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E-Service, No Waiting
Citizens go online instead of standing in line to get information, services.
www.afcea.org/signal
by Maryann Lawlor
While the U.S. military is diligently building network centricity into the battlespace, the federal government is constructing virtual bridges between agencies and citizens on the home front. Cyberspace is now a two-way street where information is driven to the public, and citizens steer through the bureaucratic maze. Considerable advances have already been made, and plans on the drawing board promise to increase home-delivery of government services. Citizens today can do more in minutes from their homes than they were able to do in hours or even days just a few years ago.
The federal government created FirstGov.gov to help citizens navigate through government agencies online. Through this single Web site, visitors can click to the home pages of thousands of federal, state and local agencies. The site has undergone two major redesigns since it was introduced. Audience channels--citizen, business and government--were added in the first redesign. Because 75 percent of site traffic went directly to the citizen gateway, the second redesign now features an increased focus on online transactions for citizens.
Stuart Willoughby, program manager, USA Services, Office of Citizen Services and Communications, GSA, notes that one goal is to have government Web sites with a similar look and feel so that people can navigate easily.
The E-Government Act of 2002 established an interagency committee on government information, and working groups are examining Web content to determine which features should be common to all sites. By law, the Office of Management and Budget must have these standards outlined by December 2004.
Despite different appearance and capabilities, many government Web sites have experienced tremendous growth in the service-to-citizen area in recent years, and the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), Washington, D.C., is a prime example. Terry Lutes, associate chief information officer for information technology services, IRS, explains that companies began developing software for professional tax preparers in the 1980s. Although the applications were used for tax preparation, paper forms still were being sent to the IRS, and the data was converted back into an electronic format.
In 1995, the IRS began to accept electronic tax returns directly from citizens. In 1997, the Electronic Tax Administration was created to set up an executive structure and focus on electronic filing, to expand the use of technology for filing tax returns and to seek additional ways technology could facilitate the process.
Because the IRS must serve all citizens and not just those who can afford tax preparation software, the service and the Free File Alliance agreed in 2003 to set up a system whereby companies offer their tax preparation products to segments of the population free of charge.
E-filing of business tax returns is growing as well, and earlier this year the IRS began accepting small corporations' returns. Next month, the IRS is expected to announce that it will begin accepting large corporate returns electronically.
Because today's system is still based on the approach designed in the 1990s, the IRS is now modernizing its systems by starting from the ground up using today's technology.
In addition to improving e-filing systems, the IRS redesigned its Web site in January 2002. The home page guides visitors through the site based on roles. The IRS continues to improve its Web site with enhancements to the search engine, and last year the electronic transaction function was added.
Effective use of technology and the Internet is about more than installing new systems, Lutes contends. "You can't manage an electronic system the way you manage a paper system. It actually challenges your decision-making process," he states.
Another government agency that regularly interacts with citizens through the Internet is the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), Washington, D.C. Ginger Price, acting director, health informatics strategy, VA, explains that the VA is working on an incremental three-phase project, called My HealtheVet, that will change the way veterans interact with the department.
The VA is also examining how best to facilitate communications between doctors and patients. This may include e-mail reminders about appointments or communication of test results. Questions of format and security currently are being addressed.
Home loan benefits are another service veterans often use, and Keith Pedigo, director, loan guaranty service, VA, says that in 2003, nearly a half million loans were guaranteed through the VA, totaling $65 billion. The service interacts with numerous customers, including veterans, banks and real estate companies.
Last year, a portal was launched that facilitates lenders' access to information, including automated appraisal and eligibility status data. Once an appraisal is complete, the report can be sent directly to lenders and the VA through the portal, which shortens the loan process by three to five days.
The VA currently is working on a system that will allow lending institutions to provide the department with the necessary information to issue the guarantee certificate electronically. Approximately 80 percent of the lenders submit this data manually today. The new system will be Internet-based, so it will be more cost-effective, Pedigo notes.
One data-intensive VA responsibility is veteran interment records collection and storage. Joe Nosari, deputy chief information officer for memorial affairs, VA, explains that the VA receives approximately 1,000 requests annually for burial records, primarily from people tracing their genealogy. In April, the VA's National Cemetery Administration put 2.8 million interment records that date back to the Civil War on the Internet. Records will be updated daily, and approximately 100,000 records will be added to the database each year. This summer, available records for veterans buried in private cemeteries will be added.
In the future, the VA will enhance its interface with funeral homes nationwide.
The full version of this article is in the June 2004 issue of SIGNAL, in the mail to AFCEA members and subscribers June 1, 2004. For information about purchasing this issue, joining AFCEA or subscribing to SIGNAL, contact AFCEA Member Services.
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