U.S. Open Government resources

The U.S. Open Government Secretariat, housed within the GSA, leads the country’s participation and membership in the Open Government Partnership. Open Government Partnership is a voluntary, global alliance between governments and civil society to strengthen democracy through openness, transparency, and public engagement. Open Government Partnership members are required to work and collaborate with civic organizations to create national or local action plans every two to three years, ensure commitments are met, and publicly report on progress.

Key priorities

The Secretariat is tasked with:

1. Leading compliance with Open Government Partnership membership requirements, including reporting on existing commitments outlined in the national action plans.
2. Leading federal efforts to identify new commitments and implement existing commitments outlined in the U.S. Open Government national action plans.
3. Conducting engagement sessions with civic organizations and members of federal, state, and local governments.
4. Actively collaborating with the public to ensure that commitments meet the needs and priorities of all Americans.

Over the last 15 years, the United States has adopted a wide array of policies, guides, directives, and statutes aimed at mainstreaming open government practices across the federal government. If we missed an important policy, please let us know by using our feedback form.

Policy and guides

• Sept. 22, 2023 — OMB Memo M-23-22 — Delivering a Digital-First Public Experience
• July 19, 2023 — OIRA Memorandum on Broadening Public Participation and Community Engagement in the Regulatory Process
• December 2021 — US Strategy on Countering Corruption
• July 14, 2016 — OMB Memo M-16-16 on Agency Open Government plans
• 2015 — Public Participation Playbook
• Feb. 24, 2014 — Memorandum Regarding 2014 Agency Open Government Plans
• May 9, 2013 — OMB Memo M-13-13 on open data
• June 8, 2011 — Open Innovation Memo
• Dec. 8, 2009 — Open Government Directive
• Jan. 21, 2009 — FOIA Memorandum
• Jan. 20, 2009 — Memorandum on Transparency and Open Government

Key open government related legislation

2021–2022

• Access to Congressionally Mandated Reports Act §7241 (2022) (P.L. 117-263) — Requires agencies who are required by law to submit reports to Congress to also submit some of those reports to GPO’s online repository, and tracks what reports are due and when they are submitted
• Periodically Listing Updates to Management (PLUM) Act §5321 (2022) (P.L. 117-263) — Requires OPM to annually publish an online list of senior government officials, including appointed positions, including information about those individuals and whether the position is vacant
• Financial Data Transparency Act (2022) §5801 (P.L. 117-263) — Requires federal financial regulatory agencies to adopt specified data standards with respect to format, searchability, and transparency
• Apportionment Transparency (2022) §204 (P.L. 117-328) — Requires OMB to publish online each document apportioning an appropriation, including accompanying footnotes, in an open government data format
• Courthouse Ethics and Transparency Act (2021) (P.L. 117-125) — Requires federal judicial officers, bankruptcy judges, and magistrate judges to file periodic transaction reports disclosing certain securities transactions and for that information to be publicly disclosed online
• Congressional Budget Justification Transparency Act (2021) (P.L. 117-40) — Requires federal agencies to publish their Congressional Budget Justifications online and directs OMB to compile this into a single searchable website, and to track when the reports are submitted
• Corporate Transparency Act (2021) §6401 (P.L. 116-283) — Requires certain business entities (each defined as a “reporting company”) to file information on their “beneficial owners” with the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (“FinCEN”) of the U.S. Department of Treasury
• Taxpayers’ Right to Know Act (2021) §9601 (P.L. 116-283) — Requires OMB to create a public inventory of federal programs and provide for regular updates to the information

2019–2020

• Oversight.gov (2020) §621 (P.L. 116-6) Provides funding for Oversight.gov, a website containing reports from most federal Inspectors General
• Grant Reporting Efficiency and Agreements Transparency Act of 2019 (2019) (P.L. 116-103) — Requires the establishment and use of data standards for information reported by recipients of federal grants and the publication of recipient-reported data collected from all agencies on a single public website.
• Taxpayer First Act (2019) §3101 (P.L. 116-25) — Mandates electronic filing and online publication of 990 (non-profit) tax forms
• Open, Public, Electronic and Necessary (OPEN) Government Data Act §201 (2019) (P.L. 115-435) — Defines the term open data, creates minimal standards for making federal government data available to the public, requires the federal government to use open data to improve decision making, and establishes and formalizes Chief Data Officer (CDO) at federal agencies, codifies data.gov
• GAO-IG Act (2019) (P.L. 115-331) — Requires federal agencies to report in their annual Congressional Budget Justifications information about open and closed GAO recommendations

2017–2018

• Equal Access to Congressional Research Reports Act §154 (2018) (P.L. 115-141) — Requires CRS Reports to be made publicly available as of the date of enactment
• Filing by Senate Candidates with Commission Division D, Title I (2018) (P.L. 115-244) — Requires all Senate candidates to file their election reports electronically with the FEC

2015–2016

• FOIA Improvement Act of 2016 (2016) (P.L. 114-185) — Strengths FOIA’s public disclosure provisions, requires records requested 3 times to published online automatically, limits the timeframe wherein agencies can withhold agency communications, codifies FOIA.gov
• Whistleblower Protection Enhancement Act of 2016 (2016) (P.L. 114-302) — Prohibits an FBI employee from taking or failing to take a personnel action (e.g., demotion) with respect to an FBI employee or applicant because of a protected disclosure, i.e., one concerning (1) a violation of a law, rule, or regulation; or (2) waste, fraud, or abuse.
• Declassification of Decisions, Orders, and Opinions of the FISA Court §402 (2015) (P.L. 114-23) — Requires Declassification and Publication of Significant FISC Opinions, interpreted by DNI to only apply to Opinions from 2015 forward; § 602 Annual Reports By the Government — Requires Disclosure of Significant Statistical Information about the use of surveillance authorities

2013–2014

• The Digital Accountability and Transparency Act (2014) (P.L. 113-101) — Establishes a website where the federal government discloses its expenditures and sets data standards for those disclosures
• Intelligence Community Whistleblower Protections (2013) Title VI (P.L. 113-126) — Extends whistleblower protections to agencies the principal function of which is the conduct of foreign intelligence or counterintelligence activities; extends some reprisal protections; allows appeals of clearance determinations; creates a conflict of interest provision regarding an IG’s transmission of communications to Congress; etc.

2010–2012

• STOCK Act (2012) (P.L. 112-105) — Requires disclosures of stock trading by some government officials
• Reducing Overclassification Act (2010) (P.L. 111-258) — requires DHS to train and educate law enforcement on responding to requests for classified material; require the DNI to standardize formats for un/classified intel products to promote sharing of those products; allows agency heads to reward employees for properly classifying documents; directs ISOO to assess whether agencies are properly administering classification practices; requires training for employees with original classification authority

• 18F
• Challenge.gov
• Connect.USA.gov
• Data.gov 
• Federal contracting forecast tool 
• Federal IT Dashboard
• Federal OSDBU Directors Interagency Council
• Open Government Partnership 
• Performance.gov
• Regulations.gov
• Resources.data.gov

In the news

• U.S. General Administrator Robin Carnahan leads delegation to Open Government Partnership Global Summit in Estonia (09/05/2023)
• White House Releases Fifth Open Government National Action Plan to Advance a More Inclusive, Responsive, and Accountable Government (12/28/2022)