Survey: Residents want local governments to be more transparent

dowell/Getty Images

 

Connecting state and local government leaders

The vast majority of respondents want an accessible website with easy to access information and mobile tech to make it easier to engage with local agencies, according to a government technology company.

It is a tale almost as old as time: A resident sends an application to their local government for some kind of assistance, receives a cursory acknowledgement and then hears nothing for weeks. They wonder if their application has been lost, rejected outright or flagged for further analysis. And they wonder how their government is arriving at its final decision.

That scenario, which likely plays out thousands of times a year all over the country, sows distrust. In fact, just 41% of residents surveyed nationwide are satisfied with how their local agencies currently share information with the public, according to CivicPlus, a government technology and civic experience company. 

More than 82% of residents said it is important for local governments to be transparent and allow access to their administrative decisions. That lack of transparency feeds into resident satisfaction, according to Brenden Elwood, vice president of market research at CivicPlus.

“The greater access that you provide for your constituents and for your residents, the less likely they're going to feel that you're holding something back,” he said. “[The] access to information is critical.”

The survey found that individuals who engage with their city's website more than once a month exhibit nearly five times higher trust in their city.

Respondents said the hallmarks of an accessible system include full public access to all information; easy to find information about meetings and agendas; instant notification about administrative decisions; notifications about updates to codes and ordinances their local government makes; and instant notifications about topics their local government will be addressing. 

The findings come from the company’s National Community Survey, which gathered responses from more than 16,000 residents across the country in 2022.

There was popular support (69%) for mobile apps among those surveyed, which Elwood said governments can employ to promote “operational transparency.” Residents can use these apps to report quality-of-life issues such as potholes, overflowing trash cans or leaking fire hydrants and then track their local government’s response.

“That pothole that you drive over every day, you have a certain level of tolerance for it, knowing that it will be fixed,” Elwood said. “So, you call it in, and hopefully it gets fixed. Then when it gets fixed, you kind of move on. But resolving issues quickly, access to information, those are some key drivers on that trust paradigm specifically.”

The CivicPlus results are consistent with a McKinsey & Company survey last year, which found that state governments that invest more in technology and digitize their services build higher customer satisfaction and trust among their residents.

A lack of trust could also lead to a lack of adoption, the survey warned. People with the least trust in government tend to adopt technology more slowly. CivicPlus said it shows that agencies should identify late adopters and the barriers they face, and partner with technology solutions that are easy to use. Then, once the tools are in place, it is crucial to keep driving awareness of them.

“You have to meet them where they want to be met, when they want to be met,” Elwood said. “Then over time, you retool, you check back in. It's a whole journey. If you take your residents on the journey, you're open, you're upfront, it signals that you care, it signals that you value their needs. It also signals that you're not hiding anything, that you're truly trying to make things work better.”

X
This website uses cookies to enhance user experience and to analyze performance and traffic on our website. We also share information about your use of our site with our social media, advertising and analytics partners. Learn More / Do Not Sell My Personal Information
Accept Cookies
X
Cookie Preferences Cookie List

Do Not Sell My Personal Information

When you visit our website, we store cookies on your browser to collect information. The information collected might relate to you, your preferences or your device, and is mostly used to make the site work as you expect it to and to provide a more personalized web experience. However, you can choose not to allow certain types of cookies, which may impact your experience of the site and the services we are able to offer. Click on the different category headings to find out more and change our default settings according to your preference. You cannot opt-out of our First Party Strictly Necessary Cookies as they are deployed in order to ensure the proper functioning of our website (such as prompting the cookie banner and remembering your settings, to log into your account, to redirect you when you log out, etc.). For more information about the First and Third Party Cookies used please follow this link.

Allow All Cookies

Manage Consent Preferences

Strictly Necessary Cookies - Always Active

We do not allow you to opt-out of our certain cookies, as they are necessary to ensure the proper functioning of our website (such as prompting our cookie banner and remembering your privacy choices) and/or to monitor site performance. These cookies are not used in a way that constitutes a “sale” of your data under the CCPA. You can set your browser to block or alert you about these cookies, but some parts of the site will not work as intended if you do so. You can usually find these settings in the Options or Preferences menu of your browser. Visit www.allaboutcookies.org to learn more.

Sale of Personal Data, Targeting & Social Media Cookies

Under the California Consumer Privacy Act, you have the right to opt-out of the sale of your personal information to third parties. These cookies collect information for analytics and to personalize your experience with targeted ads. You may exercise your right to opt out of the sale of personal information by using this toggle switch. If you opt out we will not be able to offer you personalised ads and will not hand over your personal information to any third parties. Additionally, you may contact our legal department for further clarification about your rights as a California consumer by using this Exercise My Rights link

If you have enabled privacy controls on your browser (such as a plugin), we have to take that as a valid request to opt-out. Therefore we would not be able to track your activity through the web. This may affect our ability to personalize ads according to your preferences.

Targeting cookies may be set through our site by our advertising partners. They may be used by those companies to build a profile of your interests and show you relevant adverts on other sites. They do not store directly personal information, but are based on uniquely identifying your browser and internet device. If you do not allow these cookies, you will experience less targeted advertising.

Social media cookies are set by a range of social media services that we have added to the site to enable you to share our content with your friends and networks. They are capable of tracking your browser across other sites and building up a profile of your interests. This may impact the content and messages you see on other websites you visit. If you do not allow these cookies you may not be able to use or see these sharing tools.

If you want to opt out of all of our lead reports and lists, please submit a privacy request at our Do Not Sell page.

Save Settings
Cookie Preferences Cookie List

Cookie List

A cookie is a small piece of data (text file) that a website – when visited by a user – asks your browser to store on your device in order to remember information about you, such as your language preference or login information. Those cookies are set by us and called first-party cookies. We also use third-party cookies – which are cookies from a domain different than the domain of the website you are visiting – for our advertising and marketing efforts. More specifically, we use cookies and other tracking technologies for the following purposes:

Strictly Necessary Cookies

We do not allow you to opt-out of our certain cookies, as they are necessary to ensure the proper functioning of our website (such as prompting our cookie banner and remembering your privacy choices) and/or to monitor site performance. These cookies are not used in a way that constitutes a “sale” of your data under the CCPA. You can set your browser to block or alert you about these cookies, but some parts of the site will not work as intended if you do so. You can usually find these settings in the Options or Preferences menu of your browser. Visit www.allaboutcookies.org to learn more.

Functional Cookies

We do not allow you to opt-out of our certain cookies, as they are necessary to ensure the proper functioning of our website (such as prompting our cookie banner and remembering your privacy choices) and/or to monitor site performance. These cookies are not used in a way that constitutes a “sale” of your data under the CCPA. You can set your browser to block or alert you about these cookies, but some parts of the site will not work as intended if you do so. You can usually find these settings in the Options or Preferences menu of your browser. Visit www.allaboutcookies.org to learn more.

Performance Cookies

We do not allow you to opt-out of our certain cookies, as they are necessary to ensure the proper functioning of our website (such as prompting our cookie banner and remembering your privacy choices) and/or to monitor site performance. These cookies are not used in a way that constitutes a “sale” of your data under the CCPA. You can set your browser to block or alert you about these cookies, but some parts of the site will not work as intended if you do so. You can usually find these settings in the Options or Preferences menu of your browser. Visit www.allaboutcookies.org to learn more.

Sale of Personal Data

We also use cookies to personalize your experience on our websites, including by determining the most relevant content and advertisements to show you, and to monitor site traffic and performance, so that we may improve our websites and your experience. You may opt out of our use of such cookies (and the associated “sale” of your Personal Information) by using this toggle switch. You will still see some advertising, regardless of your selection. Because we do not track you across different devices, browsers and GEMG properties, your selection will take effect only on this browser, this device and this website.

Social Media Cookies

We also use cookies to personalize your experience on our websites, including by determining the most relevant content and advertisements to show you, and to monitor site traffic and performance, so that we may improve our websites and your experience. You may opt out of our use of such cookies (and the associated “sale” of your Personal Information) by using this toggle switch. You will still see some advertising, regardless of your selection. Because we do not track you across different devices, browsers and GEMG properties, your selection will take effect only on this browser, this device and this website.

Targeting Cookies

We also use cookies to personalize your experience on our websites, including by determining the most relevant content and advertisements to show you, and to monitor site traffic and performance, so that we may improve our websites and your experience. You may opt out of our use of such cookies (and the associated “sale” of your Personal Information) by using this toggle switch. You will still see some advertising, regardless of your selection. Because we do not track you across different devices, browsers and GEMG properties, your selection will take effect only on this browser, this device and this website.