Colorado Recognized for Providing One of the Top Five Web Sites in the Nation.

DENVER -- The official Web site of the state of Colorado, http://www.colorado.gov, has been awarded fifth place nationally in the 2009 Best of the Web competition sponsored by the Center for Digital Government.

"Receiving this award is a tremendous honor for the state of Colorado," Governor Bill Ritter said. "We have worked hard to create a Web site for the citizens of Colorado that enables them to interact easily with state and local government via state-of-the-art services that are cost and time efficient for business, government, and citizens."

Many unique features in 2009 helped Colorado.gov achieve national recognition. Some of these features include:

* My Neighborhood - Enables users to enter their city or zip code, and then maps available service facilities in their neighborhood, including: airports, emissions stations, fire departments, hospitals, libraries, light rail stations, park-n-rides, police departments, private schools, public schools, school districts, and sheriff departments.

* eDemocracy - Provides easy access to the most relevant government information regarding the executive branch, state legislature, courts, elections, and local government.

* Child Care Facility Search - Enables parents and community members to find and map child care facilities. After finding preferred locations, users can view summary reports and even request detailed information regarding the operation of the child care facility.

* ePostcard - Allows individuals to show off their Colorado lifestyle and submit their best landscape, recreation, and wildlife photographs to share with others - or find the perfect picture to send to family and friends.

* Colorado.gov is where you are - enables interactions with users via RSS feeds, Twitter, and Facebook. These services can also be viewed using a mobile device.

These features are the latest additions to the dozens of services Colorado.gov currently provides the citizenry of Colorado to interact with state and local government. Colorado.gov is proud to receive this recognition and will continue to represent Colorado and its citizens by advancing eGovernment services.

About Colorado.gov

Colorado.gov is the official Web site of the state of Colorado and a collaborative effort between the Statewide Internet Portal Authority (SIPA) and Colorado Interactive, LLC to help Colorado government entities Web-enable their information services. SIPA is responsible for Colorado.gov. Colorado Interactive operates, maintains, and markets Colorado.gov and is part of eGovernment firm NIC's (NASDAQ: EGOV) family of companies.

About SIPA

The Statewide Internet Portal Authority (SIPA) was created by an act of the Colorado State Legislature in 2004. The mission of SIPA is to provide efficient and effective services for citizens through the use of modern business practices and innovative technology solutions. Additional information is available at http://www.colorado.gov/sipa.

About NIC 

NIC is the nation's leading provider of online services and secure payment processing solutions. The company's innovative eGovernment services help reduce costs and increase efficiencies for government agencies, citizens, and businesses across the country. NIC provides eGovernment solutions for more than 3,000 federal, state, and local agencies that serve 97 million people in the United States. Additional information is available at http://www.nicusa.com.