2020 By the Numbers. General Manager's Newsletter - 1st Quarter

January 26, 2021

BOISE, Idaho

2020 By The Numbers

In 2020, Access Idaho became an “Indispensable and Essential” service to state & local entities across Idaho. As offices shut down or limited access due to COVID-19, we provided everything needed to operate citizen-friendly digital services. Our flexible, long-term contract, that any state or local government can use, proved extremely valuable in streamlining the procurement process and delivering services immediately when citizens shifted from in-person to online overnight.

By the end of 2020, we were collaborating with

50
Agencies, Constitutional officers, Commission and Self-Governing Boards
500
E-government services Access Idaho operated and supported at the end of 2020 with no-cost maintenance or hosting service under our self-funded model.
371+
County/City/School Districts/Public entities - Counties: All 44 - County Departments: 194 (35 Assessors, 37 Sheriffs, - 22 Treasurers, 22 Clerks, 65 Other) - City Departments: 104 (Building, Police & Fire) Irrigation/Water-Sewer Districts: 14 - School Districts: 9 - Other (Airports, U of I Extension Service, Landfills, Fire Districts, Highway Districts, Weed Districts and many more)
The most dramatic example of an 'Indispensable and Essential' service in 2020 was our DMV citizen portal. Online driver's license renewals, replacements, suspension reinstatement and vehicle registration renewals skyrocketed to double digit growth from 2019.
Overnight, ITD's DMV online services became a critical business channel due to office closures or limited service hours last March. Let us know how we can help you move forward with new online services in 2021 to meet your operational goals.

Agency Website Conversions

Access Idaho was extremely busy in 2020 converting agency websites to the v3 DIY and WordPress templates to provide the State of Idaho with an updated template built on Bootstrap 4, which is cohesive with the new Idaho.gov design. The volume of work and fiscal impact was a highlight of the year:
25
Agencies, Constitutional officers, Commissions and Self-Governing Boards (Access Idaho conducted v3 WordPress Website Conversions on or assisted in redesigning.)
1862
The number of hours Access Idaho saved the state with its efforts
$130,340
Amount Access Idaho saved the state in website development costs due to the self-funded portal model
In addition to the WordPress conversions, the Access Idaho team was one of the first responders to the COVID-19 emergency by designing and launching, in record time, the https://coronavirus.idaho.gov and https://rebound.idaho.gov sites for the Governor in 2020:


The staff at Access Idaho were quick to help in the fight against COVID-19, pulling together web sites critical for public communication on practically a moment's notice. They shifted priorities to deliver effective online resources to help the public understand the severity of the disease and our response to it. Thank you to the folks at Access Idaho for the important role they continue to play in getting us through the pandemic.

Governor Brad Little

App Engine

In 2020, it was essential to rapidly launch a new automated business process to reduce or replace paper forms arriving by mail, fax and walk-in traffic. Access Idaho responded with App Engine, a form-builder that is PCI compliant. It allowed agencies to replace paper forms (PDF, Word docs, coffee-stained paper on your desk, etc.) and convert to an online/electronic process at no cost.

21
Interactive PCI-compliant forms were launched in 2020 to assist with essential services for Agencies, Commissions and Self-Governing Boards. Below is a sampling of where we deployed the service:
  • Administration, Department of Masks Gloves Supplies Customer Registration (appengine.egov.com/apps/id/mgs)
  • Bean Commission Bean School
  • Career & Technical Education Program Registration
  • Children's Trust Fund, Health & Welfare Event Registration
  • Environmental Quality, Department of Permit Training
  • Health and Welfare, Department of New Born Screening Kits (appengine.egov.com/apps/id/idhw/newborn)
  • Meridian, City of License Renewal (appengine.egov.com/apps/id/meridian/alcohol)
  • STEM Event Registration

COVID Creates a Need for Innovative Solutions

With government offices closed or with limited hours due to COVID-19, Idaho residents preferring to pay for local or state government services with cash have been left without many options. In the past Access Idaho would direct unbanked citizens to purchase a prepaid debit card, but growing calls and emails on this topic triggered us to explore a new idea for the state.

In 2020, we approached First Data (now Fiserv), our credit card processor who offers a service called CheckFreePay. This is a bill payment solution for consumers who prefer to pay their bills in person at a retail location. In Idaho, this service is located at Walmart, Fred Meyer, Smiths (Magic Valley) and Short Stop Grocery (Pocatello & Idaho Falls).

The concept is that these retail locations are open on weekends and have extended hours, well beyond state agencies’ hours. This service allows citizens and noncitizens who lack accounts at formal financial institutions, or who have limited bank access, to pay in cash. The retailer then sends the payment to Access Idaho for distribution to an Idaho state or local government account.

Example user experience:

  1. An Idaho resident prints off a voucher/receipt or saves a QR code on the phone for the intended payment.
  2. The user takes the voucher/receipt or QR code to Walmart or Fred Meyer customer service counter.
  3. The store employee inputs the voucher/receipt or scans the QR code for the service information.
  4. The Access Idaho application interface will identify the correct account and post the cash depot to an agency's service.
  5. Access Idaho simply moves the funds from store to the proper state or local account as if it was a CC or E-check payment.

Let us know if we can help you with new and innovative ideas like this.

Open for Business and Taking Calls

In following Governor Little's guidelines, the Access Idaho staff is working remotely until further notice. However, thanks to technology, we remain fully functional to continue supporting citizens inquiries, customer services issues (billing, refund requests, password resets, etc.) along with you and your staff.

We Create Solutions

All services listed above are provided at no cost to you under the Access Idaho contract, the administrator of Idaho's official Web portal (Idaho.gov) and provider of electronic government solutions for the state. The manager for the portal is NIC Idaho, a subsidiary of NIC.
Jeff Walker,
General Manager
208-332-0102
jeff@accessidaho.org

We Create Solutions

Questions about any of the solutions we listed above or want to start working with us? Please contact us.