E-Government enters new age

In an op/ed for State Tech Magazine, Information Technology and Innovation Foundation (ITIF) President Robert Atkinson and senior ITIF analyst Daniel Castro argue that the United States is entering a new age of e-government.

Atkinson and Castro argue that the first two ages of e-government made the government "more efficient, improve[d] services and increase[d] transparency," whereas the new age will make "it possible for governments to solve pressing public problems in fundamentally new ways."

The two authors provide examples of "third wave" e-government:

"For example, San Francisco, where in 2007 a teenager was stabbed in an argument over a parking spot, is installing wireless sensors in 6,000 parking spots. Drivers will be able to find an empty spot automatically by either downloading the information onto their cell phone or reading street signs that are connected to the system.

"In Philadelphia, city officials have launched a pilot program to put radio frequency ID tags in recycling bins so they can automatically track and reward citizens for recycling. As a result, the participation rate has shot up to 90 percent. And in Washington, D.C., the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority publishes train information online. Commuters can find out when the next train is coming and check for service disruptions from web-enabled mobile phones."

All of the existing and potential e-government applications are dependent on localities actually having high speed broadband connections.  Even the most innovative technology solutions to government problems are moot if the backbone isn't there. The potentials that Atkinson and Castro point out add to the case for high speed Internet access for all of America.

The Next Wave of E-Government