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Governor Bill Graves Accepts at Topeka Ceremony
Topeka – Progress & Freedom Foundation Research Fellow Kent Lassman today presented a Digital State 2001 Award to Kansas Governor Bill Graves and Kansas Chief Information Officer Don Heiman in recognition of Kansas' 1st place ranking in the 2001 Digital State Survey.
The annual survey, conducted by The Progress & Freedom Foundation (PFF) and the Center for Digital Government, documents progress made by states in adopting digital technologies to improve delivery of services to citizens. Results of the 2001 survey are published in the report, The Digital State 2001, sponsored by Compaq Computer Corp. Bob Watson and Dan Lafser of Compaq joined Lassman at the presentation.
“It is important to Compaq help governments achieve all that is possible through technology,” said Sherry Walshak, Compaq Director of State and Local Government. “Sponsoring a survey such as this one helps establish benchmarks for e-government and lets government benefit from what others, like the state of Kansas, have achieved.”
Kansas tied for 1st place with Illinois in the 2001 survey. Washington ranked 3rd. Maine tied for 5th place with Arizona, filling out the top five rankings in 2001. Kansas ranked 1st in the categories of Social Services and Transportation and 3rd in Taxation and Revenue. Lassman, author of The Digital State 2001 report, noted that overall Kansas jumped from 2nd place in 2000.
“In 2001 no state exceeded Kansas’ success in deploying digital technologies in state government,” said Lassman, who also directs PFF’s Digital Policy Network, which focuses on how the digital revolution affects state governments. “We are happy to honor Kansas’ efforts.”
Lassman pointed out that the Kansas Bureau of Investigation has the first FBI-certified system for accessing criminal histories over the Internet. All Kansas universities offer functions like registration online. Travelers in Kansas can see real-time construction and maintenance information on Web-based signs on roads throughout the state.
"The State of Kansas is using digital resources to make government more accessible and customer friendly, " said Governor Bill Graves. "Thanks to our people and planning, Kansas government has a base of technology that will serve us well into the future."
The Progress & Freedom Foundation is a market-oriented think tank that studies the digital revolution and its implications for public policy. It is a 501(c)(3) research & educational organization.
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