WILTON >> A non-profit research group says the town of Wilton has the Capital Region’s best municipal website.

In a statewide survey of 500 city, county, town, village and school districts, only three other municipal websites ranked higher than Wilton’s.

The town received perfect scores for providing information about public meetings, financial reports, taxes and fees, expenditures, and facilities and services.

“We actually received bonus points in the public meetings category for having our videos of the town board meetings on the website,” Supervisor Art Johnson said.

The Albany-based Empire Center for Public Policy graded municipalities in a report called the 2014 SeeThroughNY Local Government Website Report Card.

“We want to begin a conversation about the level of transparency that the public can expect from the people who spend their tax dollars,” center Executive Director Tim Hoefer said in a statement. “This project is the beginning of what we think can be a productive discussion of how local officials present data.”

Eighty-five percent of websites reviewed received failing grades including the towns of Clifton Park, Halfmoon and Milton. Among local villages, Ballston Spa scored a zero for having no website.

Not every municipality’s website was reviewed.

Saratoga Springs also got a failing grade, with a zero in the “Financial Reports” category. 

Saratoga County was given a “C” grade, scoring 113 out of a possible 146 points. It scored high in the “Public Meetings” and “Budgets” categories, but only got four points under the “Contracts” heading.

Only one other New York state town – Penfield, Monroe County – earned more points than Wilton, 122 to 120. Both got “B” grades. 

Wilton got exceptional scores for “Public Meetings,” “Financial Reports” and “Taxes & Fees.” Its only low score was for “Contracts” with three points.

Johnson said Wilton residents rely on a good website as a source of information in today’s Digital Age. 

“It’s a matter of convenience,” he said. “They can find what they need without having to come to town hall.”

Wilton’s website is managed by town comptroller Jeff Reale and Richard Richbart, of Saratoga Springs-based Spa.Net, which services the town’s information technology system.

“We update the website weekly, sometimes daily,” Reale said.

More than a dozen Capital Region school district websites were also graded. Shenendehowa got a “D,” while Ballston Spa, Burnt Hills-Ballston Lake, Saratoga Springs and South Glens Falls were given failing grades. 

Saratoga Springs tallied the fewest points (40) of any Capital Region school with zeroes in five categories – “Public Information,” “Budgets,” “Financial Reports,” “Contracts” and “Expenditures.”

For more information go to: www.SeeThroughNY.net.

© 2014 The Saratogian