Thursday, December 10, 2009
To demonstrate President Barack Obama’s commitment to making the U.S. government more transparent and accessible to Americans, the White House has issued an Open Government directive which spells out how various federal agencies will make certain information more available. Government watchdogs, such as the Project on Government Oversight (POGO), hailed the report’s release, calling it an important step toward expanding citizen participation in federal activities.
Among the changes planned for cabinet-level agencies is a promise by the Department of Justice to make available for the first time its Annual Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) Report in a format that will make clear how well Justice officials are complying with FOIA requests. This will allow citizens and groups like POGO to track the performance of the department and others that follow in its steps with their FOIA reports.
The Department of Veterans Affairs is planning to publish a Hospital Report Card which will reveal to veterans how each VA medical center is doing in providing quality, safe, and accessible health care.
Also, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration will begin publishing online employer-specific information about work-related deaths. This move is intended to persuade employers to improve job safety and prevent future accidents.
The United States Patent and Trademark Office will provide an online searchable database of more than 7 million patents and patent applications.
-Noel Brinkerhoff
A Sneak Peek at Cabinet Department Open Government Projects (by Daniel Schuman, Sunlight Foundation)
Open Government Directive Timelines (by Daniel Schuman, Sunlight Foundation)
The Magna Carta for Government Transparency? (Project on Government Oversight)
Open Government: A Progress Report to the American People (White House) (pdf)
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