Digital Government

Digital Government, also known as e-Government, is the leverage of information technology to enhance the government’s interaction with its constituencies and/or the process of governance.  In its most basic form, e-government can take the form of e-mail inquiries or online permitting and scheduling while a fully implemented digital government play can include mobile government, enterprise architecture, IPv6, and knowledge management.  (For more information on digital government, consult the Digital Government Institute.

Like e-business, e-government has been a key driver for last-mile broadband deployments.  In many smaller communities, the local government is the anchor tenant on the broadband network, demonstrating leadership and providing applications that can serve as drawing-cards for constituent involvement and consequently building broadband demand.

At the state level, externally facing digital government applications have reached full stride.   Through digital government applications,  constituents who find themselves far removed from the actual center of government can avail themselves to the same services and interactions as those located at the epicenter.  From an internal perspective, state governments are agressively pursuing applications that will empower communication and efficiency while reducing the cost of government over all…and the competition between localities, cities, and states is heating up. 

Cities, counties, and states across the nation compete for digital supremecy in the Digital Cities Survey, Digital Counties Survey (link to http://www.centerdigitalgov.com/surveys.php?survey=counties), Digital States Survey and Best of the Web and Digital Government Achievement Awards
conducted by the Center for Digital Government. 

Those entities fortunate enough to win one or more of these coveted awards realize prominence in the field of digital government and become models for others to emulate.    The Commonwealth of Virginia is forunate to be amongst the top in many of the categories in the latest competition.  To see the results, check out the Center for Digital Government’s “Surveys and Awards.