Nearly Half of States Improve in Government Technology Ranking

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Modernization and technology efforts are improving in almost half of the states according to the latest Digital States Survey. The e.Republic survey is a biennial checkup of how technology is improving government service delivery at the state level. Overall, since the last biennial survey in 2012, grades improved in 21 states, declined in 12 and stayed even in 17.

Eight states earned top grades, with Connecticut, Georgia, Missouri and Virginia moving up to A designations and Michigan, Ohio, Pennsylvania and Utah maintaining their A marks from 2012. Connecticut, rising from a C to A- and Idaho, from a D to a B, were the most improved states.

The survey evaluated states based on a set of criteria that included actions supporting state priorities and policies to improve operations or services, hard- and soft-dollar savings/benefits, progress since the last survey, innovative solutions, and effective collaboration. Those states receiving high marks demonstrated results across all criteria.

The B+ Group which includes – Arkansas, California, Colorado, Hawaii, Indiana, Kentucky, Minnesota, North Dakota, Tennessee, Washington, and West Virginia, have all launched projects in the last year focused on technology and improving government transparency. However, given the newness of those efforts it’s unlikely they would be fully represented here.

The Colorado Governor’s Office released a statement Wednesday saying the state was ranked second in the nation for its use of information technology for transportation and motor vehicles programs.

At the federal level, the Obama Administration is seeking a replacement for US Chief Technology Officer, Todd Park who announced he would be stepping down. Megan Smith, vice president of the Google X research lab is reportedly in the running for that spot. A handful of states and some municipalities have also appointed Chief Data Officers in recent months. Most recently, Los Angeles, California tapped former Co-Executive Director of the non-profit Code for America, Abhi Nemani to its top data spot.