A proposal for management and oversight of the "e-portal" died during this year's legislative session, but the administration could have the system operating by the end of the year, said Stephen Easley, the state deputy chief information officer. "We don't need that bill to move forward on the portal," Easley said in a recent interview.
The portal will serve as the main doorway for individuals and businesses to access information from government agencies through the Internet.
Currently, people can go to separate Web sites operated by agencies to find some information. The portal will offer a broader array of services and links to other Web sites, according to Easley. A goal is to make it easier for people to access government services and information.
The state plans to contract with a private vendor to operate the system. Fees will be charged for access to some information, particularly by businesses and commercial operations, and the money will pay for the computer improvements and operation of the so-called electronic government system. A number of other states, such as Kansas, operate government portals using vendors that charge fees for transactions and records.
Easley said he expected the state would request proposals and bids from potential vendors within the next few months.
"We hope by the last quarter of 2004 to maybe have the portal online," said Easley. "It may slip to the first quarter of 2005. My optimistic thought is maybe by the end of the year."
During the legislative session earlier this year, the New Mexico Press Association and the New Mexico Foundation for Open Government opposed the e-government portal measure.
One of their main objections was to a proposed "tier pricing" system that would allow for different fees depending on the user and the purpose for which they want the public records. The highest fees would have been imposed on commercial users that access records and then sell a product using the information. Critics contended the state was trying to turn publicly owned records and information into a profit-making venture.
Robert Johnson, executive director of FOG, on Monday questioned whether the administration had the legal authority to implement the fee-funded portal system without legislation.
"They had better be careful. There are questions of law involved here and it's not the Office of the Chief Information Officer that makes the law," said Johnson.
Easley contended that legislation was not needed to implement and operate the portal.
"All they did was defeat my ideas on the best and most public and fair way to govern the portal. It would have been nice to have it laid out," said Easley. "But since that bill was defeated, then we will proceed anyway in doing what we know is the right thing to do. The governance we will set up the best we can."
He said no decision had been made on whether to seek legislation next year. Under the measure that died in the Legislature this session, the 13-member Information Technology Commission, which currently is responsible for coordinating e-government policies, would have overseen the portal and authorized an initial fee structure.
Quelle: BizReport, 14.04.2004
