The Web site is particularly helpful with constituent’s general inquiries, including their representatives’ contact information, but also in providing them with up-to-the-minute details on bills as they progress through the legislative process.
Many of the features designed to keep people informed of these activities continue to be strengthened, and new features have also been added to promote a digital state government.
The widely used Bill Status function of the Web site was recently redesigned to consolidate all relevant bill information onto a single page, allowing more convenient access to all information related to a particular piece of legislation. Amendments, Fiscal Notes and House Roll Call votes were added to provide a more comprehensive history of each bill.
A bill tracking system is quickly becoming a favorite feature among a growing number of users. This personalized system was added to allow users to track bills of particular interest to them, and follow their progress through the legislative session. Nearly 10,000 individuals used the Bill Tracking system during the 2007 Regular Session.
Another added feature allows all state agencies to submit legislative and annual reports to the Legislature electronically, eliminating the need for duplicate paper copies while creating a central state report information center available on the Web.
The site’s new web log, Today in the Legislature, is updated throughout the day with information from the floor, scheduled committee meetings and other short snippets on legislative activities – even the possible naming of an offical state fossil.
An RSS Feed has been recently added to provide prompt news from the Legislature’s Office of Reference & Information. This feature allows users to receive legislators’ news releases, legislative newsletters, and web log entries via updates through their news reader program. West Virginia’s RSS Feed was dubbed by the National Conference of State Legislatures in 2007 as one of the “25 Great Online Ideas Worth Stealing”.
The newest features to the site are video welcome messages from the Speaker of the House of Delegates and the Senate President.
“It is imperative that the Legislature be as open and transparent as possible so that the citizens can be as confident in the legislative process as the people they elected to represent them,” said President Earl Ray Tomblin. “Our legislative Web site allows the citizens to have access to the legislative branch 24 hours a day, seven days a week, with a click of the mouse.”
Speaker Richard Thompson added, “The Senate President and I want to urge the use of the Legislature’s Web site – it’s a valuable tool to provide quick access to legislative information that may be of interest to West Virginians and makes it convenient for constituents to contact their representatives.”
In addition to these updates, citizens can locate their legislators easily with a state zip code search and by using district maps, and are also provided with members’ phone numbers, mailing addresses and e-mail contact information. A Helpful Links page also offers users more than 150 links to various federal and state resources.
During session, the Legislative Bulletin Board allows prompt access to daily publications, calendars and schedules; and in addition to current legislative actions, the West Virginia Code and the State Constitution are available in full.
Lastly, educational information is highlighted throughout the site, through the Citizen’s Guide to the Legislature, How a Bill Becomes Law, Capitol History, and Publications pages – while the Capitol Photo Gallery brings the historical beauty of the Statehouse to users’ fingertips.
A Google-based search function makes each of the Web site’s features – which represent more than 120,000 files – easily available to the public.
Lawmakers, their staff and the general public have all contributed to the advancement of the site with an open mind toward providing a complete understanding of the workings of the Legislature. Taking suggestions and using insight from individuals with a wide ranging spectrum of experiences have all contributed to the ever-evolving site.
As the Legislature continues to make strides in providing important information electronically to citizens and engaging them to become part of the legislative process, developers of the Web site welcome comments and suggestions on how to better this source of communication. In the future you may be able to take a virtual tour of the Capitol building or download information from the Web site onto your personal digital assistant (PDA).
The Legislature will always strive to provide the best possible service to the citizens of West Virginia and will continue to further bridge the communication gap between the Capitol and constituents.
For more information, and to access these features directly, please visit: www.wvlegislature.gov
