I am proud of the fact that West Boylston is one of the recipients of the E-Government Award from Common Cause, celebrating the Town's commitment to release public information critical to public decision-making on our website ( www.westboylston-ma.gov ).
Obviously, the Town of West Boylston has taken seriously the idea of improving our communication with our citizens through the Town's website. Many changes have been made over the past two years and I thank our computer consultant, Karen and John Pare of Stillwater Computer, our Town Clerk Kim Hopewell and Virtual Town Hall for the improvements we have made over the last several years.
The people of the Town of West Boylston should be happy with these improvements and the countless others which make our website one of the finest in the Commonwealth. If you haven't had a chance to see the information and capabilities of our website with your own eyes, please take the time to do so and you will undoubtedly feel the same way as Common Cause. How do they feel? Here is a copy of their press advisory about this recognition which we received 'with distinction.'
Common Cause to Honor 90 Cities and Towns for Posting Key Governance Records on their Websites
BOSTON - Common Cause Massachusetts will host an event at the State House to honor 90 communities that have posted six important local governance documents on their websites, TODAY Tuesday, March 18th, at 1:00 in room B-2. Representatives from each community will be presented with the 2008 E-Government Award.
The event is part of Common Cause's on-going Massachusetts Campaign for Open Government, which periodically reviews the internet presence of all 351 cities and towns in the state. The current audit of all municipal websites in the Commonwealth will be released at the event. The first assessment in 2006 found that only 24 municipalities -- or about 7 percent -- have all 6 key records posted on-line. The six documents included in the review are the municipality's governing body's agenda, the governing body's minutes, fiscal year 2008 budget information, the municipality's bylaws, code or ordinances, and if applicable, town meeting warrant and town meeting results or minutes.
"It's time to bring local government into the 21st century," said Common Cause executive director Pam Wilmot. "The internet makes it easy and cost effective to facilitate public access and citizen engagement by, at a minimum, posting these six key records. More and more people rely on the internet for critical information each day. Communities that provide this information are providing an important service to their citizens."
About Common Cause
Common Cause Massachusetts is a nonpartisan, nonprofit, government watchdog, dedicated to citizen participation in an open, honest, and accountable government. An independent, member-supported organization, Common Cause has more than 200,000 members nationwide and 10,000 in Massachusetts.
Leon A. Gaumond Jr.
Town Administrator
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