The Congresional Management Foundation's 2007 Gold Mouse Report is out. The report provides "Lessons from the Best Web Sites on Capitol Hill." Sites are rated on several main factors, including "Design and Layout," "Legislative Content," "Constituent Services," and "Press Resources."
Key findings include:
*"Congress needs to recognize that the Internet is an essential information and communications medium. Citizens are online, and it is up to Congress to catch up with them."
*"Despite some bright spots, overall the quality of congressional Web sites continues to be disappointing. The most common letter grade earned by congressional Web sites in 2007 was a "D"-the same as in 2006. A full 41.6% of sites were substandard (D) or failing (F)."
*"...a surprising number of the 2006 freshmen started their term with an excellent site right out of the gate-16% of the class received "A"s, garnering them a Gold, Silver, or Bronze Mouse Award."
*"Democratic Web sites performed slightly better than Republican Web sites in 2007. Sixty-one percent of Democratic sites obtained "C"s or better, compared to 55% of Republican sites. While Republican Web sites have 2% more "B"s, they have 4% more sites scoring "D"s and "F"s."
*"Our latest 2006 data reveals that in just two years, e-mail communications alone increased by 72%, from 182 to 313 million; a staggering 3000% increase over the number of e-mails Congress received in 1996. It is important to note that e-mail communication is replacing former modes of
communication-not complementing them..."
*"...81% of politically active opinion leaders ("poli-fluentials") reported visiting the Web site of a candidate or public official-22% more than other online registered voters surveyed."
*"The Internet has already cemented its place as the standard for communication and information-sharing in the 21st century."
*Rep. J. Randy Forbes (R-4th) was a gold medal winner, while Rep. Frank Wolf (R-10th) took home a bronze.
*The report says that Forbes' site "meets the needs of his constituents while giving them a clear understanding of his work in Congress." It adds that the site is "designed for ease of use" with a "design and layout [that] offer users easy access."
*I'm looking for the rest of the ratings for the Virginia Congressional delegation, but so far I haven't found them.