*** Democracies Online Newswire - http://www.e-democracy.org/do *** ------- Forwarded message follows ------- From: Joiwind Williams Ronen <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Subject: FW: just released...e-Government: The Next American Revolution Date sent: Wed, 21 Feb 2001 18:20:18 -0500 > Dear Friends of the Technology Leadership Consortium, > > The Council for Excellence in Government today unveiled a plan for > achieving full electronic government in the United States. The > blueprint and live webcast of the press conference can be viewed at > www.excelgov.org. > > Entitled E-Government: The Next American Revolution, the blueprint > sets forth the vision, principles, and actions necessary for a > breakthrough seen as comparable in impact to the invention of the > printing press. It aims to make government at all levels far more > accountable to the will and needs of the people and greatly boost > the speed, variety, and quality of transactions between them. The > big idea here is “e-the-people.” > > “This blueprint is a guide for bringing about positive, sweeping > change in the relationship between people and their government,” > said Council President and CEO Patricia McGinnis. “That new > connection will enable Americans to conduct their business with > government whenever and wherever they wish. E-government will be > easy to use and available to everyone.” She said that includes > “everything from paying taxes and checking your Social Security > earnings to communicating with elected representatives, tracking > their voting records, participating in public hearings, and forming > communities of interest with others online.” > > Public opinion surveys, conducted for this initiative by Peter Hart > and Robert Teeter, are cited in the blueprint (the poll can be > accessed at www.excelgov.org). The most recent, in January 2001, > shows that: > > * Most Americans (73%) think e-government should be a priority of > the new president. * Sixty-five percent favor the appointment of an > e-government czar in the White House. * A 65% majority supports the > use of government funds to help states modify their voting systems > by installing electronic voting machines that work like automatic > teller machines. * By a 66% majority, the public thinks > public-private partnerships are the best approach to developing > e-government services. > > The blueprint is the product of a 14-month initiative that involved > 350 information technology leaders in business, government, and > research communities across the country. The project was launched, > led, and coordinated by the Council for Excellence in Government. > Public opinion polling was made possible by the generosity of two > corporations: KPMG LLP, which provided lead funding; and Imagitas, > Inc., which provided secondary funding. > > Senator Fred Thompson (R-TN), chairman of the Senate Governmental > Affairs Committee, said he believes government “could do more to > harness technology to make the government more results-oriented in > order to provide better services to the public. I congratulate the > Council for Excellence in Government for providing an e-government > blueprint.” Calling e-government “the wave of the future” and “a > condition for the future relevance of our government,” Senator > Joseph Lieberman (D-CT), the ranking minority member of the > committee, said the Council deserves “enormous credit” for promoting > the issue “with its consensus-building approach.” > > IBM Chairman Louis V. Gerstner, Jr. said governments “are now > moving to embrace e-business applications and doing the important > work of integrating the technology into their structures and > processes.” That, he said, will bring “immense efficiencies as well > as huge benefits to individual citizens and society at large. > E-Government: The Next American Revolution will speed this process > and help bring governments into the 21st century. I congratulate the > Council for Excellence in Government for its leadership in this > effort.” > > The blueprint calls for e-government that is easy to use, available > to everyone, private and secure, innovative and results-oriented, > collaborative, cost-effective, and transformational. To accomplish > these results, the plan recommends that the president: > > * Appoint an assistant to the president for electronic government-a > move favored by nearly two thirds of those asked about it by > Hart/Teeter in January. * Create a public/private council on > electronic government, representing business, the research > community, the Cabinet, the Congress, and every other level of > American government. * Establish an office of electronic government > and information policy as part of the federal Office of Management > and Budget, headed by a presidentially appointed, Senate-confirmed > federal chief information officer. * Appoint people to top executive > branch positions who will commit themselves to the strategic > development of e-government in their departments and agencies. > > > Steps like these carry equal promise for state, local, and tribal > governments, the plan states, urging them to collaborate closely > with the federal government and one another in the pursuit of > e-government. As other leadership moves, the plan recommends > > * That the Congress set up an office of e-government. Among other > purposes, this would respond to a Hart/Teeter finding that about 75 > percent of Americans think e-government will improve their ability > to connect with elected representatives. * That judiciary systems at > all levels use information technology to fully open their > deliberations, calendars, and decisions to the public. * At the > international level, that the public/private council lead the way in > strengthening relationships and cooperation with other countries > that are moving toward e-government. Because e-government at this > scale needs sufficient, carefully applied investment, the plan > recommends that the Congress appropriate $3 billion over five years > for an e-government strategic investment fund--an amount similar to > that used to tackle the federal government’s Y2K challenges. It > represents added spending at an average rate of 1.5 percent a year. > > On other key issues, the blueprint advances proposals for broad > public/private collaboration to reach full e-government; a skilled > workforce to implement it; innovative solutions to questions of > privacy and security; and public access and education. > > The authors of this plan believe that the full e-government they > advocate “can provide real-not theoretical-answers” to the > e-government challenge, the blueprint says. At the same time, “we > don’t pretend that translating those answers into reality will be > simple or quick. The blueprint is not a detailed road map.” The > plan notes promising signs of information technology already in > action in government, concluding: > > “This is one of those exciting moments in time when leaders are > challenged to act, with imagination and determination, to achieve > the quantum leaps that electronic government makes possible. The > people are ready. We can do this, together.” > > Nonpartisan, nonprofit, and national in scope, the Council works to > improve the performance of government at all levels and government’s > place in the lives and esteem of American citizens. Council programs > address two primary goals. The first is strong public-sector > leadership and management, driven by innovation and focused on > results. Second is increased citizen confidence and participation > in government and governance, achieved through better understanding > of government and its role. > > The blueprint and the full news conference - webcast live by FedNet > - can be viewed at www.excelgov.org. > I would be delighted to talk with you about this report and to get your ideas of next steps. If you have any questions about the e-government blueprint and initiative you may also contact Joiwind Ronen. We can be reached by telephone at 202-728-0418 or by email at [EMAIL PROTECTED] or [EMAIL PROTECTED] Sincerely, Pat McGinnis President & CEO, Council for Excellence in Government > -------------------------------------------------------------------- > ------ > -------------------------------------------------------------------- > ------ - Quotes about E-Government: The Next American Revolution > > Senator Fred Thompson (R-TN) “Over the last decade, the government - > like the private sector - has become more dependent on technology, > including the Internet, to support its operations. This reliance has > resulted in many benefits. And yet, I believe the government could > do more to harness technology to make the government more > results-oriented in order to provide better services to the public. > I congratulate the Council for Excellence in Government for > providing an e-government blueprint, which will continue the debate > on how to increase the public’s trust in government.” > > Senator Joseph Lieberman (D-CT) “E-Government is the wave of the > future, and The Council for Excellence in Government deserves > enormous credit for energetically promoting the issue with its > consensus-building approach. Every one of us has an obligation to > ensure that electronic government evolves thoughtfully and > responsibly. This is not an option. It's a condition for the > future relevance of our government.” > > Stephen Goldsmith, Special Advisor to the President for Faith-Based > and Community Initiatives Center for Technology in Government > “Electronic government will not only break down boundaries and > reduce transaction costs between citizens and their governments but > between levels of government as well. Initiatives such as that > undertaken by the Council for Excellence in Government help move > e-government in this direction.” > > Louis V. Gerstner, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, > International Business Machines Corporation “We've moved past the > period of rampant hype and confusion surrounding the rise of a truly > networked world. One strong indicator is that, just as in the > private sector, governments are now moving to embrace e-business > applications and doing the important work of integrating the > technology into their structures and processes. This integration is > going to bring immense efficiencies as well as huge benefits to > individual citizens and society at large. The blueprint, > E-Government: The Next American Revolution, will speed this process > and help bring governments into the 21st century. I congratulate The > Council for Excellence in Government for its leadership in this > effort.” > > Scott Harshbarger, President, Common Cause “E-government holds the > promise of making government more accountable to its citizens. I > applaud the Council for Excellence in Government for leading this > effort to bring government closer to the American public through > technology.” > > Sharon Dawes, Director, University at Albany/SUNY, Center for > Technology in Government “E-government goals are focused on the > future of our whole society. We're aiming for convenient services, > easy communications, and suitable security from our town halls and > state capitals, as well as from Washington. To reach these goals, we > need leadership, commitment, and investment in every part of our > system and every level of government. The inclusiveness of the > Council's' E-government Initiative moves us all in this direction.” > > Representative Tom Davis (R-VA) “E-government offers the potential > to reinvent the way citizens and businesses interact with the > government. In a nutshell, E-government, done right, should mean > better government, at a lower cost to taxpayers. We can't understate > the importance of moving in the direction of e-government, and this > document from the Council for Excellence in Government is an > important step toward that goal.” > > Senator Patrick Leahy (D-VT) “The Internet offers us a unique > opportunity to allow the American people to have everyday access to > public information. Initiatives like this harness the power of the > information age to help open up our government to everyone.” > Patrick Gross, Chairman of the Executive Committee and Co-founder, > American Management Systems; Co-chair, Intergovernmental Technology > Leadership Consortium “E-government is revolutionizing the > relationship between business, government, and citizens-stimulating > economic growth and providing dramatically improved services to > constituents nationwide. The Council deserves enormous credit for > mobilizing this e-government effort.” > > ------- End of forwarded message ------- ^ ^ ^ ^ Steven L. 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