Theme 4 commitments

Since the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy’s (OSTP) February 2024 update, OSTP and its federal partners have continue to advance implementation of federal scientific integrity policy and practice, coordinating through the National Science and Technology Council (NSTC) Subcommittee on Scientific Integrity (SOSI). Several agencies have finalized their new or updated scientific integrity policies that align to the NSTC Framework for Federal Scientific Integrity Policy and Practice, while others are nearing completion of their policies following extensive engagement efforts, including requests for public comment and Tribal consultations.

Evidence:

Links to updated or newly developed scientific integrity policies:

• Consumer Product Safety Commission
• Department of Energy
• Department of Labor
• Department of Transportation
• Food and Drug Administration
• Marine Mammal Commission
• NASA
• National Science Foundation
• Social Security Administration
• Veteran’s Administration
• U.S. Department of Agriculture
• National Institute of Standards and Technology
• National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
• OSTP [PDF]

Draft Scientific Integrity Policies published for public comment:

• Department of Health and Human Services [PDF]
• Department of Homeland Security [PDF]
• National Institutions of Health
• Environmental Protection Agency [PDF]:

Policies

Progress Update:

Following the January 2023 release of the National Science and Technology Council (NSTC) Framework for Federal Scientific Integrity Policy and Practice, the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) has been working with federal agencies to update or develop their scientific integrity policies to align with the Framework. These activities have been coordinated through the NSTC Subcommittee on Scientific Integrity (SOSI). OSTP and SOSI have also worked to create opportunities to engage the research community and the public on efforts to strengthen federal scientific integrity policies and practices. The U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF), on behalf of the federal agencies and departments participating SOSI, held two public listening sessions to hear from members of the public about recommendations, issues and concerns related to Federal department and agency implementation of the NSTC Framework for Federal Scientific Integrity Policy and Practice. In addition, agencies like the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), the National Institutes of Health (NIH), the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), and the Social Security Administration (SSA) have issued Requests for Information on their draft policies. OSTP released its first Scientific Integrity Policy in June 2023, modeled after the Framework.

Evidence:

• NSTC Subcommittee on Scientific Integrity [PDF]
• OSTP Scientific Integrity Policy [PDF]
• Public Listening session
• Request for Public Comment for HHS’s Draft Scientific Integrity Policy
• Request for Public Comment for NIH’s Draft Scientific Integrity Policy
• Request for Public Comment for EPA’s Draft Scientific Integrity Policy
• Request for Public Comment for SSA’s Draft Scientific Integrity Policy
• Scientific Integrity page on Science.gov [PDF]

In January 2023, the National Science and Technology Council released a Framework for Federal Scientific Integrity Policy and Practice [PDF], which advises agencies on establishing or strengthening scientific integrity policies and provides a framework for regular assessment and iterative improvement of policies and practices to advance and sustain the work of protecting Federal science and enabling Federal scientists.

Progress Update:

Agency multi-year Learning Agendas and Fiscal Year (FY) 2022, 2023, 2024, and 2025. Agency Annual Evaluation Plans are posted on agency websites and linked centrally at Evaluation.gov, and the Learning Agenda Question Dashboard was enhanced to include crossagency learning agendas.

Evidence:

• OMB M-21-27
• Agency Learning Agendas
• Agency Annual Evaluation Plans

Progress Update:

Agency multi-year Learning Agendas and Fiscal Year (FY) 2022, 2023, and 2024 Agency Annual Evaluation Plans are posted on agency websites and linked centrally at Evaluation.gov, and the Learning Agenda Question Dashboard was enhanced to include crossagency learning agendas. Agency FY 2025 Annual Evaluation Plans will be posted in the spring of 2024.

Evidence:

• OMB M-21-27 [PDF]
• Agency Learning Agendas
• Agency Annual Evaluation Plans

Agency Learning Agendas and Annual Evaluation Plans are posted on agency websites and linked centrally at Evaluation.gov. Agency Learning Agenda questions are categorized by topic and available for public users on a searchable Learning Agenda Question Dashboard.

Progress Update:

OMB continues to support the fraud symposiums via both the CFOC fraud symposium events and supporting the Joint Financial Management Improvement Program (JFMIP) fraud symposiums and annual conference.

Evidence:

• cfo.gov/payment-integrity-fraud-symposium/
• cfo.gov/JFMIP/3-year-payment-integrity-plan/
• cfo.gov/jfmip/

Progress Update:

In FY 24 OMB is continuing the Fraud & Payment Integrity Symposium series and to date has held five virtual sessions and one all day in-person Symposium. In February 2024, the Joint Financial Management Improvement Program released the three-year plan outlining how the four principal agencies will be working together to combat fraud and improper payments.

Evidence:

• CFO Council Symposium series
• Joint Financial Management Improvement 3-Year Payment Integrity Plan

In FY23 OMB launched the Fraud & Payment Integrity Symposium series, creating a forum for two-way dialogue across the Federal government to discuss and share resources available to Federal program staff to prevent, detect, and reduce fraud and improper payments. Since February OMB has hosted three symposiums with a fourth planned for September. In addition to the symposium series, OMB has been working with their fellow Joint Financial Management Improvement Program (JFMIP) Principals to develop a three-year plan focused on working with agencies to combat fraud and improper payments. In March the White House released President Biden’s Sweeping Pandemic Anti-Fraud Proposal: Going After Systemic Fraud, Taking on Identity Theft, Helping Victims outlining the Administration’s three-part Pandemic Anti-Fraud proposal highlighting the need for a “a bipartisan response to punish those who engaged in major and systemic fraud against the American people during a time of national emergency, to put in place stronger fraud and identity theft prevention going forward, and to hold harmless those Americans who were innocent victims of identity theft.

Progress Update:

OMB continues to support the fraud symposiums via both the CFOC fraud symposium events and supporting the Joint Financial Management Improvement Program (JFMIP) fraud symposiums and annual conference.

Evidence:

• CFO Council Symposium series
• Joint Financial Management Improvement 3-Year Payment Integrity Plan
• cfo.gov/JFMIP/

Progress Update:

In FY 24 OMB is continuing the Fraud & Payment Integrity Symposium series and to date has held five virtual sessions and one all day in-person Symposium. In February 2024, the Joint Financial Management Improvement Program released the three-year plan outlining how the four principal agencies will be working together to combat fraud and improper payments.

Evidence:

• CFO Council Symposium series
• Joint Financial Management Improvement 3-Year Payment Integrity Plan

In FY23 OMB launched the Fraud & Payment Integrity Symposium series, creating a forum for two-way dialogue across the Federal government to discuss and share resources available to Federal program staff to prevent, detect, and reduce fraud and improper payments. Since February OMB has hosted three symposiums with a fourth planned for September. In addition to the symposium series, OMB has been working with their fellow Joint Financial Management Improvement Program (JFMIP) Principals to develop a three-year plan focused on working with agencies to combat fraud and improper payments. In March the White House released President Biden’s Sweeping Pandemic Anti-Fraud Proposal: Going After Systemic Fraud, Taking on Identity Theft, Helping Victims outlining the Administration’s three-part Pandemic Anti-Fraud proposal highlighting the need for a “a bipartisan response to punish those who engaged in major and systemic fraud against the American people during a time of national emergency, to put in place stronger fraud and identity theft prevention going forward, and to hold harmless those Americans who were innocent victims of identity theft.

Progress Update:

OMB continues to meet with High Priority Programs to strategize on preventing improper payments. In addition, OMB provides support to programs through the quarterly scorecard reporting process.

Evidence:

• High Priority Programs and the FY24 scorecards 

Progress Update:

The Annual Improper Payments data call results yielded 28 High Priority Programs for FY24, eight of which were newly designated as High Priority compared to FY23. OMB analysis of these programs’ data is underway. OMB will meet with High Priority Program agencies and conduct additional focused meetings with selected programs . Throughout the FY24 quarterly scorecard reporting process, OMB will continue to provide support to agencies.

Evidence:

• High Priority Programs and the FY24 scorecards

In FY23 OMB made updates to the quarterly High Priority Program scorecards asking agencies to provide the details of the actions the agency took to prevent overpayments during the current reporting period, and those planned for the following quarter. This update replaced the “Key Milestones” questions from prior year’s scorecards. Allowing the agencies to report on specific time periods (i.e. a quarter) in more detail than they were previously able. In addition to the updated scorecards, in June OMB held a meeting with the 11 agencies that oversee the 29 High Priority Programs and continues to engage with the agencies on their efforts to reduce improper payments. Current and past quarterly High Priority Program scorecards can be found on PaymentAccuracy.gov.

OMB continues to improve the annual reporting of improper payment data. Through a centralized collection of cross government data we are reducing the cost of improper payment reporting.

Evidence:

• PaymentAccuracy.gov

OMB developed a new automatic feature that alerts agencies of potential errors in their draft data submissions providing agencies with an additional opportunity to make corrections and improve the overall quality and accuracy of the information published on payment accuracy.gov. In addition, OMB updated the display of agency payment integrity data on paymentaccuracy.gov by streamlining and unifying the display of payment integrity data across all agencies and programs. This revised display was published in November 2023 to enhance the readability of the agency dashboard and improve the overall user experience. OMB continues to explore additional opportunities to make improvements to payment integrity reporting.

Evidence:

• PaymentAccuracy.gov

OMB has made extensive updates to its Annual Improper Payments data call, significantly reducing the burden on the agencies completing the survey, and allowing agencies the opportunity to provide more detailed information on how they are addressing their improper payments. In June OMB published an Illustrative Response Guide providing best practices for completing the free text portions of the Annual Improper Payments data call to assure agency responses are complete, accurate, and easy to understand. OMB is also updating how the results of the annual survey is displayed on https://www.paymentaccuracy.gov/ to enhance the readability and user experience. The annual improper payment results will be posted on https://www.paymentaccuracy.gov/ in the fall.

Progress Update:

The Federal Program Inventory website has launched.

Evidence:

• fpi.omb.gov/

Progress Update:

OMB anticipates launching the Federal Program Inventory in Q1 of CY24. The inventory will allow members of the public, Congressional stakeholders, the oversight community, and other interested parties the ability to sort, search, and filter the programs of the Federal government.

Evidence:

• Once launched, the Federal Program Inventory will replace the existing pilot website.

OMB is implementing the plan outlined in the Office of Management and Budget’s 2021 report to Congress to build the Federal Program Inventory through the completion of a series of pilots. In the summer and fall of 2023, OMB will implement “Pilot A - Establish a method for improving and utilizing assistance listings as units of analysis.” This pilot will focus on testing whether the infrastructure (systems, policies, people, and processes) that support the assistance listings at SAM.gov could serve as a basis for the structure of the inventory for federal financial assistance programs. In June, GSA released guidance to agencies including guidelines and reporting requirements for reviewing and updating all assistance listings. These updated assistance listings will form the basis of an initial version of the inventory, limited to federal financial assistance, that will be made public later this year.

Progress Update:

OMB continues to work to support budget independence for Inspector Generals (IGs) and collaborate with IGs to support positive relationships between agencies and their IGs.

Evidence:
M-22-04 [PDF]

Progress Update:

In FY23 OMB worked with several small agency IGs to support IG independence. In FY24, OMB continues efforts to support positive relationships between IGs and agencies. In December 2023 OMB held a multi IG meeting to receive feedback about M-22-04 “Promoting Accountability through Cooperation among Agencies and Inspectors General”.

Evidence:

M-22-04 [PDF]:

Progress update pending

Progress Update:

Agency program teams continue to implement best practices of the Equitable Data (SED)’s Equitable Federal Funding Interagency Working Group (EFFIWG). The Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) in partnership with the White House Infrastructure Implementation Team (WHIIT) continues to track progress on BIL funding opportunity announcements, award announcements, as well as total announced, appropriated, and outstanding funding for BIL programs.

Evidence:

• https://www.whitehouse.gov/invest
• https://www.whitehouse.gov/invest/state-fact-sheets

Progress Update:

The work of the Subcommittee on Equitable Data (SED)’s Equitable Federal Funding Interagency Working Group (EFFIWG) continues through agency program teams with knowledge-sharing through the Equitable Data Community of Practice.

Evidence:

None.

Progress Update:

In March 2023, the Subcommittee on Equitable Data (SED) released its Progress on Implementation of the Recommendations of the Equitable Data Working Group (link below), which included an update on how data and evidence are being used to track progress on Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL) implementation. On page 23 of the report, it noted that, “The SED’s Equitable Federal Funding Interagency Working Group (EFFIWG) created a process to scope and answer emergent, actionable research questions to inform equitable delivery of the BIL. These ‘rapid equity assessments’ represent discrete projects that use equitable data to improve processes and policies along the entire grant life cycle. To date, the EFFIWG, in collaboration with agency program staff, has conducted many rapid equity assessments including those that evaluate the geographic patterns of programs directly serving Americans and the distribution of project announcements throughout the country to better understand patterns of access among underserved communities”.

Evidence:

• Progress on Implementation of the Recommendations of the Equitable Data Working Group [PDF]

Progress Update:

This commitment was previously completed.

Evidence:

See previous update

Reporting on Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL) implementation, which includes reporting on awards for a subset of BIL programs and instructions for how members of the public can download the full dataset of all BIL awards via USASpending.gov. The Office of Science and Technology Policy is continuing to explore the completeness and comprehensiveness of subaward data for use in reporting.

Progress Update:

The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) continues to work with agency inspectors general to identify risks and risk-mitigation opportunities upfront while strengthening internal controls and preventing waste and fraud. As of July 2024, the White House has held more than 60 total Joint Program review meetings which include an in-depth upfront discussion of program design, risk mitigation strategies, financial controls, and data, tracking, and reporting. White House leadership also meets monthly with Council of the Inspectors General on Integrity and Efficiency (CIGIE) leadership on areas of mutual interest to help ensure any issues are addressed early, and ensure a fair and accurate accounting of Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL) execution.

Evidence:

• https://www.transportation.gov/bipartisan-infrastructure-law

None.

Progress Update:

The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) continues to work with agency inspectors general to identify risks and risk-mitigation opportunities upfront while strengthening internal controls and preventing waste and fraud. As of February 15, 2023 the White House has held 13 Joint Program review meetings which include an in-depth upfront discussion of program design, risk mitigation strategies, financial controls, and data, tracking, and reporting. White House leadership also meets monthly with Council of the Inspectors General on Integrity and Efficiency (CIGIE) leadership on areas of mutual interest to help ensure any issues are addressed early, and ensure a fair and accurate accounting of Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL) execution.

Evidence:

• Bipartisan Infrastructure Law 

OMB encouraged agencies to adopt an open and transparent approach to collaborative program design, including early and ongoing engagement with agency inspectors general to identify risks and risk-mitigation opportunities upfront while strengthening internal controls and preventing waste and fraud. In addition, OMB worked with agencies and the agency inspector generals to identify significant BIL programs that would benefit from a Joint Review Meeting which would include an in-depth upfront discussion of program design, risk mitigation strategies, financial controls, and data, tracking, and reporting.

Progress Update:

OMB has revised the Uniform Guidance, which will go into effect on October 1, 2024. These revisions reduce burden and broaden potential applicants for State, local, Tribal, and territorial governments by simplifying grant announcements and reporting requirements.

Evidence:

• Guidance for Federal Financial Assistance. See: § 200.217 Whistleblower protections and § 200.303 Internal controls.

The White House continues to create a suite of resources to help communities navigate programs that can help them deliver infrastructure projects. It built a “Thriving Community” network to help Cabinet agencies coordinate strategy, collaborate across initiatives, and target deployment of a full range of Federal place-based technical assistance and capacity-building resources to urban, rural, and Tribal communities experiencing a history of economic distress and systemic disinvestment. This effort includes resources to help disadvantaged communities with grant and financial management, pre-development assistance, community engagement, planning, and project delivery support. The Administration released a Technical Assistance Guide in September 2023 to help communities get access to the programs, processes, and resources that provide targeted support to a community, region, organization, or other beneficiary to help them access and deploy federal funding to deliver results. Further the White House is working with agency partners to quickly deliver the necessary technical assistance and capacity to underserved communities, ranging from the interagency Thriving Communities initiative to the Local Infrastructure Hub established by philanthropy and nongovernmental organizations.

Evidence:

• Investing in America
• Guidebook to the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law
• Technical Assistance Guide
• Thriving Communities Network
• Environmental Justice Thriving Communities Technical Assistance Centers

Over 90% of the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law’s historic funding will be deployed by non-federal partners. In the past, too many communities have lacked the resources to apply for and deploy transformative infrastructure opportunities. While many funding streams in the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law specifically set aside funds for underserved communities, the White House Infrastructure Implementation Team has also been engaging states, local governments, Tribal governments, territories, federal agencies, philanthropy, and others to leverage all available resources to quickly deliver the necessary technical assistance and capacity to underserved communities.

54 states and territories have appointed state infrastructure coordinators, responding to the call from Senior Advisor to the President and White House Infrastructure Coordinator Mitch Landrieu to appoint an individual to coordinate efforts in a state along with serving as a single point of contact for the White House Infrastructure Implementation Team. This structure has enabled closer coordination between federal and state implementation efforts.

The White House has also created a suite of resources on build.gov that highlights programs that help communities navigate programs and resources that can help them deliver infrastructure projects. Build.gov also has resources for state, local, Tribal and territorial governments including a guidebook to each of the nearly 400 federal programs in BIL, a regularly updated list of open funding opportunities, resources specifically for Tribal governments, rural communities, territories, and a technical assistance guidebook. In September, the White House will bring technical assistance providers to the White House for a training. Additionally, the White House and federal agencies routinely engage with state, local, Tribal, and territorial governments to share information, provide policy updates, and gather feedback.

This commitment has been completed

Evidence:

See previous progress update

On March 9, 2023 the Department of Justice released an updated FOIA self-assessment toolkit. 

Progress Update:

OIP is reviewing and incorporating feedback received during the public comment period.  OIP anticipates completing the baseline business standards in the coming weeks for final review and publication.

Evidence: None

Progress Update:

The Chief FOIA Officers Council established a working group to draft baseline standards (functional areas, activities, and business capabilities). These standards were drafted, circulated to agency Chief FOIA Officers, and are will soon be made available for public comment on Regulations.gov and announced in the Federal Register.

Evidence:

• Federal Register Notice for public comment on FOIA business standards
• Regulations.gov public comment collection

The Chief FOIA Officer Council’s established a working group to finalize standard business functions and capabilities for FOIA case management. Our progress is being publicly tracked here – https://ussm.gsa.gov/fibf/#end-to-end-business-table.

Progress Update:

The new FOIA Search Tool was released on FOIA.gov in October 2023. The FOIA.gov homepage was also redesigned to incorporate the new tool. We will continue to make iterative improvements based on public usage and feedback from agencies and requesters.

Evidence:

• FOIA website
• FOIA search tool

After a robust discovery phase, OIP is now in a development phase aimed at releasing an initial product on FOIA.gov this fall. After release, OIP plans to continue to refine the tool and improve its functionality based on user feedback.