GSA Unveils FirstGov en Español Web Portal

October 16, 2003           Contact:  Deborah K. Ruiz, (202) 501-1231
GSA # 10048                     deborah.ruiz@gsa.gov

GSA Unveils FirstGov en Español Web Portal
Spanish-Language Gateway Continues President’s Push for Citizen-Centered Government

WASHINGTON, D.C. – FirstGov.gov, the U.S. government's official Web portal, has developed FirstGov en Español, www.espanol.gov, a new Spanish-language Web site to meet the needs and preferences of the 28.1 million Spanish-speaking
residents in the United States.  

The FirstGov.gov and FirstGov en Español portals are managed by the U.S. General Services Administration’s Office of Citizen Services and Communications.

“President Bush, through his E-gov initiative, challenged the government to employ the latest in technology to create a more efficient, citizen-centered, federal government," said GSA Administrator Stephen A. Perry, announcing the formal launch of the site.  "FirstGov en Español is yet another example of making it easier for the public to interact with federal government agencies."

A fundamental tenet of President Bush’s E-Gov Initiative is making the government more accessible to citizens and FirstGov en Español fills that role for an important segment of the population. FirstGov en Español makes it easy to
access tens of thousands of federal and state Spanish-language Web pages. One click on www.espanol.gov (FirstGov en Español) and all government Spanish language sites are instantly available, making FirstGov en Español one of a kind. 

As a gateway to all federal and state Web pages written in Spanish, FirstGov en Español connects the U.S. Spanish-speaking population with information on a vast range of topics such as health, education, housing, and benefits to questions about citizenship and voting.  Visitors to FirstGov en Español can also perform various online
transactions, all in Spanish. They can also choose to phone in or email questions, all answered in Spanish.  FirstGov en Español will work with federal agencies to expand access to programs and services that serve the Spanish-speaking community. 

At FirstGov.gov or www.espanol.gov, visitors gain easy and convenient access to information about their government.  In addition, the portals link to online services available from federal, state, and local government Web sites ranging from Social Security benefits and passport applications to buying stamps and applying for student loans. 

GSA is a centralized federal procurement and property management agency created by Congress to improve government efficiency and help federal agencies better serve the public. It acquires, on behalf of federal agencies, office space, equipment, telecommunications, information technology, supplies and services. GSA, comprised of 13,000 associates, provides services and solutions for the office operations of over 1 million federal workers located in more than 8,000 government-owned and leased buildings in 2,000 U.S. communities.