Howard County Executive Calvin Ball announced the launch of the county’s new online Service Catalog. Accessible from the County’s homepage, the Service Catalog is designed to help residents, business owners, visitors, parents and older residents more easily find services offered by Howard County Government.
From the site, users can register for programs, report issues, apply for permits and licenses, make payments, contact the county and more.
“Traveling our community and listening to our neighbors, I’ve frequently heard complaints that our website is too difficult for residents to navigate. Many find it overly cumbersome and confusing to locate information or do online business with the county,” said Ball. “We’ve listened to their suggestions and acted by creating this ‘one-stop shop’ to provide easier and more convenient access to all County information and services. I appreciate those who offered input and those who worked so hard to bring this catalog to life.”
The Ball administration’s Transition Team report identified “excellence in customer service” as an area of opportunity to improve, with a goal of ensuring that when interacting with government, individuals, businesses and organizations are able to do so effectively and with a positive experience. To achieve this goal, the team recommended creating a single management and issue tracking portal for employees and constituents.
A cross-departmental team of more than 20 service liaisons analyzed the county’s website and identified 800-plus services. With the goal of automating all 800 services over time, Phase I of the catalog organized all services into constituent-friendly categories, separated by user type: Resident, Business, Visitor, Parent and 50+. Services include everything from reporting down trees to requesting a recycling bin repair to applying for an animal license.
Under Phase 2, services currently requested by phone, email or PDF will be automated and the catalog integrated with the County’s website and departmental pages.
To view and/or use the Service Catalog, visit https://services.howardcountymd.gov.