E-entrepreneurship in a disadvantaged community: Project EdNet in California.

GOVERNMENT WITHOUT BOUNDARIES

An emerging trend across the nation since the 1990s reveals governmental entities coming together for integrated informational technology (IT) efforts across boundaries (Governing, August 2001). Such governments have successfully achieved cost savings through the sharing of electronic resources to advance their own unique policy strategies. On the federal and state levels governments have begun working together within a forum called "Government without Boundaries." This group, developed by state Chief Information Officers (CIOs) brings more integration and standardization among levels of governments and their respective agencies (ibid). Some local governments, for example, Palo Alto, have become contractors and consultants for other cities. Palo Alto, which has high IT connections and capabilities, will bring in $200,000 from its contract to its neighbor, East Palo Alto alone. Similarly, states are contracting with each other to supplement services they lack, instead of buying a whole system for themselves. Thus, processing time that would have cost the government of Hawaii up to $40 million on the commercial market was purchased at $11 million from the government of Arizona. Arizona runs this project from its administration mainframe, incorporating some programming modifications to fit Hawaii's requirements. As these types of intergovernmental entrepreneurial relationships become more common they are being known as GSPs or government service providers. Rather than contracting with a private company, cities find it easier to contract with GSPs who can better understand their governmental constraints and challenges.

**********

GSPs represent the newest paradigm in reform of public management--the most prominent of which was the "reinventing government" model proposed by Osbourne and Gaebler (1992). In turn "reinventing government" stems from a reform movement known as management-based government--or managerialism (Burnham, 1941; Djilas 1957; Shafritz & Russell, 2003). In the context of this article, GSPs form what Osbourne and Gaebler presented in their ten principles of reinventing government: "Enterprising Government: Earning Rather than Spending," and Market Oriented Government: leveraging change through the market (ibid). Governments are now also generating sources of revenue through the marketing and sales of their e.services. In experimenting with new systems such as GSPs, government can be seen as a "learning" organization (Senge, 1994, 1994; Comfort, 2002, 2002, 1999, 1997, 1994; Marquardt, 1996) in the IT field. This is a new and different action-oriented role for government, which is generally seen as preserving the status quo. Many of these GSPs are entrepreneurial electronic communications ventures have come to be known enterprise electronic governments.

ENTERPRISE ELECTRONIC GOVERNMENT

Enterprise Electronic Government--the title of this article is also known in short form as e2government (NECCC Report, 2001). The change from e.gov to e2gov represents no mere nomenclature shift, but rather a reinvention of 20th-century government as we once knew it--moving as it does so (a) from "regulatory to valued;" (b) to the encouragement of an "engaged citizenry"; and (c) to promote "improved prospects for economic advancement" and regional growth (ibid). E2government implies the creation of "a network of partnerships to support integrated and seamless electronic government operations." Enterprise electronic government is expected to reach not only into, but also across administrative agencies and levels of governments, as well as to private and non-profit sectors of enterprise. It encourages communicative government, steered by citizen-customer needs (Osbourne & Gaebler, 1993). Customer-driven, entrepreneurial government was a model that was widely touted by scholars and politicians in the last decade of the 20th century. This entrepreneurial venture satisfies the two important components identified by Everard (2000), concerning governmental IT entrepreneurship: (a) provision of enabling technologies; and (b) provision of a network for communications.

[FIGURE 1 OMITTED]

Advantages of E2government Collaborations

There are several significant advantages to such collaborations:

* it brings communities of interest together in new and different ways;

* it permits better sharing of scarce resources, and enhances cost savings;

* it addresses important "digital divide" and democracy concerns;

* it enhances regional development;

* it provides models for replication in other communities;

* it builds bridges for future development;

* it leads to a sense of shared communitarian values for technology entrepreneurship; and

* it provides empowerment to less-advantaged communities.

COLLABORATIVE E2GOVERNMENT IN CALIFORNIA

Imperial County's Project EdNet

One intergovernmental entrepreneurial communications model likely to serve as an example for less-advantaged communities is the Imperial Valley Telecommunications Authority (IVTA). This entity derives from a strategic linkage between a governmental agency--the Imperial County Office of Education (ICOE), and a government corporation--the Imperial Valley Irrigation District (IID). The partnership resulted in Project EdNet--an educational technology infrastructure project set up to service the underserved region of Imperial County (Figure 1). (1) The project when completed will provide regional schools, the Imperial Valley College, San Diego State University-Imperial Valley Campus, local city libraries, and other public agencies, access to this communication network.

The Underserved Region

Imperial County's geographic isolation and limited access to resources has been "a formidable opponent" to the educational, economic and social development of the region (Project EdNet, 2000-02).

The area consists of a land mass of 4,282 square miles of deserts, cultivated land, rocky and barren mountains that houses a population of 145,744 persons (U.S. Census 2001). Ethnically the population can be broken down as shown in Figure 2.

The Imperial Valley suffers from high unemployment--and at 31% it has the highest rate of unemployment in California. The median income is less than $15,000. A third of the families live on Aid to Families with Dependent Children. Forty percent of the children live below the poverty line. The developers of Project EdNet believe that "where a person lives should not be a deterrent to that individual's opportunity for success" (Project EdNet, 2000-02).

This entrepreneurial communications effort satisfies the two important components identified by Everard (2000) concerning governmental IT entrepreneurship: (a) provision of enabling technologies; and (b) provision of a network for communications.

THE COMPOSITION OF THE JURISTIC ENTITY

Imperial Valley Telecommunications Authority (IVTA)

This multi-million dollar governmental authority was conceived in 2000 by IID and ICOE. It is an example of the sort of enterprise electronic government collaboration defined earlier by "Government Without Boundaries." A collaborative venture "created to leverage local resources for broadband use in Imperial County" by providing them access to a multimillion dollar fiber-optic communications network that no single entity in the partnership could develop alone. It is expected that this joint venture will result in outcomes that will position Imperial County to interface with other California electronic initiatives that are focused on high-speed infrastructure development.

Each partner to IVTA brings unique resources to the mix. The IID provides no- cost access to its fiber-optic communication lines, communication poles, and microwave tower facilities. The ICOE contributes design and development, and operational coordination. In addition, ICOE develops funding for Project EdNet, through applying for, and in-sourcing of, financial grants from federal, state and local entities, as well as other grants such as E-Rate, Digital High Schools, and SIP funds (Project EdNet, 2000-02).

[FIGURE 2 OMITTED]

While Figure 3 represents the first phase of the project, the IVTA partnership is more ambitious than that. The entrepreneurial model can accommodate other public agencies in the area beyond schools and education facilities. It is envisioned that member agencies from various public organizations will come on board once the system is in place.

STRENGTHS AND OPPORTUNITIES OF THE ENTERPRISE

IVTA's Relevance to California's Vision for E-Government

One important priority of California Governor Gray Davis was to encourage improvement of informational technology for governmental agencies in California. The Little Hoover Commission, 2000, revealed the surprising fact that despite California's fame as the birthplace of the electronics industry, it has lagged behind 41 other states in terms of applications to government. (See Appendix I). Overall, across the nation, state governments are putting a priority on state colleges and universities to expand their communications capacity in IT education to develop future workers (Little Hoover Commission. iv, 2000). Both these needs are being addressed by Project EdNet.

Provides Empowerment for Less-Advantaged Communities

The Imperial County area has been identified as a federal Enterprise Community. The development of an Empowerment Zone application was endorsed by the school Superintendent's group and local school boards, and through collaboration with city and government officials. IVTA's efforts now provide for better meaning to the term "enterprise community." It will empower this community to learn, work, and compete in the next millennium with much needed technology resources and improved access to information.

[FIGURE 3 OMITTED]

Digital Divide and Democracy Concerns

The geographic isolation, and scanty economic resources of the Imperial Valley have to date been a factor in slower educational, economic and social growth of the region. Because of this, there have always been concerns about lack of access and communications opportunity in this region compared with other California communities to the West and North. Indeed these are concerns that have preoccupied citizens in several significant ways in the last decade. Among these is the issue of democratic access to information, and equality of access to information, for all citizens advantaged and disadvantaged alike. A constitutional issue to consider is the 14th Amendment's property and equal protection clauses for all citizens. By its efforts IVTA here sees itself as helping fulfill this important mandate of the U.S. Constitution. (2)

In practical terms for example, Project EdNet now gives the region access to delivery of Advanced Placement (AP) courses with teacher training and support, increased University of California eligibility for students, standards-based teacher training using technology, and professional development through video teleconferencing.

Keeping Resources Within the Region

The existence of IVTA will help retain and recruit valuable resources within the Imperial Valley. Thus the potential threat expressed across the nation that small, less advantaged communities might find their services being outsourced--for example, personnel management and financial services--to cheaper venues, outside the United States--such as in Asian markets (O'Looney, 5, 2000). In general, where communities are more prosperous, while citizens might not especially like outsourcing, but if the outsourcing is sufficiently cheap then both societies benefit. However, due to the poverty and lack of jobs, training, and opportunity for advancement, especially in the high-technology field, this venture benefits the county by remaining in the Imperial Valley. One of the biggest issues in the Imperial Valley has been the out-migration of educated young people to venues with more employment opportunities the few qualified young people of the area. Here the IVTA has protected itself against this threat by its efforts being a supplier of services, rather than a buyer.

Building Bridges for Future Development

One of IVTA's targets has been to create a "backbone" to public agencies that will be able to access telecommunications networks to assist them in providing their services to the public (Joint Powers Agreement). As more public agencies are integrated into the communications fiber and aerial network, more citizen-customers of this county will, naturally be benefited, but it is also anticipated that with such a push from IVTA, each agency, itself, will leap forward to additional creative IT cost-effect, reliable, customer-service efforts.

Generalizability of Methodology

This project will be a replicable model for the state in terms of innovative use of technology and collaboration among multiple public agencies.

OUTCOMES

By Fall 2002, a number of Project EdNet's visions were completed, and a number of initiatives are in progress. These are shown in Tables 1, 2, 3, and 4.

All classrooms now have at least one computer and LCCD, giving Internet capability that is faster and more reliable and links Imperial County students with the broader world beyond "the Valley."

POTENTIAL RISKS AND UNINTENDED CONSEQUENCES 

Development of new technologies, especially in a less-advantaged region, poses some threats of unintended consequences, such as the following.

System Integrity and Protections

A number of guidelines safeguarding the integrity of the communications system are in place. Here the IVTA is concerned with protection of constitutional rights of privacy, safeguarded by the 1st, 3rd, 5th, 9th (3), and 14th (4) Amendments. Issues of privacy center around individuals as well as government itself. With regard to the latter point, government information that has been inaccessible in the past is becoming more and more available--internal memoranda, records, executive meeting sessions, and other electronic files that may contain sensitive, confidential, or potentially damaging information. Thus, the agency sees part of its mission as monitoring the system to see that it is not used inappropriately. Additionally, the agency is concerned with maintaining the integrity of the system itself. In particular the agency seeks to provide precautions to ensure that the telecommunications network is not overloaded or excessively utilized.

Future Concerns

1. Agency Apathy -- lack of broad based follow-up in Imperial Valley if governmental enterprises do not take advantage of the Joint Powers Agreement and link in.

2. Obsolescence -- some of the communications assets may be obsolete every few years and this needs to be understood and overcome with the idea that IT requires continuous updating.

3. Technological Savvy of Leadership -- some of the agencies have top-level executives (school principals etc., in this case) who are tech-savvy. Education of others, including teachers may be a critical need.

4. Transparency of Information -- Collection of information vis-a-vis the perception of a "Watchful Big Brother" may create a greater mistrust of government, and so the challenge will be to ensure that data exists in the "sunshine."

5. Reengineering -- getting agencies to do this for acceptance of the new communications system.

6. Firewalls & Barriers -- need to be set up to ensure that undesirable communications are not accessed.

7. Organizational Culture and Turf Issues -- these may present a larger problem than getting the technology installed and operational. Culture as an influencing variable needs to be something planners become aware of early on.

8. Politics -- may provide disincentives for elected public servants to coordinate efforts, and could cause trouble for planners.

9. Popular Mandate -- lack of popular will from the "customers" can stop progress, hence, continuous updating to the public and gaining public support must be continued.

SUMMARY

The toolbox of bureaucracy has expanded considerably in the information age. The new tools are designed to provide better, cheaper, faster, and more responsive service to citizens, thereby diffusing the long-held beliefs that government is inefficient, expensive, slow, and unresponsive to social needs. Heeks (1999) and others have suggested that the new refinements to bureaucracy from electronic sources arise principally in the areas of:

* Speed of outputs

* Quality and Quantity of outputs.

* Cost-effectiveness of outputs.

Project EdNet is providing the advantages of speed, quality-quantity, and cost-effectiveness of outputs, and thus serves, and intends to serve (once the projects are completed) the regional bureaucracies in several key ways: (a) in its Bureaucratic Innovating Function--it provides new IT-executed public services--such as broadband access to schools, colleges, universities, and libraries; (b) in its Bureaucratic Supporting Function--it assists (or will assist) human resource executed processes, such decision-making, communications, and decision implementation using data sources, data manipulators, organizers, and so forth; (c) in its Bureaucratic Supplanting Function--it automates (and may also eliminate) existing costly executed processes, such as storing, processing, and outputting information.

Once the other local government agencies are linked to its communications system, Project EdNet will advance additional benefits to: (d) Internal Management--for its operational requirements, such as planning and budgeting; to (e) Public Administration Regulatory requirements, such as its legal, judicial, and fiscal needs; (f) to Public Services--such as education, health, transportation, public utilities, and so forth; (g) to its Dissemination of Public Information requirements, such as press releases, government data collection (such as demographics and statistics); policies, performance indicators, and so forth. These developmental communications functions (Heeks, 1999) are being practically implemented today in the Imperial Valley of California.

APPENDIX I:

All states have some form of e-government in place. States have been ranked by their digital readiness in a survey, the results of which are presented below. This survey was conducted by three entities: The Center for Digital Government, the Progress and Freedom Foundation, and Government Technology Magazine (http: www.centerdigitalgov.com/center/Final-Rank.doc):

State                         Points                   Rank

Washington                     93.0                      1
Kansas                         89.0                      2
Alaska                         84.1                      3
Illinois                       81.5                      4
Utah                           80.1                      5
New Jersey                     79.1                      6
Georgia                        78.8                      7
Wisconsin                      77.3                      8
Maryland                       77.1                      9
Texas                          76.4                     10
Michigan                       75.8                     11
Pennsylvania                   73.4                     12
Idaho                          70.4                     13
Nebraska                       69.8                     14
South Dakota                   69.8                     15
Virginia                       69.4                     16
Arizona                        68.0                     17
Louisiana                      67.5                     18
Nevada                         66.4                     19
Iowa                           65.8                     20
Colorado                       65.1                     21
Missouri                       63.9                     22
Oregon                         63.4                     23
West Virginia                  63.3                     24
Florida                        63.1                     25
Indiana                        62.9                     26
Connecticut                    62.4                     27
Massachusetts                  62.4                     28
Kentucky                       61.3                     29
Ohio                           60.8                     30
Arkansas                       60.1                     31
South Carolina                 59.8                     32
New York                       58.4                     33
Montana                        57.1                     34
Maine                          57.0                     35
North Carolina                 57.0                     36
Minnesota                      56.1                     37
Mississippi                    56.1                     38
Delaware                       54.8                     39
Tennessee                      51.0                     40
New Hampshire                  50.9                     41
California                     49.6                     42
Hawaii                         49.6                     43
Okalahoma                      77.1                     44
Wyoming                        47.0                     45
Vermont                        42.3                     46
North Dakota                   41.1                     47
New Mexico                     40.0                     48
Alabama                        35.3                     49
Rhode Island                   30.0                     50

Table 1. Project EdNet -- Phase I: Pilot Program and Proof of Concept
Phase

LOCATION                               STATUS

Imperial County Office of Education    completed
Calexico Unified School District       completed

Table 2. Project EdNet -- Phase II: Completed

LOCATION                               STATUS

El Centro Elementary School District   completed
Central Union High School              completed
Imperial High School                   completed
Ben Hulse Elementary School            completed
Brawley Elementary District Office     completed
Calpatria High School                  completed
Calexico High School                   completed

Source: Project EdNet Paper, 2002.

Table 3. Project EdNet -- Phase III: In-Progress

LOCATION                                STATUS

Southwest High School                   fiber has arrived & installation
                                        timetable is being developed
Hedrick Elementary School               fiber has arrived & installation
                                        timetable is being developed
Holtville High School                   fiber has arrived & installation
                                        timetable is being developed
Imperial Valley College                 fiber has arrived & installation
                                        timetable is being developed
San Pasqual Valley Unified Distr. Off.  fiber has arrived & installation
                                        timetable is being developed

Source: Project EdNet Paper, 2002.

Table 4. Project EdNet -- Other Activity: In-Progress

ITEM                              STATUS

Mulberry, Pine, Westside/Schools  Wireless solutions being explored
Community of Calexico             Engineering completed
Communications Tech. Advisory     Established and working with tower
Committee (CommTAC)               companies, wireless service
                                  providers, and national fiber optic
                                  carriers to realize public benefits
Agreement with Level III          In place
Adelphia                          Discussions begun regarding their
                                  potential role in Project EdNet
Other non-government agencies     Discussions begun regarding their
                                  potential role in Project EdNet

Source: Project EdNet Paper, 2002.

Notes: (1) As well as under-served portions of Southern Riverside County and remote areas of San Diego County (Project EdNet, 2000-02).

(2) Amendment XIV: asserts that no State shall deny any person of life, liberty or property, without due process, nor deny any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws 

(3) Justice William O. Douglas found that the right of privacy (which is not explicitly found in the Constitution) is implied from "emanations" of "penumbras" of these named rights in the Bill of Rights.

(4) This is sourced from the Fourteenth Amendment's concept of personal liberty and restrictions on state action.

REFERENCES

Brannan, A., & Cornett, C. E-Government in California, California Legislative Analyst Report, State of California, January 24, 2000.

Burnham, J. (1941). The managerial revolution. NY: John Day.

California Legislative Analyst Report (January 24, 2001). "E-Government in California: Providing services to citizens through the Internet."

Castells, M. (1996). The rise of the network society, Vol. I. Massachusetts: Blackwell Publishers.

Coates, B.E. (January 2003). "SMART Government in a less advantaged community: Meeting the challenges in Imperial County." Proceedings of the 35th Hawaii International Conference on System Sciences.

Comfort, L.K., (2002). "Institutional re-orientation and change: Security as a learning strategy." The Forum, 1(2), Article 4, pp. 1-5. [Online]. Available: http://www.bepress.com/forum/vol1/iss2/art4/

Comfort, L.K., (2002). "Rethinking security: Organizational fragility in extreme events." Public Administration Review. Vol. 62, Special Issue (September): 98-107.

Comfort, L.K., (1997, January). "Toward a theory of transition in complex systems." American Behavioral Scientist, 40(3):375-383.

Comfort, L.K. (1994). "Risk and resilience: Interorganizational learning following the Northridge Earthquake of January 17, 1994." Journal of Contingencies and Crisis Management, 2(3) (September):174-188.

Comfort, L.K., et.al., (1999). "Organizational learning in crisis: The 1999 Marmara and Duzce, Turkey Earthquakes." Managing Crises: Threats, Dilemmas and Opportunities, 119-142. Springfield, IL: Charles C. Thomas, Publisher.

Djilas, M. (1957). The new class. NY: Praeger.

Everard, J. (2000). Virtual states: The Internet & the boundaries of the nation state. NY: Routledge.

Heeks, R. (1999). Reinventing government in the information age. UK: Routledge. [Online]. Available: Http:www.centerdigitalgov.com/center/Final-Rank.doc

Joint Powers Authority (2000-02). Project EdNet paper.

Marquardt, M.J. (1996). Building the learning organization: A systems approach to quantum improvement & global success. NY: McGraw-Hall.

National Electronic Commerce Coordinating Council (December 10, 2001). Enterprise electronic governemnt: E2Gov., Symposium 2001.

O'Looney, J. (2000). Local government on-Line: Putting the Internet to work. Washington, DC: Management Association Publication.

Shafritz, J.M. & Russell, E.W. (2003). Introducing public administration. NY: Addison Wesley.

Schiller, H.I. (1996). Information inequality: The deepening social crisis in America. NY: Routledge Publishers.

Senge, P.M. (1994). The fifth discipline: The art & practice of the learning organization. NY: Doubleday.

Senge, P.M., et.al. (1994). The fifth discipline fieldbook: Strategies & tools for building a learning organization. NY: Currency Books.

Tan, M. & Igbaria, M. (Eds). (1998). The virtual workplace. Hershey, USA: Idea Group Publishers.

Tapscott, D. (1998). Growing up digital: The rise of the net generation. NY: McGraw-Hill.

The Little Hoover Commission. (2000). Better.Gov: Engineering technology--Enhanced government, State of California, November 2000.

The Emerging Digital Economy II, U.S. Department of Commerce, June 1999.

BREENA E. COATES, SAN DIEGO STATE UNIVERSITY-IVC, USA

E-MAIL: [e-mail]