NIC inks portal deal with Alabama

National Information Consortium Inc. has won a three-year contract to build and manage a portal for the state of Alabama, the company announced Feb. 5.

NIC of Overland Park, Kan., will provide infrastructure and staff expertise required to develop, maintain and host the self-funded electronic government portal. The state of Alabama will retain ownership of the content, data and statutory fees.

NIC signed the contract with Alabama in December 2001, company officials said. The company was chosen among 10 competitors, they said.

While the majority of portal services will be free to citizens, a fee will be charged for a few applications to support the development and maintenance of the portal and applications.

The portal is scheduled to launch this spring. The first scheduled portal transaction application is one that will allow nursing professionals to renew and pay for their professional licenses online.

The company will add other features to the portal throughout the year, including additional licensing applications.

State officials also have asked NIC to develop e-government applications for all agencies, boards and commissions in Alabama.

NIC now hosts 16 state portals throughout the United States.