Maine State Website and Online Business Portal Both Receive Awards

AUGUSTA, Maine--(BUSINESS WIRE)--

Maine's official state Web portal, www.Maine.gov, and Maine's online business portal, www.maine.gov/businessanswers, were both recently honored, each receiving an award that recognizes achievements in creativity, innovation and communication.

The VEMA Awards were created to inspire talented individuals and companies striving to further evolve the visual arts and digital communications industry and to strengthen its collective artistic community. This year only 11 public and private entities were recognized in the website category, the State of Maine was honored with two of these accolades.

“It is not an accident that the State of Maine continues to be recognized for its website,” commented Greg McNeal, chief technology officer for Maine's Office of Information Technology. “These awards are not a product of luck, but recognition for the hard work, vision and collaboration of a number of individuals striving to create and maintain a strong Web presence that meets or exceeds the expectations for the state of Maine.”

In addition to being recognized for the Maine.gov website, the state also received a VEMA Award for its Business Answers online portal. The portal, provided by the Department of Economic and Community Development (DECD), empowers job creators by giving them access to a one-stop repository of licenses and permits required to start a business in Maine.

“There are 104 different business types users can research to receive a comprehensive list detailing the specific forms, licenses, permits, and information required for completion before that business can begin to operate,” stated George Gervais, commissioner for DECD. “The efficiencies that have been created through the Business Answers portal have only just begun; we look forward to expanding its functionality in order to make it as easy as possible for the private sector to grow a business in Maine.”

The VEMA awards are judged by VEMA's Arts & Standards Council, an invitation-only panel comprised of skilled professionals with expertise in the fields of multimedia arts and digital communications.

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About Maine.gov

Maine.gov (http://www.Maine.gov) is the official Web portal of the state of Maine. Maine.gov is a service of InforME, a collaborative effort between the state of Maine and Maine Information Network, LLC. part of the NIC EGOV family of companies.

About NIC

Founded in 1992, NIC EGOV is the nation's leading provider of official government websites, online services, and secure payment processing solutions. The company's innovative eGovernment services help make government more accessible to everyone through technology. The family of NIC companies provides eGovernment solutions for more than 3,500 federal, state, and local agencies in the United States. Forbes has named NIC as one of the “100 Best Small Companies in America” five times, most recently ranked at No.11 (2013), and the company has been included three times on the Barron's 400 Index. Additional information is available at http://www.egov.com.