E-government awards proposals pour in

In less than two months, the Council for Excellence in Government has received more than 100 proposals for the first Imagine E-Government Awards competition. The awards will honor the most creative ideas for how information technology could be applied to government operations. President Clinton announced the awards competition in his first live Webcast in June. The awards will recognize one adult and one high school student who submit the best proposals with $50,000 and $5,000, respectively. The deadline for nominations is Jan. 15, 2001. Both government employees and members of the public are eligible to enter the competition. "Given our commitment to innovation and information technology as tools to improve government's performance," said Council for Excellence in Government president and CEO Patricia McGinnis, "we take special satisfaction in administering these awards. We look forward to a lively and fascinating competition." The council is a nonpartisan, nonprofit organization of leaders in the private sector who are committed to improving government performance. In March, the council will select 15 finalists who will present their proposals in Washington. Proposals will be judged according to their public value, originality and feasibility. The council has received more than 600 inquiries about the contest since the application went online in late October. The competition is funded by members of the council's Intergovernmental Technology Leadership Consortium.