"A major goal of my administration is to make state government more open and efficient," Governor Bredesen said. "These new changes will make it easier for Tennesseans to access the information and services they need, 24 hours a day and seven days a week."
Tennessee.gov receives more than three million visits each month, and supports 575,000 e-government transactions each month. The site offers a range of online services including driver license renewal, Hall income tax filings, felony offender information, state park reservations and TennCare eligibility verification for health care providers.
Improvements were prompted by feedback provided by citizens and businesses to the State Office of Information Resources and the Tennessee Information Division, a subsidiary of e-government firm NIC Inc., which works with the state to provide online services in a public-private partnership. Changes include:
- Better Organization Web site content has been reorganized so users can find what they need in fewer clicks, more closely reflecting the industry's three-click rule. Moreover, departmental web pages are moving to a design that offers a consistent structure.
- Local Information Users now can search local online resources by entering a zip code or part of a city's name. The user will be presented with a list of all online resources, such as city and county web sites, schools and local health departments.
- Enhanced Search Following requests for improved search capabilities, citizens now can use technology powered by Google the Web's leading search engine to explore more than 200,000 pages of information found at Tennessee.gov.