Performance reporting: Assessing citizen access to performance measures on state government websites

Performance measurement is common in state and local governments. However, having a performance measurement system does not guarantee that results are shared with the citizenry. This study evaluates the relative accessibility of performance information on state government websites. Drawing upon the e-government and bureaucratic paradigms developed by Ho (2002), we find that state governments are more likely to approach reporting of performance information from a bureaucratic perspective than an e-government perspective. Regardless of the paradigm used, however, locating and accessing performance information often is a difficult and frustrating process. We argue that states are missing an opportunity to better manage the government-citizen relationship when they fail to share the results of their performance measurement efforts.