The Commerce Department's top watchdog on Friday defended the federal government's census advertising campaign as a concerted effort to save taxpayers money.

Skeptics have railed on the Census Bureau's decision to spend about $130 million this year to advertise the decennial count, taking special aim at the $2.5 million federal officials paid to air a 30-second spot during the Super Bowl.

But Commerce Department Inspector General Todd Zinser cautioned critics not to judge the ads' effectiveness too prematurely, as the Census Bureau's entire "integrated communications campaign" -- which will cost a total of $300 million this -- could improve form return rates and actually save the government money.

In an interview with C-SPAN, Zinser explained every that 1 percent of households to return their census forms on time will save the federal government about $80 million to $90 million -- money that would normally be spent on nagging those individuals to complete their surveys.

Consequently, that means just a 10 percent improvement in on-time submissions could possibly save taxpayers $800 million to $900 million this year, he predicted.

"The Congress did want the Census Bureau to use paid media... because the intent is that if you advertise, more people will respond and be aware of the census and participate in the census," Zinser said.

"So I hope the advertisements are successful," he said, noting the White House expects 65 percent to submit their forms on time, even without the ads. "There are different measures that we're using this time around... to see whether or not the ads have been helpful, but we'll just have to see at the end of the campaign."

However, Zinser's words on Friday are unlikely to assuage Republicans, in particular, who have mostly decried the bureau's expense as wasteful.

While all agree the census is important, as it determines states' representation in Congress, GOP lawmakers remain unconvinced an advertisement campaign can actually increase turnout.

"While the census is very important to AZ, we shouldn’t be wasting $2.5 million taxpayer dollars to compete with ads for Doritos!" Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) tweeted in frustration, just before the Super Bowl ad aired.

Democrats chiefly in charge of monitoring broadband stimulus dollars released guidelines on Friday for the second round of federal grants.

About $4 billion are available for states that wish to expand broadband Internet access to underserved communities, explained Sen. Mary Landrieu (D-La.), chairwoman of her chamber's small businesses committee, who drafted the guidelines.

Applications for that recovery act cash are due by March 15, she said in a statement.

“These funds are being put into the hands of businesses dedicated to expanding this advanced technology to some of the most rural parts of the country," the senator said, praising the program.

"Increasing access to broadband internet service will help to bridge the technological divide between rural businesses and competing companies that have long benefited from access to high speed Internet service," Landrieu continued. "I encourage small business owners to apply for these competitive grants. This is an historic opportunity to both improve our communities and U.S. competitiveness."

However, the money Landrieu promoted on Friday has been in jeopardy for months now, as federal officials have struggled to process applications and award stimulus money fast enough.

A USA Today investigation revealed only 7 percent of the broadband money authorized by the 2009 federal stimulus has reached its recipients. That is immensely troubling, as the recovery act is slated to cut off that money spigot by September.

Ex-National Economic Council member Susan Crawford predicted, "We'll be known to others as a condition of doing all we want."

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IBM CEO Samuel Palmisano says Congress needs to pay more attention to building a digital infrastructure rather than just creating traditional manufacturing jobs.

In an op-ed in the Wall Street Journal today, Palmisano says "without pervasive broadband, our country will not be prepared for a new world that is increasingly built on the fusion of the physical and the digital," especially as the U.S. lags behind other countries in Internet deployment and speed.

"Policy makers in Washington should think about that as they consider another round of economic stimulus," he said.

In just three years, the world's Internet traffic is expected to total more than half a zettabyte--or a trillion gigabytes. That can unleash a new wave of applications and jobs, if the U.S. doesn't miss it's chance to leverage the opportunity.

"Congress and the administration need to recognize something that industries like IT and telecommunications understood two decades ago," he wrote.  "They were transformed by smarter systems that rely on broadband technology. Now sectors where much of our future growth lies, and where the government tends to play a large role—such as energy, health care and transportation—need to jump on the bandwagon."

"This will require both private-sector investment and enlightened government policy," he said. "But one thing is clear. America's broadband infrastructure needs an upgrade."

Federal regulators have granted Google the ability to buy and sell electricity -- just as any other utility company might do.

The decision immediately paves the way for the creation of Google Energy, the company's attempt to reduce its overhead costs by buying and selling clean electricity on the energy market.

But the authorization could, conceivably, allow the tech giant to sell energy directly to customers -- a market move that Google executives have hinted they are exploring.

The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) issued the much-expected authorization on Thursday, granting the search engine's energy subsidiary the rights "for the sale of energy, capacity, and ancillary services at market-based rates," according to the order.

However, FERC officials later stipulated that Google Energy could not "own or control any generation or transmission" facilities.

Ultimately, the decision could help Google on its quest to become a carbon-neutral company, one of the goals it outlined when it first pitched Google Energy. It should also assist the company's ongoing research efforts in areas like energy information technology.

"Right now, we can't buy affordable, utility-scale, renewable energy in our markets," Google spokesman Niki Fenwick told CNET in January. "We want to buy the highest quality, most affordable renewable energy wherever we can and use the green credits."

But when asked about additional ventures, Fenwick stressed Google did not have "any concrete plans," and later hinted the company could actually enter the consumer energy market. However, it is not clear whether the tech giant is still weighing such a move.

"We want the ability to buy and sell electricity in case it becomes part of our portfolio," Fenwick said last month.

Investigators have traced a string of cyberattacks to two schools in China, one of which has close ties to the country's military, according to media reports.

However, it is still unclear whether the Chinese government was in any way involved in the attacks, which a team of officials from the National Security Agency and dozens of security experts have been researching since the scheme was first reported on January 12.

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After a lull in Capitol Hill activity following record snow storms and a congressional recess, some technology-related hearings are finally starting to appear on next week's calendar.

Here are a few to look out for:

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The Obama administration is poised to issue a new regulation that will crack down on how much railroad employees use their cell phones while on the job.

Following several fatal train wrecks where engineers were talking on their cell phones or texting, the Department of Transportation this week sent the White House Office of Management and Budget a proposed rule on the issue. The rule "would restrict railroad operating employees from improperly using cellular telephones and other distracting electronic and electrical devices."

The proposal is expected to be released publicly in the coming weeks.

In a 2008 Department of Transportation notice, the government said that although most railroads have rules in place that restrict the use of electronic devices, "these company rules and procedures have not proven effective in preventing serious train accidents..."

The discussion of additional government intervention on distracted railroad driving intensified after a Sept. 12, 2008 head on-collision between a Southern California commuter train and a freight train. Twenty five people died in the accident. The National Transportation Safety Board found that the cell phone of the locomotive engineer was being used to send a text message within 30 seconds of the crash.

There have been several other train collisions that could have been caused by a railroad employee using a cell phone, including three in Texas between 2000 and 2006.

Following the 2008 accident, Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) called on Congress to pass railroad safety legislation.

In the 111th Congress, lawmakers from both sides of the aisle have introduced legislation that provides incentives for states to ban drivers 18 years old and under from using their cell phones.

Stumping for Sen. Michael Bennet (D) in Colorado, Obama noted that the state is the training ground for a few Winter Olympians.

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