I would like to take this opportunity to thank you for participating in the deployment of E-Authentication through the FMCSA Portal.

While our program has been designed to have minimum impact on participants, your participation is nonetheless valuable for at least two important reasons:

• FMCSA is playing a unique role as the first Department of Transportation (DOT) agency to deploy an E-Authentication-enabled application. This deployment and our current E-Authentication activities allow the Department to remain in compliance with the Office of Management and Budget’s E-Authentication requirements for 2006. In so doing, we are the first agency within DOT to reap the benefits of belonging to the E-Authentication Federation, which will provide participants with simple and secure access to a growing variety of Government and commercial Web sites and applications.
• The work we are doing with E-Auth this year also will play a pivotal role in preparing FMCSA to deliver single sign-on to a number of agency-wide applications in 2007. Specifically, it will give us insights into how E-Auth technology can be made to work best in our environment; and it will provide a platform for how to support and engage users as they move towards the adoption of new technology.

In this area of the FMCSA Web site, we will be providing you with information about how to participate in our current E-Auth deployment, as well as a broad set of Frequently Asked Questions, and a section for you to provide feedback and ask questions.

FMCSA greatly appreciates your participation. Thanks to you, we will be well-positioned to provide single sign-on capability for our staff, deliver secure access to a host of desirable government and non-government applications, and lead the way for the implementation of E-Authentication within DOT.

Yours sincerely,

Heshmat Ansari, PhD.
Division Chief, IT Development Division
Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration