Websites

The city of Olathe, Kan., began its digital transformation journey roughly six years ago by consolidating the information on its website — but modernization involves continuous change and re-evaluation, say those leading the charge.

Clay Connected, a recently launched mobile app and platform, is offering residents in the county new access to service requests across county departments, timely information and a route to report problems.

The Delaware Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control recently relaunched a consolidated online resource to improve recycling efforts across the state. The tool offers a one-stop shop for residents and industry.

The city of Danbury, Conn., has contracted the firm CivicPlus to make a more accessible city website for the community. The city hopes the new website will be more transparent with important information.

In designing digital products for constituents — like websites and mobile apps — government agencies should consider implementing plain language to increase accessibility and improve the overall user experience.

Two recent department website redesigns — the San Diego Police Department and Homelessness Strategies and Solutions Department — were aimed at improving the user experience and access to critical service information.

The firm is the latest gov tech company to take backing from a private equity company in a move it described as recapitalization. SDL leaders said they expect to grow the company in coming years.

Residents of the city are being asked to provide their input on the design and function of a new website. The current website design dates back more than 10 years and has been a source of frustration among residents.

At Digital.gov’s 2022 Government UX Summit, experts shared ways that digital services can be better designed to improve the user experience for users with cognitive impairments and those with low literacy.

The acquisition, financed by the private equity firm that owns CivicPlus, will add three pieces of software revolving around compliance in the government interaction space to a rapidly diversifying technology portfolio.

In creating or improving digital assets like websites, government entities often talk about the importance of “user-centered design.” But what does that really mean, and what does it look like in action?

When it comes to accessibility and inclusion, there are steps local and state agencies can take — and others that should be avoided — to provide an equitable government service experience across populations.

Middletown, Conn., has created a website for individuals, namely business and property owners, to apply for a slice of the city's $20 million in American Rescue Plan Act money. The city will also offer ARPA workshops.

With residents clamoring for services and information, many agencies turned to chatbots during the pandemic. But aside from simply gaining momentum in adoption, it seems government use of the technology is also maturing.

The move closely follows ArchiveSocial's acquisition of NextRequest, meaning the combined company now covers social media communications, websites and public records requests in one organization.

The move will give Granicus a variety of tools for collecting public sentiment — polling and surveys, website analytics, etc. — as well as tools to understand that data and personalize user experiences.

Facebook and Google publish local news articles, sell ads off them and pocket the vast majority of the profit, giving local news outlets little in return, which pushes readership online as profits erode.