Two years after Login.gov services became available to state and city governments, the General Services Administration (GSA) is touting the success of the program and highlighting a new pricing model intended to keep it affordable for governments.
Login.gov is a shared technology service within GSA’s Technology Transformation Services (TTS) group that provides authentication and identity verification capabilities to government agencies. GSA describes it as the public’s “one account for government” that gives the public the opportunity to “use a single account to securely access services across participating government websites.”
Currently, Login.gov supports over 10 million monthly active users and 40 million monthly sign-ins across nearly 50 agencies and states. As of now, most accounts are created to access Federal sites, but back in 2022, Login.gov began offering state and local governments across the country the ability to use its services. Since then, there has been a rapid expansion across state government programs.
GSA noted that Federal funding is not required for state and local governments to use Login.gov.
“Whether accessing state or Federal government services, the public expects and deserves secure and easy ways to get what they need,” said GSA Administrator Robin Carnahan. “Expanding adoption of Login.gov to more states is an opportunity to demonstrate that we can deliver on that expectation and is a priority for GSA and for the country.”
According to GSA, state and city governments are eligible to partner with Login.gov through an Intergovernmental Cooperation Act (IGCA) agreement. In terms of affordability, GSA said it aims to keep the Login.gov services affordable, while also keeping them properly secured. Recently, GSA announced a new pricing model that includes price scales based on usage. GSA said it believes the new pricing scales make it easier for state and city governments to try Login.gov services on a limited use case or pilot. The authentication services are billed on a monthly-active user basis, and the identity verification pricing is based on a five-year “credential lifecycle” where the cost is effectively split across government agencies.
In a press release, GSA highlighted a handful of state-level success stories, including for California bus riders. State leaders used Login.gov for riders of the Monterey-Salinas Transit (MST) buses. Riders can use Login.gov to streamline access to discounted transit benefits for senior citizens and veterans through California Integrated Travel Project (Cal-ITP) Benefits, a web application designed to make bus and train transit simpler and more cost effective for California’s transit riders.
GSA explained that the app’s integration with Login.gov allows transit riders to quickly and securely verify their eligibility online for discounted fare programs, including the Senior (age 65+) and Veteran Discount programs. Login.gov makes managing riders’ personally identifiable information (PII) simpler, as riders consent to sharing only the information they need to, and most riders verify their eligibility in five minutes or less.
Following the success with MST, GSA said Cal-ITP is currently exploring implementing the service for 13 more transit operators in California to provide contactless payment and support reduced fares.
