Survey Finds Governments Lagging in Net Service.

• Position: Research findings - Brief Article - Statistical Data Included

Federal and state governments still have a long way to go in exploiting the power of the Internet, with few offering user-friendly Web sites to help people do business with governments online, according to a survey conducted by Brown University. Among the states, Texas ranked first and Rhode Island last in efficient use of the Internet. Texas offered Si percent of the customer features researchers were looking for, which included government publications and forms, databases, services, and disability access. Researchers checked more than 1,800 Web sites, ranking major federal agencies and all 50 states to see how the governments were using the technology. They found that 78 percent of the sites delivered no online services at all, such as allowing citizens to file a complaint, order publications, or renew their vehicle registrations. Many sites did not even offer contact information such as a phone number or mailing address. Larger states tended to do better in the 50-state rankings. States wigh small populations...