Madison - City of Madison online services for residents and businesses continued to grow in popularity in 2006, according to new statistics released today by Mayor Dave Cieslewicz. The City processed over 86,000 transactions totaling $14.3 during 2006 for everything from property taxes to bicycle licenses to Olbrich Gardens memberships, up from $13.3 million in 2005.

Meanwhile, the popular "Report-a-Problem" website, launched by Mayor Cieslewicz in 2005, received over 4,900 contacts in 2006 for issues ranging from dead animal collection to pothole repair to brush collection.

"Online services are an important way that city government can be more responsive and more accessible to residents and businesses," said Cieslewicz. "These innovations help the city to be more efficient, and provide high-quality services to a growing community. We have received national recognition for our accomplishments, having just been ranked the #1 'Digital City' of our size for the second consecutive year. The future promises even more innovations, especially our enterprise permitting system, which will make it easier than ever to do business with city government."

Madison's online bill paying system was inaugurated in 2001 for payment of parking tickets. It has since expanded rapidly, and now allows for online payment in 22 different categories. Over 300,000 online transactions totaling $50.5 million have been made since 2001. It can be visited online at www.madisonpay.com.

The "Report-a-Problem" website allows residents and businesses to conveniently alert city government to a wide range of issues. The information is routed from the Report-a-Problem website directly to the proper city staff for resolution. Nearly 6,200 reports have been filed through this website since its introduction. It can be visited online at http://www.cityofmadison.com/reportAProblem/.

In addition to these sites, citizens can also track a wide variety of city government business through the Online City Hall, available online at http://legistar.cityofmadison.com/mattersearch/home.aspx.

Overall use of the City's www.cityofmadison.com website has grown significantly in recent years. The domain registered over 17.1 million page views in 2006, up from 10.5 million page views in 2004.

Some Quick Facts About Usage of City Online Services

Top "Report-a-Problem" Categories for 2006:

Parking ticket dispute: 1,168
Refuse collection: 879
General feedback: 431
Recycling collection: 425
Exterior property problems: 279

Top Online Payment Transactions for 2006:

1. Property taxes: $9,370,372

2. Water Bills: $2,476,600

3. Parking Tickets: $1,598,501