| Tune in for Our 2020 Kickoff Webcast Join us in March for a recap of job-critical insights from last year’s program and a preview of 2020. We’re assembling a panel of innovative special district leaders and experts who’ll offer unique perspectives on issues that will impact your organization today and in the future. You won’t want to miss this 2020 kickoff event. We’ll have more details soon. District Spotlight: Mapping Air Quality The Bay Area Air Quality Management District in San Francisco will partner with a local air-quality monitoring company to gather pollution data from every corner of the 5,000-square-mile metro area. The plan calls for driving vehicles equipped with air-quality monitoring sensors down every public street in the nine-county region. The work is part of an effort to collect detailed pollution data, which experts say can vary greatly not only block-to-block, but even within the same city block. “The Air District is investing in innovation to bring an unprecedented level of visibility of air pollution and climate emissions,” said district CEO Jack Broadbent, during a press event to announce the project in January. “This project will help shine a light on the disparate health impacts faced by many in the region. And it will inform lawmakers to better guide our decision-making process to protect the health of all Bay Area residents moving forward.” Data from the drives, which will be conducted throughout 2020 and 2021, will be combined with other air district data to map out block-by-block air quality across a range of pollutants like ozone and nitrogen dioxide. The data ultimately will be publicly available on the district’s website. Read the full story. More Articles Worth a Read Here are more stories from special districts around the country. Share your own news with us for inclusion in the next newsletter. The Atlanta-Region Transit Link Authority is working to create a mobile app that residents can use to plan and pay for public transit trips across the city’s 13-county metro area. The authority, created in 2018, is charged with simplifying public transit in the region. Douglas County Public Utility District in Washington state intends to dramatically increase electricity rates for cryptocurrency mining operations to fund a $500 million dam repair project. Cryptocurrency miners in the county would see an immediate 20 percent rate hike, followed by 10 percent increases every six months for the next five years. Self-driving electric shuttles were scheduled to begin service in Columbus, Ohio’s Linden neighborhood in January under a 12-month pilot project. The 12-passenger shuttles will be operated by a partnership that includes the Central Ohio Transit Authority and Columbus Metropolitan Housing Authority. | 
