Leisure and tourism are top topics on federal sites

Sixty-eight million Americans have used government Web sites, according to a survey released earlier this month by the Pew Internet and American Life Project in Washington. That’s up from 40 million users two years ago.The center estimated that 42 million people used government sites to research policy issues, and 23 million used the Net to send comments to government officials. Fourteen million used the sites to gather information to decide how to vote, and 13 million participated in online lobbying.Recreational information was the most sought-after data on the sites, drawing 80 percent of users. About 53 million people use the Web to help plan vacations, researchers said.Seventy percent of federal Web site users conducted research for work or school, and 50 percent sought health or safety information.