CITY OF HOUSTON eGOVERNMENT CENTER MOVES UP IN NATIONAL RANKING Brown University Study Ranks Houston 6th, Up From 9th in 2002
September 29, 2003 -- The third annual Urban E-Government study conducted by Brown University has ranked the City of Houston's eGovernment Center -- www.cityofhouston.gov -- 6th among the 70 largest metropolitan areas offering a wide range of e-government services.
Houston's ranking jumped three places, from nine to six, making it the top-ranked Texas city in the overall study. Dallas (8) and Austin (13) are the only other Texas cities placing in the Top 20. Of the five most populous U.S. cities, Houston ranked far ahead of Los Angeles (36), New York (38), Chicago (45) and Philadelphia (60). All these cities dropped in ranking from last year.
Houston ranked 36th in the 2001 Brown University study.
Rankings were based on "the presence of various features dealing with information availability, service delivery, and public access", according to the Urban E-Government 2003 report issued earlier this month. The report can be found at www.insidepolitics.org.
"We've worked very hard over the last year to expand City information offered online to our citizens," said Information Technology Department Director and Chief Information Officer Richard Lewis, "I'm very pleased at our increased ranking. Once our Online Water Bill Payment and other features debut, we look forward to providing further access to city government, online instead of in line."
A 98-page City of Houston Spanish translated website - www.ciudaddehouston.org -- among the most voluminous among major metropolitan city websites, debuted in December 2002. A comprehensive Calendar of Events also went online in December, followed this year by Recycling Pickup maps, Street Construction updates and information, and more online transaction services.
