Computers and Small Local Governments: Uses and Users

Abstract

A major nationwide survey conducted in the mid1970s found that the vast majority of cities with populations over 50,000 and counties over 100,000 used computers in their operations, but less than 50 percent of smaller communities did so. The survey also found that as population declined, so did the frequency of computer use. I In the years since that survey was conducted, a revolution in computer technology has occurred. Today, local governments of almost any size have access to a wide variety of electronic computers, ranging from hand-held portable models to micro and minicomputers and large mainframe systems. These vary in cost from a few hundred to millions of dollars. Local governments no longer need to employ staffs of technical specialists to be able to use computers. Increasingly, vendors are offering packaged or turn-key systems tailored to meet the specific requirements of local governments, and specialized local government software has also become more widely available. Virtually no systematic research has been done in recent years on the use of computer technology in small local governments, even though the revolution in the technology has brought computers easily within the grasp of most of them. In an effort to fill this research gap and also to assist in the development of training and technical assistance materials and programs on microcomputers for small and rural local governments, a survey of computers and small local governments in seven plains and mountain states was undertaken in the winter of 1983.2 Using a stratified, random sampling procedure, the researchers selected for study 75 cities with populations of 2,500 to 49,999 and 75 counties under 100,000 in the states of Colorado, Kansas, Montana, Nebraska, North Dakota, South Dakota, and Wyoming. In addition, 15 Nebraska cities from 800 to 2,499 were randomly selected for inclusion in order to gain information on computer use in non-urban settings. This resulted in a representative sample of 90 cities and 75 counties.3 (See Table 1.)