ridethis year, but um maybe we can
check back in a few months and Ican give another update on how
things are going in Congress.
Amy Glasscock (11:16):
Absolutely.
Okay, well, since it's just thetwo of us, I think we can skip
the regular lightning round forthe day, but we have to do at
least one fun question, right?
I mean, why else are peoplelistening and stuff?
Right.
And since we're 2026 focused inthis episode, do you have any
goals or resolutions that youwant to share for 2026?
Alex Whitaker (11:32):
Yeah, so 2025, it was all about the number of
books that I had read.
I wanted to read more and I Ihad a number, I got that goal,
but this year I've got some likespecific books I want to read.
Like I've never read Lord ofthe Rings, I've never read that
really long, intimidatingchurnal grant book.
So that's that's kind of thegoal this year.
I'm trying to go for qualityover quantity.
(11:53):
What about you?
Amy Glasscock (11:54):
Yeah, that that's a good one.
Uh yeah, that's interesting.
I maybe you you I'm sure you dothis too.
My husband also like writesdown all the books that he reads
throughout the year, and so Istarted doing that too, just to
kind of I feel like it'llencourage me to read more in a
variety of things.
So yeah, I've been able to reada few books already.
One was really long.
Uh I don't know if you've heardof this book.
(12:15):
It's called The Secret Historyby Donna Tartt.
It was written in 1992, but Ifeel like it's been getting some
like buzz again lately.
I don't know.
I saw it pop up a couple timesand I read it and it was really
long.
Alex Whitaker (12:25):
So I'm I'm I'm interested.
I'm not putting it on my list.
I've got too many long ones,but I'm glad you were able to
get through this.
Amy Glasscock (12:32):
Yeah, it's uh you'll have to look into it.
It's pretty good.
Um just you know, sort of thosethose normal uh resolutions
that people have to, you know,be healthier and move more and
get strong and all of thosethings.
Alex Whitaker (12:45):
Um reading and we'll we'll we should have a
NASCIO uh lifting umcompetition, workout at our next
session.
Amy Glasscock (12:54):
Yeah.
That's awesome.
And then of course, sort of hadthis long ongoing uh renovation
of our attic in our house.
And so being able to finishthat this year is uh my sort of
main goal.
Alex Whitaker (13:08):
I love the Instagram updates.
I mean, it feels like you'rereally making progress.
I'm living like a year.
Amy Glasscock (13:12):
We've got drywall, so yeah, it's all
downhill from here, right?
All right.
Well, thanks so much for therundown.
I know NASCIO's advocacy has alot going on this year.
And if you want to read more,you can read the priorities in
full and download our one-pagePDFs on the NASCIO website.
Alex Whitaker (13:29):
Yeah, absolutely.
Like I said, busy year, but umit's an exciting year too.
I think we have a lot that wecan accomplish.
Amy Glasscock (13:34):
All right, thanks, Alex.
Alex Whitaker (13:36):
Got it.
Thanks again for listening toNASCIO Voices.
NASCIO Voices is a productionof the National Association of
State Chief InformationOfficers.
Learn more at NASCIO.org.
Amy Glasscock (13:46):
We'll be back soon with more great IT content,
and don't forget to like andsubscribe wherever you listen to
podcasts.
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