Citizens who own a computer and a modem or have access to the Internet can participate by 1) pointing your world wide web browser to http://meeting.fedworld.gov, 2) sending a blank e-mail message to info@meetng.fedworld.gov, 3) access an Internet provider, or online service such as America Online and Prodigy, 4) or dial 1-800-779-3272 using a computer with a modem. There are two alternative sites to participate via Web browser: for users in the middle of the country use http://meeting.ncsa.uiuc.edu and for users in the western part of the country use http://meeting.sdsc.edu.
Organizations that are interested in serving as Public Access Sites are still being encouraged to sign up. To sign up, organizations should send an e-mail to pas- info@meeting.fedworld.gov or point their web browser to http://meeting.fedworld.gov.
The national electronic open meeting, titled "People and Their Governments in the Information Age," will seek public comment on the use of information technology by Federal, State, Tribal and local governments. The meeting is part of an ongoing effort to broaden public participation in creating an electronic government -- one that works better and costs less by improving information dissemination and service delivery. The meeting will begin on Monday, May 1 at 9:00 a.m. (EST) and will end at midnight on Sunday, May 14, 1995.
"One of the fundamental tenets of the Clinton Administration is that government information is a public asset and a valuable national resource. We are hoping that citizens from across the country will take the opportunity to join in this historic dialogue about the respective roles that government, industry, academia and citizens will play in creating an electronic government," said Secretary of Commerce Ronald H. Brown, who chairs the Information Infrastructure Task Force, which was formed to articulate and implement the Clinton Administration's vision for the National Information Infrastructure (NII) and in which all of the sponsoring government agencies participate.
During the two-week electronic open meeting, five discussion groups will run simultaneously on topics related to "People and Their Governments in the Information Age." These groups will be hosted by experts on the respective topics, including: Services- -from delivery of emergency help and health care to issuing business licenses; Benefits--from delivery of Social Security and food stamps to processing small business grants; Information-- from declassifying secrets to making Census data more easily available; Participatory Democracy--from making access to government easier to ensuring everyone's opportunity to participate in government regulatory and policy-making; and Technology--from ensuring compatible electronic systems at the various government levels to ensuring system security and reliability.
The meeting is being sponsored by several Federal agencies, including OMB, NTIA, NTIS's FedWorld, and NPR, with the US Government Printing Office (GPO) assisting the meeting.
For more information about the conference or to find out about Public Access Sites in your area, call 1-800-881-6842.
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