Thursday, January 29, 2009

RITTER, BUESCHER ANNOUNCE NEW ONE-STOP 'COLORADO BUSINESS EXPRESS' WEBSITE

 
Gov. Bill Ritter and Secretary of State Bernie Buescher today officially unveiled Colorado Business Express, an exciting new web service that puts Colorado at the forefront nationally of state-of-the-art online business assistance.
 
"In these tough economic times, it's more important than ever to keep making Colorado a business-friendly state," Gov. Ritter said. "With today's launch today of Colorado Business Express, we underscore our commitment to helping companies grow, prosper and compete in today's challenging marketplace."
 
The new website – www.colorado.gov/cbe – provides Colorado business owners, for the first time, a single site where they can easily access all the vital information they need to interact with state government. Until now, they needed to contact each agency separately to get the same information.

"Colorado Business Express is truly a one-stop shop," Secretary of State Buescher said. "Instead of surfing the Internet or standing in line at four separate state and federal departments, people will be able to get their crucial businesses information on line by visiting a single website."
 
With the new system, business owners can use Colorado Business Express to access the Secretary of State's website where they can register their business entity, and get information on how to apply for a state sales tax license from the Department of Revenue or an unemployment insurance identification number from the Department of Labor and Employment.  The new service also links directly to the Internal Revenue Service's online system, allowing users to quickly get a Federal Employer Identification Number. Also, people who use the website will be linked to the Office of Economic Development and International Trade to obtain additional information about doing business in Colorado.   
 
The year-long project was a collaboration of five state departments and Colorado.gov, the state internet portal. This is the first time a project of this magnitude has been undertaken jointly by these agencies to benefit the business community.
 
"Colorado Business Express is a major leap forward toward a more streamlined government, with better service and less paperwork for the benefit of Colorado's new businesses," said state Sen. Bill Cadman, chairman of the Statewide Internet Portal Authority, which oversees Colorado.gov.
 
For more information contact:                       
 
Dan Morrison
Colorado.gov
303-534-3468 x 101
 
Rebecca Davis
Department of Revenue
303-866-3091
 
Mike Whatley
Department of Regulatory Agencies
303-894-7855
 
Keith Whitelaw
Office of the Secretary of State,
303-894-2200
 
Rich Werner
Office of Economic Development and International Trade
303-892-3840
 
Alice Johnson
Department of Labor and Employment
303-318-9095