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Top 10 cities 2020-21
Top 10 cities 2010-11
The U.S. E-Governance Survey evaluated the performance of municipal websites for Privacy and Security, Usability, Content, Services, and Citizen and Social Engagement, and ranked the cities nationally. Research was conducted jointly by the E-Governance Institute at the National Center for Public Performance (NCPP), Sawyer Business School, Suffolk University-Boston, and the Department of Public Policy and Public Affairs, John W. McCormack Graduate School of Policy and Global Studies at the University of Massachusetts Boston. This research was evaluated under the Director of Public Policy and Administration Program at John Jay College of Criminal Justice.
First conducted in 2003, then again in 2008, 2010 and 2020, the survey represents a continued effort to evaluate e-government in large municipalities regionally. The 2020-21 study systematically utilized a unique E-Government Performance Index to classify websites on 104 scaled measures across five categories: Privacy/Security, Usability, Services, Content, and Citizen/Social Engagement. The survey highlights the strengths and weaknesses of each municipality in terms of the five categories, ranking municipalities overall and within each category.
Results
The U.S. E-Governance Survey highlights an improved focus on digital access to public services, based on a 10-year comparison from 2010-11 to 2020-21 by cities nationally. The progress of cities has varied over the years. The West was the top-ranked region, followed by the Northeast, Midwest, and the South. The top-ranked cities are Minneapolis MN (Midwest), Albuquerque NM (West), Boise ID (Midwest), Milwaukee WI (Midwest), and Providence RI (Northeast). The overall average score for all municipalities regionally in 2020-21 was 43.71 a decrease from 45.47 in 2010-11.
Minneapolis MN ranks #1 over all cities included in the survey with a score of 65.60, progressing from their #4 ranking in 2010-11. The city also excelled in the category of Citizen and Social Engagement with a score of 13.54. Albuquerque NM ranks #2, with a score of 63.64, making a substantial improvement from being absent in the top 20 ranking in 2010-11. With regard to Usability, Albuquerque’s efforts are exemplary ranking #1 over all other cities receiving a score of 15.95. Boise ID has the 3rd highest rank with a score of 62.57. Again, this is a huge improvement as they were also ranked below the top 20 cities in 2010-11. With their dedication to Content and Services, Boise established top rank in both categories with a score of 17.30 (Content) and 14.26 (Services). Milwaukee WI comes in at the #4 rank with a score of 61.27, declining from their #3 ranking in 2010-11. Despite their efforts to maintain their position, Milwaukee was able to receive the highest ranking in Privacy and Security scoring 13.33. Providence RI rounds out the top 5 rankings with a score of 58.92. Once again this is a city that has taken steps towards improvements in able to be considered in the 2020-21 top 5 rankings due to their lack of placement in the top 20 rankings in 2010-11.
Average Score by Subcategory
Due to numerous developments in digital technology, especially in the expansion of the form and scope of social media and the improvement of technology over the last decade, there has been an expansion of the number of ways the citizens can interact with their local government. The 2020-21 survey indicates that in order to benefit from these technological developments, cities must make the effort to be abreast of advances in the field, allocate resources to improve their websites, and have the political determination to bring these new ideas to fruition.
For more information regarding this study, contact
Professor Marc Holzer at mholzer@suffolk.edu
Professor Aroon P. Manoharan at amanoharan@suffolk.edu
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