Doing Business With the DC Government?

I can recall years ago going to the DC Consumer and Regulatory Affairs Office and with a TV camera rolling....getting down on my knees to retrieve records and drawings that had spilled out of drawers onto the floor and behind the cabinets.

The rotary phones are long gone and computers have been doing the work of hundreds for years now; A lot of what I need can be retrieved online;

but the agency is still not where it needs to be according to business people and contractors who show up there.


The Department of Consumer and Regulatory Affairs (DCRA) recently launched a new customer-service focused telephone system.

Here's what the press release says "Faster access to crucial information is a hallmark of DCRA's new system. More customers will be able to get through to the agency because the system handles a much higher call volume. Menu prompts smoothly guide customers through DCRA's many functions including, licensing, corporate registration, commercial and residential housing inspection requests and permits."

"The menu prompts contain prerecorded information answering some of the most-asked questions District residents and businesses have about DCRA. Calls are more quickly routed to relevant areas. "

"After more than a year of hard work to bring this system online, DCRA now ranks among the top 20 DC agencies in handling call performances," said Linda Argo, Acting Director of DCRA.Argo.

The new system significantly increased the customer experience and internal productivity. In October 2006, DCRA answered 93 percent of calls; that rate has increased to almost 100 percent since the new system's launch. Call volume increased from an average of 200 calls per day to an average of 300 calls per day.

I'm anxious to hear from real callers on how the new phone system is working. email me at bjohnson@wusa9.com