The E-Government Act, introduced by Senators Joseph Lieberman of Connecticut, the Chairman of the Senate Government Affairs Committee and Democratic vice-presidential candidate, and Conrad Burns, Republican of Montana, aims to provide Federal agencies with the latest information technology tools, as well as the management structure to get the most value out that investment. The bill has 13 cosponsors.
The idea behind the bill goes well beyond delivery of more efficient government services. At hearings on the bill on 11 July, Sen. Lieberman said, "Information technology offers an unprecedented opportunity to redefine the relationship between the public and its government just as it has redefined the relationship between retailers and consumers, teachers and students, soldiers and their foes." Lieberman added, "We want to use information technology to bring about a revolution in current bureaucratic structures so that we can engage the public, restore its trust and ultimately, increase public participation in the democratic process."
The bill has several key provisions:
Federal Chief Information Officer (CIO). While the Federal government is no stranger to information technology – the first punch card machines were invented to count the official census in the late 19th century – most agencies develop their systems independently and with little central planning, vision, or control. The bill would create a Federal CIO and enable the office to encourage more horizontal dialogue across agencies, coordinate government-wide information policies, administer a central fund for interagency projects and innovative IT applications, and bring about standards for interoperability and tagging of government information.
Central portal and site directory. One of the most frequently visited sites anywhere is FirstGov.gov, the U.S. Government’s portal. The bill would build on the FirstGov experience and provide an index to all Federal Web sites. Also, to the extent possible, it would provide links to state, local, and Native American tribal sites.
Online library. Several agencies, including the National Science Foundation, National Park Service, and Library of Congress, have begun amassing information in electronic form for online reference databases. The E-Government Act would direct these and other efforts, to join forces in a National Online Library. The bill requires that the library be functionally integrated so users can access the information without having to navigate across different agency Web sites or understand agency jurisdictions to get at the information.
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