E-Government Ball Already Rolling At Commerce

The US Department of Commerce has long been viewed as a sprawling, almost ungovernable bureaucracy, but over the last few years it has seen significant advances in areas both small (online video) and large (the 2010 census). Sec Bill Richardson's challenge won't be starting from scratch, but maintaining the brisk pace of Web innovation already under way at the department. On his watch as governor, New Mexico has "done a reasonable job" of establishing a presence online, said Jane Hill, director of the New Mexico Internet Professionals Association, though she added that the state's telecommunications infrastructure is "lousy." Access to broadband service in the Land of Enchantment still lags behind the national average.