MANHATTAN, KS – (February 2, 2012) CivicPlus, the leading provider of comprehensive community engagement software, today announced a new, interactive platform designed to help local governments better connect with citizens. Called “Community Voice,” the new feature paves the way for residents to submit ideas and suggestions directly to local government officials through municipal websites, and to have detailed and organized discussions around local issues.

“Cities and counties across the country are looking for new ways to get citizens involved and excited about what local government can do for them,” said CivicPlus CEO Ward Morgan. “Community Voice provides that forum. Available now to all CivicPlus customers, it offers citizens a unique arena in which they can not only submit ideas to community leaders, but can comment on other citizen-driven proposals and voice their support for popular plans.”

To boost citizen participation, Community Voice features a profile-driven ranking system that allows citizens to earn recognition for their participation in conversations around proposed solutions and ideas. The more citizens participate, the more “badges” they earn and the higher they climb on community interaction leaderboards. Conversations are organized by major topic areas, which are selected by local website administrators.

“Community Voice is one of many community engagement features built into CivicPlus-developed websites and one of the first to put content creation in the hands of citizens,” said Morgan. “This is citizen sourcing at its best; Community Voice makes participation in crafting a community vision accessible and efficient for everyone. It also allows governments to tap into the collective intelligence to build solutions and community consensus.”

David McLaren, web administrator for the City of Placentia, CA, is one of the first CivicPlus clients to test the new application. “What excites me most about this new module is the increased communication between the city and the average citizen,” McLaren said. “Far too often, a citizen has a good idea that never reaches the ears of public employees. Community Voice changes that and lets the citizen take part in the quest to serve the community better.”

While Community Voice is largely community-driven and moderated, governments can keep the conversations organized through a flagging and moderation system. For more information about Community Voice visit www.civicplus.com/mycommunityvoice or call 888.228.2233.

About CivicPlus
Based in Manhattan, KS, CivicPlus has designed more than 1,000 local government websites serving 36 million citizens throughout North America. A recipient of the Center for Digital Government’s Best Fit Integrator Award for delivering extraordinary digital solutions to public IT projects, CivicPlus invests more than $1.7 million each year to research and develop new customizable, integrated eGovernment applications. CivicPlus transforms municipal websites into powerful two-way communication platforms that let citizens talk to and participate in local government . The innovative CivicPlus Government Content Management System™ now offers more than 60 applications including Citizen Request Tracker™, MuniMobile™, Facebook and economic development tools. Founded in 2001, CivicPlus was selected by Inc. Magazine as “One of the Fastest-Growing Privately Held Companies in the U.S.” in 2011. For more information visit www.civicplus.com.

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