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FOR
IMMEDIATE RELEASE
March
21, 2002
E-GOVERNMENT
BILL HEADS TO FULL SENATE
Bill
Would Improve
Access of Citizens to Government Services and Information
WASHINGTON - The Senate Governmental Affairs Committee
unanimously approved a proposal
authored by Chairman Joe Lieberman, D-Conn., and
Ranking Member Fred Thompson, R-Tenn., that would help bring
the federal government more fully into the electronic age by
improving citizen access to government information and
services.
The amendment, in the form of a substitute to the
E-Government Act of 2001, (S.803), would maximize the
organization, efficiency, accessibility and quantity of the
federal government’s online resources, while reducing
overall cost.
“Americans have every right to expect the same 24-7 access
to government information and services now available to them
from the private sector,” Lieberman said.
“The hope is that electronic government will improve
the delivery of information and services to the public,
improve the efficiency and effectiveness of government, and
ultimately, transform the way government operates.”
"The bill we approved today improves the
management of electronic government programs and promotes the
use of the Internet to provide better information and services
to the public," Thompson said.
"Also, the bill goes a long way toward ensuring
the security of information systems used in electronic
government programs by making permanent the Government
Information Security Reform Act."
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The measure would:establish an Office of Electronic
Government, headed by a Senate-confirmed administrator within
the Office of Management and Budget.
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authorize $345 million over four years for an
e-government fund to support interagency e-government projects.
•
improve upon the centralized online portal; establish an
online directory of Federal web sites
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require federal courts to post opinions online.
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fund a federal training center to recruit and train information technology
professionals
The bill contains a variety of other provisions that
would require agencies to establish online rule-making,
encourage compatibility of electronic signatures and provide
strong new privacy protections.
In addition, it lifts the sunset on the
Thompson-Lieberman Government Information Security Reform Act,
which provides a new management framework for protecting the
security of government computers.
“The private sector has benefitted tremendously from
the application of information technology,” Lieberman said.
“Now it’s government’s turn.
We must take full advantage of the Internet and other
technologies to overcome arbitrary boundaries between agencies,
so government can provide the public with seamless, secure
online services.”
The underlying bill is co-sponsored by Senators Conrad
Burns, R-Mont., Jeff Bingaman, D-N.M., Peter Fitzgerald, R-Ill.,
Thomas Daschle, D-S.D., John McCain, R-Ariz., Thomas Carper
D-Del., Richard Durbin, D-Ill., Tim Johnson, D-S.D., John Kerry,
D-Mass., Patrick Leahy, D-Vt., Carl Levin, D-Mich.. Max Cleland,
D-Ga., Mark Dayton, D-Minn., and Deborah Stabenow, D-Mich.
To read the bill, please visit www.senate.gov/~lieberman
or www.senate.gov/~gov_affairs
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