Government isn’t known for being nimble, but the past two weeks have proved the old adage: Necessity is the mother of invention.
While much of the workforce is sheltering at home, government agencies whose services are deemed essential have retooled their systems nearly overnight, sometimes finding innovative ways to accomplish tasks without human interaction by simply putting existing technology to work.
Exhibit A: The court system.
“When the red tape disappears, things get done very quickly for sure,” Administrative Office of the Courts Chief Technology Officer Dick Wilkinson said in a phone interview Friday. “We have, in most instances, tripled or quadrupled the technological capability we had in the past month. Some of these ideas were on the shelf a month ago.”
Judges in the First Judicial District Court, for example, are still donning their robes and ascending the bench to decide important cases.
But instead of holding court in a space bustling with lawyers, clerks, plaintiffs and defendants, they are presiding over cases in empty courtrooms.
Nearly all parties are appearing via video or phone.
Current rules aimed at preventing the spread of COVID-19 require parties who wish to appear in person to get permission from the court — a complete reversal of the status quo, which required parties to obtain permission to appear by phone.
“The empty courtroom is the biggest change,” state District Judge T. Glenn Ellington said. “We deal with cases that touch people’s lives and we’re used to doing that in person.
“We’re lucky,” he added. “If we had been in this situation 20 years ago, it would look very different. The innovations and technology we have now is what makes it possible to keep our doors open and still process cases.”
While having participants appear by phone makes it possible for the judges to continue deciding cases, some say it is a challenging way to do business.
“It’s not optimum, but we’re making it work,” District Judge Francis J. Mathew said. “We run into problems with equipment on both ends. Sometimes it causes people to be garbled or cut out, but people are being patient and allowing us to ask them to repeat what they said and adjusting their questions. We seem to be getting through this.”
Judge Bryan Biedscheid said one of glitches he’s experienced with the new way of operating isn’t something technical but rather something very human.
“Usually when you are in a circumstance where people are having debate or argument, they can look at each other and get cues for when it’s their turn to talk,” he said. “They can’t do that on the phone.”
When initial restrictions were put in place limiting the number of people who could be in one room, courts set up overflow areas were observers could view video of the proceedings.
Now, people who want to attend a hearing — including the media — are asked to call in and listen by phone.
But Wilkinson said he’ll be meeting with judges next week to explore the possibility of webcasting court hearings so people can watch from anywhere.
“We’ll be looking at the technological options and how they align with the needs of the court and fit statutory rules for recording and public access,” he said.
Meanwhile, city of Santa Fe Constituent and Council Services Director Kristine Mihelcic had to solve a problem of nearly algebraic complexity last week when she organized the first City Council meeting since the ban on gatherings of more than five people.
“When you take face-to-face contact out, there are a lot of things that go into it at every level,” she said.
Not only did she have to find a way to allow the councilors to participate from their homes — a feat accomplished by using Webex, an application designed to facilitate virtual meetings — she also had to make sure the public could participate.
Mihelcic attempted to address that challenge by having people who wished to speak during the meeting register and provide numbers she used to call them when the meeting was in progress.
Despite her efforts, the first virtual meeting of the council proved problematic Wednesday, as technical glitches bogged it down. Some council members struggled to hear one another, as well as the handful of residents who asked to be dialed in.
Toward the end of the meeting, District 3 City Councilor Chris Rivera proposed an alternative, if not radical, idea.
“Is it unreasonable to ask the governor to suspend Open Meetings Act requirements during this?” he asked. “I mean, it’s unprecedented times.”
City Attorney Erin McSherry called Rivera’s idea to suspend Open Meetings Act requirements “really interesting,” adding “if [state lawmakers] have a special session, that might be something we could propose because I think they would actually have to amend the Open Meetings Act.”
But the Attorney General’s Office issued an advisory March 17 reminding public entities of “their ongoing obligations to comply” with the Open Meetings Act and the Inspection of Public Records Act during the state of emergency, which Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham declared March 11.
Government entities whose activities aren’t as strictly governed by statute also are finding new ways to bring their essential services to the community.
“We are closed,” Santa Fe Public Library Division Director Maria Sanchez-Tucker said. “But librarians love working with the public and providing resources. So we’re working as a team to think of innovative ways we can still provide trusted resources and information and maintain relationships with our patrons.”
People can now apply for a library card via email; the library already offered users digital access to books, movies and television shows.
Sanchez-Tucker said the library now is devoting a larger share of its budget to purchasing such materials instead of physical books. And she said she’s been negotiating with publishers to expand the digital resources patrons can access for free.
Tucker said one of the library’s new offerings — videos of librarians reading children’s books aloud on YouTube — is something her staff took it upon themselves to do on their own.
“The library is a bright spot in many people’s lives,” she said. “Just having story time with your child when people are feeling anxious and routines are interrupted … having time to laugh at a silly story with a librarian you are familiar with can bring some comfort.”
Joshua Anzures — who works for Santa Fe County Senior Services as an activities program manager for the senior center in Chimayó — also is using technology to connect with people he no longer sees in person.
Anzures normally oversees meals and activities such as weaving, ceramics and art at the center. He said part of his job was to “be like a friend to all the seniors.”
The center closed March 12, and Anzures now works from home. But he still reaches out to his friends by phone, calling the 20 to 30 seniors who used to come to the center nearly every day to make sure they have enough food and medicine and a little bit of human connection.
“I ask how they are doing, and they are asking me how I’m doing,” he said. “They are concerned about my life the same way I’m concerned about their lives. Just to hear their voices and for them to hear my voice really brings the connection back, even though we aren’t able to see each other in the center.”
