some thoughts about the E-gov TC

[h.j.m.burg@minfin.nl]

Friends,

Prior to accepting the nomination to take up the chair of this committee I had some conversations with Pim van de Eyk (European OASIS rep) and Patrick Gannon. Subject was the role committees like E-Gov but also tax-xml could play within the OASIS family.
I promised to share my views with you as soon as I had some time to spare. 
As some of you might know I personally have some responsibilities within the Netherlands government who take up almost all the time I have available. After the (European) holiday season I will have more time available for this TC. In that respect I offer my apologies that I could not be more active after my election.

OASIS is primary a standard setting organisation. Most of the committees are aimed at the development of standards. In most cases much hard work is done with this aim. However the XML landscape is covered with hundreds of standards (OASIS and non OASIS). For those of us in government interested in using open standards it is extremely difficult to  keep oversight. In many cases we see governments produce proprietary XML schemas to support particular processes. In most case W3C compliant though but in most cases not supporting more extended standards.
This very problem of oversight or insight  was the main reason for the OECD forum on tax administration to promote the formation of the OASIS tax-xml TC. OASIS because there we could freely exchange ideas with the industry under a IPR policy umbrella. Not direct for development of yet another XML standard, but for promoting the use of open standards, influence existing standards and give guidance to the tax administrations.
Over the last two years the tax-xml committee has become the primary XML advisor to the tax community. Not ideal yet, but we are coming there.

Of course the E-gov TC covers a bigger area than just taxes. Besides that the E-gov working ground is more heavily politicized than the tax community. But a role in guiding  government bodies in the  open standards world,  promote the use of open standards, fight the regionalising of standards to protect specific interests of regional industries and help/influence existing standard groups and committees to develop standards in such a way that they can support government processes, would certainly be an important one.
On the other end it is important to assist other OASIS and non-OASIS TCs to understand government needs and developments especially in the area of development of e-government.

However because E-gov covers such a vast area it is important not to overeat ourselves in projects we cannot finish. Keep on working in all directions at the same time.
Therefore I hope that we as committee could decide on some clearly defined projects to undertake. To assist the communities we work for; to create a win-win situation for the members to start with, but in the end to help developing government-society interoperability where we all gain from.
Perhaps a bit idealistic but in my mind it is important to have and maintain ideals and goals.

For the coming months I hope we can revive the subcommittees we have. For those with too little support is might be important to recognise that and (temporary) stop activitys.
In September I like to start with monthly full committee telecoms. I hope that someone of us could set them up. The ministry I work for has no facilities for setting them up.
The subcommittees can arrange their own schedules to pick up work. I hope the chairs could take the lead in that. 

As said during my first telecom I like to aim at four TC  face to face conferences a year. In my tax TC we have three where average 50% of the membership is present. These conferences could be hosted by one of the members of the TC. In my experience two full days conferences are worth wile the trip; are enough to organise working sessions as well as plenary sessions. 
Currently I am thinking of a conference a year in Asia/Pacific one in Europe and one in North America. The forth could be in turn Europe and North America. I hope we could organise the conferences that way that we could always ad an extra day to spend time to go in specifics to the country where we happen to meet. In that way we stay connected and make the conferences as interesting as possible.
Hopefully a couple of the members of the TC are willing to help organising the conferences to begin with the first one I hope to connect to: the OASIS conference in London (October)

Friends, This committee has the potential to become one of the new kind of TCs in OASIS: aiming at the deployment of standards in vertical industries like government and taxes. I have the feeling that we need more TCs like this one and that we hold in a sense part of the future of OASIS and the standards community. I am very exited when I look at the current membership and estimates thiss TCs potential.  It is my mission to help this process as much as I can. Do not expect from me to be or become a technical expert because that is not where I can help.
The TC can not jump higher than is members allow it to jump. In this sense we are all mutually dependent. A chair can only facilitate a bit of the process. The rest is up to us.

Harm Jan van Burg
Chair E-gov TC