Wednesday, July 25, 2007
Gov. Minner Announces Delaware Rated No. 1 State for E-Government
Dover – Governor Ruth Ann Minner announced today that Delaware has been ranked first in the nation for its e-government services to citizens, according to Brown University’s annual independent analysis.
“Clearly this recognizes our outstanding progress in bringing e-government services to the people of Delaware,” Gov. Minner said. “Brown University’s researchers cited our efficient design, variety of services and the fact that our websites are easy to use, and that is a credit to the staff at our Government Information Center and Department of Technology and Information.”
Last year, Delaware was ranked 15th in the Brown University study and has risen from an initial ranking of 49th in 2000, the first year of the study. A team of researchers led by Darrell West, Director of Brown’s Taubman Center for Public Policy, examined 1,487 state websites during June and July 2007.Websites are evaluated for the presence of various electronic features, such as online publications, databases, audio and video clips, foreign language content and translation services, disability access, privacy policy and readability level. Delaware was ranked immediately above Michigan, Maine, Kentucky and Tennessee in this year’s study, which also ranks e-government on the federal level.
“We are pleased to be ranked No. 1 in the nation, especially since the Brown University study is an independent analysis,” said Department of Technology and Information (DTI) Secretary Tom Jarrett.
The report noted that the uniform layout of the pages put online services, privacy statements, contact information and search bars in the same place on each page, regardless of whether it is the Division of Fish & Wildlife’s site or that of the Division of Corporations. Consistency of the sites is something GIC and DTI have been focusing special attention on in recent years, in order to make the web sites as accessible as possible to the largest number of users.
“The First State is now first in e-government quality,” said Secretary of State Harriet Smith Windsor. “With this great news, however, we bear the responsibility of maintaining a superior level of access. We will continue to improve our sites to better serve Delawareans and others who seek information and services from us.”
For more information, click on: http://www.brown.edu/Administration/News_Bureau/2007-08/07-010.html.
