Office of Governor Gary Locke
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE - May 3, 2001
Contact: Governor's Communications Office, 360-902-4136
Alt Contact: Ellen Langley, DIS Communications, 360-902-3567
The updates at access.wa.gov include more direct links to state's most often used government Web areas, a suite of online tools for citizens and businesses, enhanced speed and easier site navigation.
"Access Washington has helped transform the relationship between the people of Washington and their state government," said Locke. "Since its launch in 1998, state agencies have been working hard to bring more digital government services to the public. I'm proud to announce new features and online services to help citizens get real business done with their government in real time."
Today, Access Washington registers about 1 million page views every month -- which means citizens and businesses use it almost 500 percent more today than when it initially rolled out two years ago.
"We're listening to what people want and constantly working to make Access Washington a powerful tool that helps people get out of lines, get off the roads and get things done with government whenever they need to," said Steve Kolodney, director of the state's Department of Information Services. "All of the portal's new features -- Ask George, Transact Washington, around-the-clock customer support, and enhanced navigation -- help take our digital government to the next level of convenience and security, especially for our state's businesses."
DIS worked with Microsoft Corporation's msn.com team to develop the new Access Washington features. Microsoft provided insights on design elements known to raise visitor interest at MSN's heavily used site.
"The state of Washington is a leader in delivering on the promise of eGovernment solutions, and the new Access Washington site is a rich interactive resource for citizens and businesses here in Washington state," said Microsoft President and Chief Operating Officer Rick Belluzzo. "Washington is one of Microsoft's leading state customers, and we are excited to have the opportunity to collaborate on developing award-winning technology solutions."
The enhancements for faster and more convenient access to state government services include:
Ask George™, a "plain English" search function that allows citizens to use natural phrasing to perform searches on Access Washington. Ask George™ -- named after the nation's first president and the state's namesake -- uses the technology of Ask Jeeves, Inc. through a contract with DIS. When citizens ask a question about state government such as, "How do I get a business license?" George searches more than 300,000 state Web pages to quickly display a direct answer or set of related links.
Transact Washington™, a secure business-to-government gateway where customers use digital certificates to access multiple transactional state services in a single Internet session. Digital certificates for Transact Washington are issued by Digital Signature Trust, Inc., one of four certification authorities licensed by the Secretary of State's office to provide digital certificates in the state of Washington.
Around-the-clock customer support allowing citizens who access their government through the Internet to get assistance with a combination of self-directed help screens, e-mail or toll-free telephone calls. This 24 hours-a-day, 365 days-a-year customer support is powered behind the scenes by SafeHarbor Technology Corporation, located in rural Grays Harbor County, Wash.
Years of foresight and planning have helped Washington lead the nation in digital government services. The governor acknowledged state lawmakers Sen. Lisa Brown, Sen. James West, Rep. Laura Ruderman and Rep. Glenn Anderson for their commitment to technology leadership in Washington state.
"Washington has always been at the national forefront for Internet access to state government," said Senate Republican Leader James West, R-Spokane. "Steve Kolodney and his staff at DIS have pushed government access via the Internet to a new frontier. Upgrading Access Washington will help improve customer service and make the best state government web site in America even better."
Named the nation's digital state for the third consecutive year by the Progress and Freedom Foundation and the Center for Digital Government, Washington is the only state to be so recognized to date.
"I'd like to thank our legislators, business partners and state agencies for working together to help bring Washington citizens the best digital government service in the nation," said Locke.
Related Links:
- Access Washington
- Have a question about Washington state government? ASK George™!
- Customer support for online government services
- Transact Washington™
- Online services for businesses from the State of Washington
- Conducting secure online transactions with digital certificates
- access.wa.gov - A guide for editors
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE - May 3, 2001
Contact: Governor's Communications Office, 360-902-4136
Alt Contact: Ellen Langley, DIS Communications, 360-902-3567
Locke unveils new online tools and services at access.wa.gov
OLYMPIA - Gov. Gary Locke today unveiled several new online government services and a fresh home page design for the state's award-winning Internet portal, Access Washington.The updates at access.wa.gov include more direct links to state's most often used government Web areas, a suite of online tools for citizens and businesses, enhanced speed and easier site navigation.
"Access Washington has helped transform the relationship between the people of Washington and their state government," said Locke. "Since its launch in 1998, state agencies have been working hard to bring more digital government services to the public. I'm proud to announce new features and online services to help citizens get real business done with their government in real time."
Today, Access Washington registers about 1 million page views every month -- which means citizens and businesses use it almost 500 percent more today than when it initially rolled out two years ago.
"We're listening to what people want and constantly working to make Access Washington a powerful tool that helps people get out of lines, get off the roads and get things done with government whenever they need to," said Steve Kolodney, director of the state's Department of Information Services. "All of the portal's new features -- Ask George, Transact Washington, around-the-clock customer support, and enhanced navigation -- help take our digital government to the next level of convenience and security, especially for our state's businesses."
DIS worked with Microsoft Corporation's msn.com team to develop the new Access Washington features. Microsoft provided insights on design elements known to raise visitor interest at MSN's heavily used site.
"The state of Washington is a leader in delivering on the promise of eGovernment solutions, and the new Access Washington site is a rich interactive resource for citizens and businesses here in Washington state," said Microsoft President and Chief Operating Officer Rick Belluzzo. "Washington is one of Microsoft's leading state customers, and we are excited to have the opportunity to collaborate on developing award-winning technology solutions."
The enhancements for faster and more convenient access to state government services include:
Ask George™, a "plain English" search function that allows citizens to use natural phrasing to perform searches on Access Washington. Ask George™ -- named after the nation's first president and the state's namesake -- uses the technology of Ask Jeeves, Inc. through a contract with DIS. When citizens ask a question about state government such as, "How do I get a business license?" George searches more than 300,000 state Web pages to quickly display a direct answer or set of related links.
Transact Washington™, a secure business-to-government gateway where customers use digital certificates to access multiple transactional state services in a single Internet session. Digital certificates for Transact Washington are issued by Digital Signature Trust, Inc., one of four certification authorities licensed by the Secretary of State's office to provide digital certificates in the state of Washington.
Around-the-clock customer support allowing citizens who access their government through the Internet to get assistance with a combination of self-directed help screens, e-mail or toll-free telephone calls. This 24 hours-a-day, 365 days-a-year customer support is powered behind the scenes by SafeHarbor Technology Corporation, located in rural Grays Harbor County, Wash.
Years of foresight and planning have helped Washington lead the nation in digital government services. The governor acknowledged state lawmakers Sen. Lisa Brown, Sen. James West, Rep. Laura Ruderman and Rep. Glenn Anderson for their commitment to technology leadership in Washington state.
"Washington has always been at the national forefront for Internet access to state government," said Senate Republican Leader James West, R-Spokane. "Steve Kolodney and his staff at DIS have pushed government access via the Internet to a new frontier. Upgrading Access Washington will help improve customer service and make the best state government web site in America even better."
Named the nation's digital state for the third consecutive year by the Progress and Freedom Foundation and the Center for Digital Government, Washington is the only state to be so recognized to date.
"I'd like to thank our legislators, business partners and state agencies for working together to help bring Washington citizens the best digital government service in the nation," said Locke.
Related Links:
- Access Washington
- Have a question about Washington state government? ASK George™!
- Customer support for online government services
- Transact Washington™
- Online services for businesses from the State of Washington
- Conducting secure online transactions with digital certificates
- access.wa.gov - A guide for editors
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