After three years of small, steady improvement, customer satisfaction with the
federal government’s services registered a slight decline in 2005, according
to the American Customer Satisfaction Index.

Satisfaction with government services was measured at 71.3 on the ACSI’s 100-point scale, down 1.1 percent from last year and the first decline in satisfaction with the federal government since 2002. Because satisfaction with private-sector services experienced a 3.2-percent decline, government services compare favorably to their private-sector peers.

Not surprisingly, government agencies that deliver benefits have higher ACSI scores. The Railroad Retirement Board received the highest score of any government agency, with 90. On average, benefits-providing agencies scored 12 points higher on the index than government regulatory agencies.

Satisfaction with the Internal Revenue Service showed a small decline, with satisfaction of taxpayers who file their taxes using the traditional paper forms showing a 3.8 percent decline to 50 this year. Overall, filing satisfaction was measured at 64. Satisfaction with government Web sites improved 2.5 percent to an all-time high score of 73.9.

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