GovWorks.com launching link to local services

A New York City-based Internet company, govWorks.com Inc., will launch an online link to local government services next month in select markets, with plans to blanket the country by early next year.

GovWorks.com will enable citizens in cities, counties and school districts across the country to pay taxes, secure permits, search for government jobs, bid on auctions and get community information online at any time, said Kaleil Isaza Tuzman, chief executive officer and co-founder of the company. "For both governments and constituents, govWorks combines tangible economic benefits with the intangible social benefits of improved community information flow and interaction."

The govWorks.com network will feature numerous applications, including:

govPay, a secure transactional application for paying taxes, bills and violations online.

govPages, which provides contact information for local government agencies including e-mail and physical addresses.

govJobs, an online local government search engine.

govGive, which provides information on local charitable organizations and allows for online donations.

govAuction, which enables citizens to participate in auctions.

"We saw a space in the bureaucratic facilitation marketplace and wanted to apply the benefits being used in the private sector to the public sector, where they might be needed even more," said George Fatheree, co-founder and vice president of community development for govWorks.com.

GovWorks.com will test the concept with an October launch in Springfield, Mass., Stamford, Conn., and other cities. The launch will include the govPay and govPages features, with the complete govWorks.com network being phased in and available nationwide early next year, Featheree said.

The company generates revenue by charging a transaction fee to the end user, but that will vary by municipality and on what the transaction is -- from parking ticket fines to online procurements, Featheree said.

GovWorks also will donate some of that revenue to the communities to help narrow the now-infamous "digital divide." "We want everyone to take advantage of the services offered by local government on a more consistent basis," he said.