President's Information Technology Advisory Committee
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August 31, 2000
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Co-Chairs:
Raj Reddy
Irving Wladawsky-Berger
Members:
Eric A. Benhamou
Vinton Cerf
Ching-chih Chen
David Cooper
Steven D. Dorfman
David Dorman
Robert Ewald
Sherrilynne S. Fuller
Hector Garcia-Molina
Susan L. Graham
James N. Gray
W. Daniel Hillis
Robert E. Kahn
Ken Kennedy
John P. Miller
David C. Nagel
Edward H. Shortliffe
Larry Smarr
Joe F. Thompson
Leslie Vadasz
Andrew J. Viterbi
Steven J. Wallach
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The Honorable William J. Clinton
President of the United States
The White House
Washington, DC 20500
Dear Mr. President:
The President's Information Technology Advisory Committee (PITAC)
took special note of your December 1999 executive memorandum promoting
electronic government, as well as recent announcements such as the
launch of the FirstGov website for one-stop access to government information
and services. We share your vision to create an "Information Age"
government made more efficient, effective, and accessible through
information technology. In fact, our 1999 report, Information Technology
Research: Investing in Our Future, identified the relationship between
government and citizens as one of the vital areas of our national
life where information technology offers the potential to dramatically
transform current practices in ways that will greatly benefit all
Americans.
Thus, we are pleased to enclose Transforming Access To Government
Through Information Technology, the first in a series of follow-ups
to our 1999 report. This latest report highlights our findings and
recommendations on how the government can provide leadership by solving
key IT technology challenges, improving public access to Federal resources
as well as re-engineering and simplifying internal and external governmental
transactions. Our goal is to define a program that will provide our
citizens with full and easy electronic access to their government
regardless of their physical location, level of computer literacy
or physical abilities.
The report offers three key recommendations. First, we recommend that
the Federal government, as the world's largest developer of, customer
for, and user of information technology, assume a leadership role
in transforming government through the enhanced use of information
technology. The Federal government must define a coordinated and aggressive
IT research program which addresses long-term technology challenges,
including computer security and privacy, scalable information infrastructures,
and standards for data sharing and integration. Second, the Committee
recommends that an Office for Electronic Government be established
within the Office of Management and Budget. The mission of this new
office would be to promote innovative IT efforts and policies across
the Federal government. A companion Government IT Innovation Program
(GITIP) should also be created to identify and fund high-risk, exploratory,
and experimental IT projects. Lastly, to bridge the gap between research
and operational systems, the PITAC recommends establishing pilot projects
and Emerging Technology Centers (ETCs) to encourage and promote information
integration across the Federal government and address the most immediate
IT roadblocks.
We believe that adopting these recommendations will allow our nation
to make significant strides towards realizing our shared vision. The
Committee looks forward to working with you and the Congress to empower
American citizens by providing them with access to their government
through information technology. Thank you for the continuing opportunity
to advise you on these and other important issues.
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Sincerely,
Raj Reddy, Ph.D.
PITAC, Co-Chair |
Irving Wladawsky-Berger, Ph.D.
PITAC, Co-Chair |
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