September 15, 2006 Minnesota Legislature Wins Award for Top Web Site Web portal stands out for making democracy user-friendly DENVER - The National Conference of State Legislatures awarded the Minnesota Legislature the 2006 Online Democracy Award for their website's use of design, content and technology in making democracy user-friendly. Minnesota's website (http://www.leg.mn) was recognized for its ease of navigation, advanced searchability and multitude of content. Judges were particularly impressed with the site's simple design yet advanced features such as RSS feeds, an impressive youth page and detailed publications offerings. "Overall the site seemed to perform strongly in all of the categories we judged: design, content and technology," the judges wrote. "The site is highly searchable, simple to navigate and offers lots of useful publications." Minnesota is only the second recipient of the Online Democracy Award, the only national award that exclusively recognizes legislative websites. To be eligible for the award, a web site must be the official legislative site developed and maintained by or under the authority of a state legislature, a legislative chamber or an officially-recognized legislative partisan caucus. The Online Democracy Award is sponsored by two of NCSL's staff sections, the Legislative Information and Communication Staff Section (LINCS) and the National Association for Legislative Information Technology (NALIT). NCSL is the bipartisan organization that serves the legislators and staff of the states, commonwealths and territories. It provides research, technical assistance and opportunities for policymakers to exchange ideas on the most pressing state issues and is an effective and respected advocate for the interests of the states in the American federal system. ### |