IfG.CC -
Institute for eGovernment

Brown University’s annual review of more than 1,500 state and federal Web sites says Delaware is No. 1 when it comes to making information and services easily accessible online.

“Clearly this recognizes our outstanding progress in bringing e-government services to the people of Delaware,” said Gov. Ruth Ann Minner in a press release. “Brown University’s researchers cited our efficient design, variety of services and the fact that our Web sites are easy to use and that is a credit to the staff at our Government Information Center and Department of Technology and Information.”

Denver came in at the top of the fourth annual Urban E-Government Study conducted by the Taubman Center for Public Policy at Brown University. The city maintained its position in the 2003 study, although its overall score dropped.

Researchers at Brown University ranked Denver as the leading city for e-government services in the country, based on the offerings at www.denvergov.org.

A team of researchers from the Taubman Center for Public Policy at Brown University examined 1,548 state and federal sites. The researchers analyzed 1,487 state Web sites – an average of 30 per states – in addition to 48 federal legislative and executive sites and 13 federal court sites. The research team conducted its analysis during June and July.

Many citizens may not have the fondest memories of interacting with the federal government to complete important tasks like filing taxes or tracking down pension information. But federal agencies are making incremental strides enhancing their online presence, according to a report from the University of Michigan's American Customer Satisfaction Index (ACSI) E-Government Satisfaction Index. The report, which evaluates 83 sites, is produced by the university in partnership with the American Society for Quality, ForeSee Results, and the CFI Group.

The University of Michigan’s American Customer Satisfaction Index has released a report showing a slight improvement in citizen satisfaction with federal Web sites.

The greatest improvement was in the e-commerce and transactions category, which increased by 0.4 percent to 73.7 out of 100.

The ASCI revealed citizen satisfaction with federal Web sites improved slightly this quarter, moving up 1.2 percent to an aggregate score of 73.5. This increase marks a 3.2 percent improvement from September 2004.

Firstgov’s drops in the rankings can be attributed to its failure to add new features, said Darrell M. West, director of the Taubman Center for Public Policy at the university, who directed the study. As a result, it was surpassed by others, he said.

"The private sector has long since profited from the efficiencies of technology," said Governor Sonny Perdue. "We are proud to take full advantage of the benefits that a remarkably wired state will bring."

According to Juggle.com, this year’s recipients applied innovative web technology in order to provide citizens with greater access to government information and services. ValdostaCity.com is one of several government portals embracing the commitment to e-government services making it easier to find government information.

The index's e-government report, scheduled for release today, covers 53 federal Web sites that have volunteered to be scored based on their content, appearance, search engines and other functions.

The federal government continues to show a gradual upward trend in online citizen satisfaction, as the aggregate satisfaction score improved quarter over quarter and year over year for the third year in a row. According to the latest findings of the ACSI special report on federal government's online performance, the e-government sector is gaining on several fronts but still faces considerable challenges

A 1.2 percent growth in the satisfaction index - from 72.6 to 73.5 - represents a 3.2 percent increase from September 2004 and is at an all-time high. The cumulative nongovernment scores for goods and services measured by the index averaged out at 73.1.

Citizen satisfaction reached an all-time high for the U.S. General Services Administration's (GSA) main Web site, www.gsa.gov, as reported in the first quarter 2008 release of the American Customer Satisfaction Index (ACSI) E-Government Satisfaction Index.