The National Association of State Chief Information Officers (NASCIO) today announced the release of its 2006 Compendium of Recognition Awards for Outstanding Achievement in the Field of Information Technology in State Government. The compendium presents the complete description submitted for each of the 12 state initiatives that received awards in the 10 highlighted categories as well as the seven projects that received honorable mention this year.

NASCIO's Recognition Awards Program -- in its 18th consecutive year -- is designed to reflect the wide range of IT projects currently under development within state governments. Emphasis is placed on recognizing programs that exemplify best practices, support the public policy goals of state leaders, assist government officials to execute their duties and provide cost-effective services to citizens.

"Successful state information technology initiatives should be highlighted and shared," said South Carolina CIO and 2006 NASCIO Awards Committee Chair, Dr. Jim Bryant. "NASCIO's awards program encourages state governments to learn from each other so that they can ultimately provide more efficient, higher quality services to their constituents."

The 19 entries highlighted in the 2006 Recognition Awards Compendium were chosen from a record 139 submissions by 33 states.

The following projects are featured in the compendium:

• Business Continuity -- Kentucky Mutual Aid and Interoperability
• Cross-Boundary Collaboration and Partnerships -- California Department of Health Services Prenatal and Newborn Screening Information System; District of Columbia Safe Passages Information System
• Data, Information and Knowledge Management -- Pennsylvania's Global XML 3.0 Document Creation Process; Honorable Mention: The District of Columbia Government's DCStat Virginia Mine MapSystem
• Digital Government: Government to Business (G to B) -- Michigan Business Portal; Honorable Mention: South Carolina Business One Stop; Virginia Electronic Permitting System
• Digital Government: Government to Citizen (G to C) -- Arizona 2-1-1 Online; e-TAP: New York State's Comprehensive Online Student Financial Aid Gateway
• Digital Government: Government to Government (G to G) -- Michigan's E-mail Consolidation Project
• Enterprise Architecture -- District of Columbia Enterprise Integration Stack
• Enterprise IT Management Initiatives -- Michigan's Human Resource Optimization Project
• Information Communications Technology (ICT) Innovations -- Michigan's Innovative Fraud Detection Program; Honorable Mention: Commonwealth of Virginia Interoperable Communications
• IT Project and Portfolio Management -- Michigan's Project Management and Governance Model; Honorable Mention: North Carolina EPMO and Portfolio Management; Title and Registration User's System of Tennessee (TRUST)

State government projects and initiatives from each of the 50 U.S. states were eligible to be nominated for these prestigious annual awards. Criteria for selection included a description of the project with length of time in operation; relative significance to the operation of government; benefits realized by service recipients, taxpayers, agency and state; and return on investment. Full submissions from all 139 nominations are posted on NASCIO's Web site.
KW