Access Washington Adds Legislative News Index

The Washington Department of Information services last week announced the debut of a new information feature, the Legislative News index, on the state's award-winning Web portal, Access Washington. Designed as a resource for citizens and the media, the new index allows users to read firsthand how elected officials stand on issues facing the state.

"We're excited about the opportunity to feature the latest news from Washington state's senators and representatives," said DIS Web Properties Manager Rhonda Polidori. "This tool will give citizens increased access to legislation and news that affects their communities, their state, their jobs and their lives."

Citizens who visit Access Washington may also notice improvements to the portal's design, which are the result of an ongoing and comprehensive usability study. DIS recruited diverse customer groups with varying levels of computing ability to gather data on how people navigate the site and "experience" Access Washington.

Lessons learned during the usability test will be made available to other state agencies as best practices for user-friendly design during the summer of 2004, when the phased update to Access Washington is scheduled for completion.

"It is important to design Web sites based on user data so that customers have a meaningful experience every time they visit a site," said Polidori. "The changes to Access Washington are a visible sign of our ongoing effort to increase citizens' access to information and improve the site's ease of use."