Access America E-Gov E-Zine

Alabama
"...excellent way to organize federal information so that is useful for the local government manager."
-- John Seymour, City Manager, Anniston, Alabama

Connecticut
"Very interested in the education and welfare reform areas."
Representative Bob Godfrey, Deputy Majority Leader, Connecticut General Assembly, Connecticut

Iowa
"..a tremendous resource. I learned of the web site through the Public Administration Times. Thanks for the excellent work. It is a web site I am certain I will use frequently."
-- Daryl Frey, Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship, Des Moines, Iowa

Massachusetts
"This web page is excellent. How do you do it?"
-- State elected official, Massachusetts

Michigan
"This is a great site."
-- Joe Turner, Economic Development Specialist, Saginaw, Michigan

Minnesota
"..will be helpful to the consultants in my division who work with many other state agencies."
-- Minnesota Department of Administration

Nevada
"Impressed by the overall site."
-- Assemblyman Bob Price, State General Assembly, Nevada

Oregon
"There is such a need for this service. We can use department home pages, but we end up searching for hours and sometimes fail to find what we’re looking for."
-- Connie Revell, Director, Oregon Option

"...making life easier for those of us at the state and local level when working with the feds."
-- Jono Hildner, Director, Department of Human Services, Clackamas County, Oregon

"WOW! What a great entry-point for finding resources and tools, especially best practices."
-- Marc Overbeck, Workforce Development, Salem, Oregon

Pennsylvania
"...fabulous..makes me feel that our highest government officials are truly interested in us little people."
-- Thelma Fundenberg, blind citizen of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Puerto Rico
"..interesting site, will the Gateway information around to the rest of my staff and the Governors office."
-- Jorge Aponte, Director, Office of Management and Budget, Puerto Rico

Wisconsin
"...congratulate you on the creation of an interesting and needed clearinghouse for this kind of information."
-- Marci McCoy, Legislative Audit Bureau, Madison, Wisconsin

Wyoming
"Very impressed. Had been looking for some education information for several weeks but never found the right file. I did it through the Gateway in half an hour so will talk this up to others."
-- Senator Curt Meier, State Senate, Wyoming

Australia
"..good site to visit. I am using your site to identify performance measures and best practices with regard to compliance and enforcement."
-- John Sanderson, Manager of the Investigations Branch, State Revenue Office of Victoria, Melbourne, Australia

By Don Elder

January 6, 1999

The U.S. State & Local Gateway -- www.statelocal.gov -- the one-stop Internet link to federal information for state and local government managers and employees, marks its one-year anniversary this month. The website is a cooperative effort of the National Partnership for Reinventing Government, more than 20 federal agencies, and the seven major organizations representing state and local governments.

This one-stop electronic shop for federal information, said Vice President Gore, Ais exactly the kind of reinvention that will lead not only to improved service to our customers, but also to cost savings as federal agencies deliver more and more information electronically. Delivering services electronically is the theme of the Vice President's 1997 report, Access America: Reengineering Through Information Technology. The State & Local Gateway is getting rave reviews from state and local employees. (See sidebar.)

The Big Seven organizations the Council of State Governments, International City Management Association, National Association of Counties, National Council of State Legislatures, National Governors Association, National League of Cities, and the U.S. Conference of Mayors are the primary customer group for the Gateway. The S&LG homepage lists current issues, news, and subjects. Topics cover funding, best practices, and laws and regulations. Subjects include communities and disasters, education, environment and energy, health, housing, and transportation, among others. In addition, links are provided to individual federal agency websites, other one-stop gateway sites, and the homepages of the Big Seven organizations.

The website is designed to meet the needs of both the information-seeking customer and information-providing federal agencies. To help ensure this important balance, the website is managed by committees that meet regularly to review new issues and subject areas and increase outreach to new customer groups. The Innovation Fund, managed by the Government Information Technology Services Board, provided funding to hire a full-time web administrator for one year. The administrator works with the webmaster and heads up a technical committee to oversee site development.

Between January and October 1998, monthly web activity nearly doubled to 67,000 hits. As the U.S. State & Local Gateway enters its second year, technical upgrades are being carried out; a design review is underway; and new customer outreach efforts are being planned. This is only a modest beginning. The S&LG plans include adding online transactions, such as grant applications, and to create a new model for electronic customer service.

About the Author

Don Elder is on the staff of the National Partnership for Reinventing Government representing the Federal Trade Commission. You may reach him at (202) 694-0105 or don.elder@nprlgov.

Access America Online Magazine Partners
Chief Information Officers Council
National Partnership for Reinventing Government
Federal Communicators Network

Statistics