SE Valley Times

Members of the Arizona Legislature convened for a bipartisan seminar focused on Estonia's digital government model. The event, hosted by House Republican Majority Leader Michael Carbone and the House Committee on International Trade, featured Estonian experts Luukas Ilves and Andrew Thompson.

Ilves, a former Estonian Undersecretary for Digital Transformation and Government, along with Thompson, Managing Director of LifeSpeed Ventures and CEO of the Estonian Multiomics Company, led a two-hour presentation in the Old Senate Chamber. They discussed Estonia’s digital governance model, e-residency program, and how secure digital platforms have enhanced public service transparency and efficiency.

"Arizona families deserve a government that works smarter and wastes less," said Majority Leader Carbone. "Every member, on either side of the aisle, should be asking: how do we modernize? How do we improve? And how do we do it right? Over 160 countries have studied what Estonia has done, and today’s discussion affords lawmakers an opportunity to learn from this proven success so we can deliver better service, increase efficiency, and save taxpayer dollars."

The seminar is part of the Republican Majority’s initiative to reform government operations with a focus on efficiency. This session's priorities include reducing bureaucratic overhead and enhancing transparency while protecting individual rights.

Representative Tony Rivero, Chairman of the International Trade Committee, emphasized that Estonia's model demonstrates that governments can be more efficient without expanding. "The seminar gave lawmakers the chance to ask questions, hear practical lessons, and start thinking about how Arizona could adapt proven systems without expanding bureaucracy," Rivero said. "Estonia shows what’s possible when you innovate and get government out of its own way. That aligns perfectly with the Republicans’ mission to do more with less and do it better."

Michael Carbone represents Legislative District 25 in the Arizona House of Representatives.

Information from this article can be found here.