Freedom of Information Act: Open Gov't Initiative

The Open Government is an initiative started by President Obama in 2009 to standardize the release process of government records.

• The Open Government Initiative website explains and documents President Obama’s initiative launched in 2009 to increase government transparency.

• The website has a large collection of reports and documents that led to the creation of the Open Government Initiative. These materials included statements from The Electronic Information Center, the Center for Plain Language, the Harvard Kennedy School of Government, and numerous officials from the private sector

• It contains a report card for agencies of the executive branch on whether or not they meet the goals of the Open Government Initiative.

• The complete Obama Administration Open Government Status Report of the Open Government Initiative is a lengthy description of the various goals of President Obama’s program and the progress that has been achieved by the federal government.

• The webste contains an updated blog featuring news and announcements related to open government.

• The government has assembled an "Innovator Toolkit" that lists many suggestions and recommendations for all levels of government to adopt to increase transparency.

• Names and titles of important government people involved in the open government project are are available on  the website.

This is an example of the type of information available on the Open Government Initiative's website. It is a report card on the progress agencies have made in working toward more openness.

- Data.gov has government spreadsheets, statistics, maps, and more.

- The Federal Register website contans notices, proposed rules, presidential statements, and other materials.

- Reginfo.gov has reviews of regulations, reports of actions, and xml files of reviews completed since 1981.

- Performance.gov has improper payment statistics, evaluations of major IT investments, and performance reports for federal agencies.