Energy Department rolls out e-gov plan

The Energy Department launched its electronic government plan on Wednesday, unveiling a new e-signature tool it has licensed for governmentwide use.

The 19-point plan, which will be implemented over the next two years, aims to make Energy more accessible to other government entities, citizens and businesses and improve the agency's own operations. An important part of the plan allows Energy and other federal agencies to use digital signature technology to time-stamp and place secure documents on the Internet.

"This important development serves as a key milestone in meeting the security and productivity objectives of DOE's e-government strategy," Energy Secretary Spencer Abraham said about the e-signature initiative at a press conference. "We are pleased to share this new technology with other agencies in the federal government."

The e-signature tool, which took four months to develop at a cost of about $200,000, will be integrated into the agency's business and administrative applications, according to Abraham. A special licensing agreement with Entrust, an Internet security company that developed the technology for Energy, allows other agencies to use the tool.

"The capability that we provided let's you know that you are really getting the right information from a valid source, and to know for sure that the information is coming from a designated person in the government and hasn't been changed since that person 'signed' it," said Ian Curry, vice president and chief marketing officer for Entrust.

Under the president's management agenda, agencies must overhaul operations in five key management areas: human capital management, competitive sourcing, financial management, electronic government and linking performance to budgets.

"Today's presentation of our department's e-government strategic action plan is dramatic proof that we are moving forward rapidly in support of that agenda to expand electronic government," Abraham said.

In addition to the e-signature initiative, the e-gov plan will create a Web portal for Freedom of Information Act requests and a new site for grant application submissions.

Other aspects of the plan focus on the agency's role in national security. A counterintelligence case management system will allow different government entities to communicate with each other and share information. And an electronic security clearance process will help clear up and prevent backlogs.

Office of Management and Budget Director Mitch Daniels praised Energy officials for what he called their leadership role in e-government. "You have set the example and we're going to hold it up," Daniels said. "You are leading this department toward a record…of spending each dollar and all our employees' time in the most productive manner possible."