A Responsive Citizenry

It is doubtful that governments can effectively reinvent themselves to meet the needs of the Information Age if their citizens are not prepared to respond in kind. The issue may be greater than one of just access. While the inability of some of our citizens to participate in Internet-based activities is very significant and worthy of serious attention, the marketplace is moving to address those concerns, at least in part. Power Up, recently announced by Commission member Steve Case, Chairman of America Online, and other similar programs to secure free or below market cost access to computers and Internet accounts will help ensure that at risk families will be able to gain Internet access for our children. ServInt, of McLean, Va., operates the "ServInt FreeNet" through which they provide free website and e-mail hosting for non-profit and community groups. Additionally, the Gates Foundation is giving millions of dollars in grants to libraries in low income areas - including $3,000,000 in Virginia - to provide computers, Internet access and technical training to enable the library system to continue its historic role as a major pathway to information and knowledge.

The Commission is also pleased to see that the Secretary of Technology, in conjunction with the Secretary of Health and Human Resources, is holding a series of technology outreach symposia around the state to identify the specific technology-related needs of our poor, disabled, elderly, and minority populations. At the national level, Governor Gilmore has raised in his proposal to his fellow ACEC commissioners the possibility of amending federal welfare guidelines to permit states to spend any surpluses of certain welfare assistance funds for computers and Internet access for needy families. In all of these areas, Virginia and Virginians are in leadership positions.

In addressing the access question, however, it is important to remember that technology will continue to raise the bar on the digital divide. Access is both absolute and relative. What is adequate today will not be adequate tomorrow as more goods and services are delivered via broadband. This is an issue that can only be solved by using every possible mechanism to continually create more opportunities for more Virginians to participate more fully in the information economy.

As governments employ the family of techniques and technologies of electronic commerce not only to manage their internal operations but also their interface with citizens, how will we ensure that those citizens are prepared to respond in kind? There are literally hundreds of years of experience, tradition and case law that are reference points in dealings between citizens and their governments. In addition, numerous organizations have developed important roles as intermediaries between government and specific constituencies. The Internet, on the other hand, tends to disintermediate transactions between the ultimate parties. How will we ensure that the application of new technologies actually advance the goals of a free society?

Throughout its work, this Commission has advocated an intelligent reliance on market forces, because members are convinced that the Internet is basically a democratic and empowering medium. Members are keenly aware, however, of the tremendous effort that industry puts into ensuring that its use of electronic commerce and the Internet actually delights and empowers its customers. While we have no reliable data, we would estimate that the total amount spent by American companies alone on collecting and analyzing data and developing and implementing plans for such customer satisfaction exceeds the gross domestic product for numerous small countries.

Successful implementation of electronic government programs will require this same level of concern for "customers," the citizens, at all levels. The Secretary of Technology's office has discussed the concept of a "Cyber Bill of Rights," and we believe it to be a powerful one. Just as the original Bill of Rights was put in place to protect us from a broad set of potential abuses of government power, developing principles designed to direct government agencies in ensuring that the rights and responsibilities of citizens are identified and respected in the networked world may well be a critical determinant of success in capturing the full benefits of electronic government.

In any event, there is no turning back. We are about to enter the "Internet Century" ready or not. Model policy for government must address access in the broadest sense as well as the narrow. It must create and implement an environment that will advantage - or at the very least not disadvantage - its citizens as they operate in the highly competitive global economy. It must force agencies to simplify and streamline in order to be able to operate on Internet time. It must drive more creativity than ever about how to satisfy the needs of citizens. It must encourage breaking china without breaking the social contract.

Virginia is fortunate to have strong and visionary leadership from both industry and government. Working together, the two entities have put the Commonwealth in a leadership position nationally and globally. There is, however, no opportunity to relax. An apocryphal story about competition that has made the rounds in the last few years perhaps makes the point as well as anything else we could say. "Each morning on the hot, often dry and dusty plains of Africa, the gazelle awakens knowing that in order to survive the day, it must be able to run faster than the fastest lion. The lion awakens knowing that in order to eat and stay strong, it must be able to run faster than at least one gazelle. So, whether you are a lion or a gazelle, you'd better be up and running."

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