Sorry for cross-post/ Begin forwarded message:<br>
<br>
From: "Herms, Kevin W." <<a href="mailto:Kevin_W._Herms@omb.eop.gov" target="_blank">Kevin_W._Herms@omb.eop.gov</a><mailto:<a href="mailto:Herms@omb.eop.gov" target="_blank">Herms@omb.eop.gov</a>>><br>
<div id=":37a">
Date: May 9, 2013, 10:05:56 AM EDT<br>
Subject: OMB/OSTP Open Data Policy<br>
<br>
Hello,<br>
<br>
Please be advised that OMB and OSTP have issued a new policy memo, Open
Data Policy – Managing Information as an Asset (M-13-13). The memo was
issued pursuant to a May 9 Executive Order, Making Open and Machine
Readable the New Default for Government Information. The memo can be
found here:<br>
<br>
<a href="http://www.whitehouse.gov/sites/default/files/omb/memoranda/2013/m-13-13.pdf" target="_blank">http://www.whitehouse.gov/sites/default/files/omb/memoranda/2013/m-13-13.pdf</a><br>
<br>
Below is the White House press release. As always, let me know if you have any questions.<br>
<br>
Thanks,<br>
Kevin<br>
<br>
<br>
THE WHITE HOUSE<br>
Office of the Press Secretary<br>
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE<br>
<span tabindex="0" class="aBn"><span class="aQJ">May 9, 2013</span></span><br>
<br>
Obama Administration Releases Historic Open Data Rules to Enhance Government Efficiency and Fuel Economic Growth<br>
<br>
The Obama Administration today took groundbreaking new steps to make
information generated and stored by the Federal Government more open and
accessible to innovators and the public, to fuel entrepreneurship and
economic growth while increasing government transparency and efficiency.<br>
<br>
Today’s actions—including an Executive Order signed by the President and an Open Data Policy<<a href="http://www.whitehouse.gov/sites/default/files/omb/memoranda/2013/m-13-13.pdf" target="_blank">http://www.whitehouse.gov/sites/default/files/omb/memoranda/2013/m-13-13.pdf</a>>
released by the Office of Management and Budget and the Office of
Science and Technology Policy—declare that information is a valuable
national asset whose value is multiplied when it is made easily
accessible to the public. The Executive Order requires that, going
forward, data generated by the government be made available in open,
machine-readable formats, while appropriately safeguarding privacy,
confidentiality, and security.<br>
<br>
The move will make troves of previously inaccessible or unmanageable
data easily available to entrepreneurs, researchers, and others who can
use those files to generate new products and services, build businesses,
and create jobs.<br>
<br>
“One of the things we’re doing to fuel more private sector innovation
and discovery is to make vast amounts of America’s data open and easy to
access for the first time in history. And talented entrepreneurs are
doing some pretty amazing things with it,” said President Barack Obama.
“Starting today, we’re making even more government data available
online, which will help launch even more new startups. And we’re making
it easier for people to find the data and use it, so that entrepreneurs
can build products and services we haven’t even imagined yet.”<br>
<br>
Later today, President Obama will meet with entrepreneurs at the Capital
Factory—a startup incubator—who are already leveraging open government
data to create new products and services as part of his new series of
Middle Class Jobs & Opportunity Tours to highlight how a growing,
thriving middle class is critical to America’s economic future.<br>
<br>
The American economy has consistently benefited when government data
have been released to entrepreneurs and other innovators. The public
release of weather data from government satellites and ground stations
generated an entire economic sector that today includes the Weather
Channel, commercial agricultural advisory services, and new insurance
options. Similarly, the decision by the US Government to make the
Global Positioning System (GPS), once reserved for military use,
available for civilian and commercial access, gave rise to GPS-powered
innovations ranging from aircraft navigation systems to precision
farming to location-based apps, contributing tens of billions of dollars
in annual value to the American economy.<br>
<br>
And the Administration’s current Health Data Initiative<<a href="http://www.hhs.gov/open/initiatives/hdi/" target="_blank">http://www.hhs.gov/open/initiatives/hdi/</a>>,
which has opened government-held data on hospitals, drugs, insurance
products, healthcare costs, and more in machine-readable form, has
already contributed to hundreds of new products and companies that are
transforming health care delivery and improving patient health. Just
yesterday, Medicare published data that for the first time gives
consumers information on what hospitals charge for common inpatient
procedures, signaling a major step forward for hospital price
transparency and accountability.<br>
<br>
Along with the Executive Order and Open Data Policy<<a href="http://www.whitehouse.gov/sites/default/files/omb/memoranda/2013/m-13-13.pdf" target="_blank">http://www.whitehouse.gov/sites/default/files/omb/memoranda/2013/m-13-13.pdf</a>>, the Administration announced a series of complementary actions:<br>
<br>
<br>
· A new Data.Gov<<a href="http://Data.Gov" target="_blank">http://Data.Gov</a>>. In the months ahead, Data.gov,<<a href="http://www.data.gov/" target="_blank">http://www.data.gov/</a>>
the powerful central hub for open government data, will launch new
services that include improved visualization, mapping tools, better
context to help locate and understand these data, and robust Application
Programming Interface (API) access for developers.<br>
<br>
<br>
· New open source tools to make data more open and accessible. The
US Chief Information Officer and the US Chief Technology Officer are
releasing free, open source tools on Github, a site that allows
communities of developers to collaboratively develop solutions. This
effort, known as Project Open Data<<a href="http://project-open-data.github.io/" target="_blank">http://project-open-data.github.io/</a>>,
can accelerate the adoption of open data practices by providing
plug-and-play tools and best practices to help agencies improve the
management and release of open data. For example, one tool released
today automatically converts simple spreadsheets and databases into APIs
for easier consumption by developers. Anyone, from government agencies
to private citizens to local governments and for-profit companies, can
freely use and adapt these tools starting immediately.<br>
<br>
<br>
· Building a 21st century digital government. As part of the Administration’s Digital Government Strategy<<a href="http://www.whitehouse.gov/sites/default/files/omb/egov/digital-government/digital-government.html" target="_blank">http://www.whitehouse.gov/sites/default/files/omb/egov/digital-government/digital-government.html</a>> and Open Data Initiatives<<a href="http://www.whitehouse.gov/innovationfellows/open-data-initiatives" target="_blank">http://www.whitehouse.gov/innovationfellows/open-data-initiatives</a>>
in health, energy, education, public safety, finance, and global
development, agencies have been working to unlock data from the vaults
of government, while continuing to protect privacy and national
security. Newly available or improved data sets from these initiatives
will be released today and over the coming weeks as part of the one year
anniversary of the Digital Government Strategy.<br>
<br>
<br>
· Continued engagement with entrepreneurs and innovators to
leverage government data. The Administration has convened and will
continue to bring together companies, organizations, and civil society
for a variety of summits to highlight how these innovators use open data
to positively impact the public and address important national
challenges. In June, Federal agencies will participate in the fourth
annual Health Datapalooza, hosted by the nonprofit Health Data
Consortium, which will bring together more than 1,800 entrepreneurs,
innovators, clinicians, patient advocates, and policymakers for
information sessions, presentations, and “code-a-thons” focused on how
the power of data can be harnessed to help save lives and improve
healthcare for all Americans.<br>
<br>
For more information on open data highlights across government visit: <a href="http://www.whitehouse.gov/administration/eop/ostp/library/docsreports" target="_blank">http://www.whitehouse.gov/administration/eop/ostp/library/docsreports</a><br>
<br>
###<br>
<br>
Kevin Herms<br>
Office of Management and Budget<br>
Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs<br>
<a href="tel:%28202%29%20395-3099" value="+12023953099" target="_blank">(202) 395-3099</a>│<a href="mailto:kherms@omb.eop.gov" target="_blank">kherms@omb.eop.gov</a><mailto:<a href="mailto:kherms@omb.eop.gov" target="_blank">kherms@omb.eop.gov</a>><br>
<br>
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