Utah now 24/7 with live e-help

Utahns from St. George to Logan who want to find out how to access state government services can now "chat" about it in real time on the Internet.

Officially launched this week, the new 24/7 online service offered at www.Utah.gov is the first of its kind in the country, said the state's chief information officer Val Oveson.

In development for 10 months, the service is an education for the state's

own employees, who are having to get a quick tutorial about the appropriate place to refer inquiries.

The link on the state Web site is in the upper right hand corner of the screen titled, "24/7 Live Help."

Oveson chats nightly with Utahns, sending immediate links to different agencies depending on the questions.

A lot of the chatters, so far, are computer users in "E-government" or multi-media disciplines curious about the new service, he said.

"It's generated a lot of interest from government watchers as well," Oveson said.

Gov. Mike Leavitt hopped on the service "anonymously" last week to test it out, as did his spokeswoman Natalie Gochnour.

The result?

"It worked," she said. "I got the help I needed."

The service, which will ultimately involve customer service representatives from every state agency, debuted unofficially last week as top officials tried to work through any glitches.

On Tuesday, the service became "official" and is also accompanied by other new features on the freshly redesigned state Web site, including citizen polls that will change frequently and provide immediate results.

As an example, Wednesday's poll question asked participants if they knew the identity of their state senator.

By early afternoon, 137 had said yes, 64 indicated no and four curious responses had no answer.

Residents who planned to attend some of the large Fourth of July celebrations also got tips on the state's Web site regarding directions, the heaviest traffic times and general cautionary tips.

Oveson said the enhanced portal is designed to better meet the needs of Utahns who want to learn more about the workings of state government or desire service but don't know who to call.