Rhode Island’s official state Web site, RI.gov, is riding high. The site now averages 282,819 visits per month – up more than 25 percent since 2007, according to internal figures. RI.gov offers more than 100 online services, as well as a vast array of information, all spread out across more than 600 Web pages.

Since 2001, RI.gov has been developed and managed by a Kansas-based company, NIC Inc., and a year ago the state signed a new agreement with NIC that extends its contract for the site through 2010, with the option of extending it through 2012. Six full-time staff members work on RI.gov on behalf of NIC’s local subsidiary, Rhode Island Interactive.

The man in charge of Rhode Island’s Web presence is Tom Viall, a NIC employee who is RI.gov’s general manager. He talked with PBN recently about how RI.gov works, the site’s hidden features, and what’s in store for online government.