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Coordination of Federal Information Policy

(44 U.S.C. Chapter 35)

§ 3501 note. E-Government Act of 2002.

§ 3504. Authority and functions of Director.

§ 3515. Administrative Powers.

§ 3501 note. E-Government Act of 2002.

Title II - Federal Management and Promotion of Electronic Government Services

§ 207. Accessibility, usability, and preservation of government information.

(a)PURPOSE- The purpose of this section is to improve the methods by which Government information, including information on the Internet, is organized, preserved, and made accessible to the public.

(b) DEFINITIONS- In this section, the term--

(1)"Committee" means the Interagency Committee on Government Information established under subsection (c); and

* * *

(1) ESTABLISHMENT- Not later than 180 days after the date of enactment of this title, the Director shall establish the Interagency Committee on Government Information.

(2) MEMBERSHIP- The Committee shall be chaired by the Director or the designee of the Director and--

(A) shall include representatives from--

(i) the National Archives and Records Administration;

* * *

(3) FUNCTIONS- The Committee shall--

(A) engage in public consultation to the maximum extent feasible, including consultation with interested communities such as public advocacy organizations;

(B) conduct studies and submit recommendations, as provided under this section, to the Director and Congress; and

(4) TERMINATION- The Committee may be terminated on a date determined by the Director, except the Committee may not terminate before the Committee submits all recommendations required under this section.

(d) CATEGORIZING OF INFORMATION-

(1) COMMITTEE FUNCTIONS- Not later than 2 years after the date of enactment of this Act, the Committee shall submit recommendations to the Director on--

(A) the adoption of standards, which are open to the maximum extent feasible, to enable the organization and categorization of Government information--

(i) in a way that is searchable electronically, including by searchable identifiers; and

(ii) in ways that are interoperable across agencies;

(B) the definition of categories of Government information which should be classified under the standards; and

* * *

(e) PUBLIC ACCESS TO ELECTRONIC INFORMATION-

(1) COMMITTEE FUNCTIONS- Not later than 2 years after the date of enactment of this Act, the Committee shall submit recommendations to the Director and the Archivist of the United States on--

(A) the adoption by agencies of policies and procedures to ensure that chapters 21, 25, 27, 29, and 31 of title 44, United States Code, are applied effectively and comprehensively to Government information on the Internet and to other electronic records; and

(B) the imposition of timetables for the implementation of the policies and procedures by agencies.

(2) FUNCTIONS OF THE ARCHIVIST- Not later than 1 year after the submission of recommendations by the Committee under paragraph (1), the Archivist of the United States shall issue policies--

(A) requiring the adoption by agencies of policies and procedures to ensure that chapters 21, 25, 27, 29, and 31 of title 44, United States Code, are applied effectively and comprehensively to Government information on the Internet and to other electronic records; and

(B) imposing timetables for the implementation of the policies, procedures, and technologies by agencies.

(3) MODIFICATION OF POLICIES- After the submission of agency reports under paragraph (4), the Archivist of the United States shall modify the policies, as needed, in consultation with the Committee and interested parties.

(4) AGENCY FUNCTIONS- Each agency shall report annually to the Director, in the report established under section 202(g), on compliance of that agency with the policies issued under paragraph (2)(A).

* * *

(f) AGENCY WEBSITES-

(1) STANDARDS FOR AGENCY WEBSITES- Not later than 2 years after the effective date of this title, the Director shall promulgate guidance for agency websites that includes--

(A) requirements that websites include direct links to--

(i) descriptions of the mission and statutory authority of the agency;

(ii) information made available to the public under subsections (a)(1) and (b) of section 552 of title 5, United States Code (commonly referred to as the `Freedom of Information Act');

(iii) information about the organizational structure of the agency; and

(iv) the strategic plan of the agency developed under section 306 of title 5, United States Code; and

(B) minimum agency goals to assist public users to navigate agency websites,

including--

(i) speed of retrieval of search results;

(ii) the relevance of the results;

(iii) tools to aggregate and disaggregate data; and

(iv) security protocols to protect information.

(2) AGENCY REQUIREMENTS-

(A) Not later than 2 years after the date of enactment of this Act, each agency shall--

(i) consult with the Committee and solicit public comment;

(ii) establish a process for determining which Government information the agency intends to make available and accessible to the public on the Internet and by other means;

(iii) develop priorities and schedules for making Government information available and accessible;

(iv) make such final determinations, priorities, and schedules available for public comment;

(v) post such final determinations, priorities, and schedules on the Internet; and

(vi) submit such final determinations, priorities, and schedules to the Director, in the report established under section 202(g).

(B) Each agency shall update determinations, priorities, and schedules of the agency, as needed, after consulting with the Committee and soliciting public comment, if appropriate.

(3) PUBLIC DOMAIN DIRECTORY OF PUBLIC FEDERAL GOVERNMENT WEBSITES-

(A) ESTABLISHMENT- Not later than 2 years after the effective date of this title, the Director and each agency shall--

(i) develop and establish a public domain directory of public Federal Government websites; and

(ii) post the directory on the Internet with a link to the integrated Internet-based system established under section 204.

(B) DEVELOPMENT- With the assistance of each agency, the Director

shall--

(i) direct the development of the directory through a collaborative effort, including input from--

(I) agency librarians;

(II) information technology managers;

(III) program managers;

(IV) records managers;

(V) Federal depository librarians; and

(VI) other interested parties; and

(ii) develop a public domain taxonomy of subjects used to review and categorize public Federal Government websites.

(i) update the directory as necessary, but not less than every 6 months; and

(ii) solicit interested persons for improvements to the directory.

(g) ACCESS TO FEDERALLY FUNDED RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT-

(1) DEVELOPMENT AND MAINTENANCE OF GOVERNMENTWIDE REPOSITORY AND WEBSITE-

(A) REPOSITORY AND WEBSITE- The Director of the Office of Management and Budget (or the Director's delegate), in consultation with the Director of the Office of Science and Technology Policy and other relevant agencies, shall ensure the development and maintenance of--

(i) a repository that fully integrates, to the maximum extent feasible, information about research and development funded by the Federal Government, and the repository shall--

(I) include information about research and development funded by the Federal Government, consistent with any relevant protections for the information under section 552 of title 5, United States Code, and performed by--

(aa) institutions not a part of the Federal Government, including State, local, and foreign governments; industrial firms; educational institutions; not-for-profit organizations; federally funded research and development centers; and private individuals; and

(bb) entities of the Federal Government, including research and development laboratories, centers, and offices; and

(II) integrate information about each separate research and development task or award, including--

(aa) the dates upon which the task or award is expected to start and end;

(bb) a brief summary describing the objective and the scientific and technical focus of the task or award;

(cc) the entity or institution performing the task or award and its contact information;

(dd) the total amount of Federal funds expected to be provided to the task or award over its lifetime and the amount of funds expected to be provided in each fiscal year in which the work of the task or award is ongoing;

(ee) any restrictions attached to the task or award that would prevent the sharing with the general public of any or all of the information required by this subsection, and the reasons for such restrictions; and

(ff) such other information as may be determined to be appropriate; and

(ii) 1 or more websites upon which all or part of the repository of Federal research and development shall be made available to and searchable by Federal agencies and non-Federal entities, including the general public, to facilitate--

(I) the coordination of Federal research and development activities;

(II) collaboration among those conducting Federal research and development;

(III) the transfer of technology among Federal agencies and between Federal agencies and non-Federal entities; and

(IV) access by policymakers and the public to information concerning Federal research and development activities.

(B) OVERSIGHT- The Director of the Office of Management and Budget shall issue any guidance determined necessary to ensure that agencies provide all information requested under this subsection.

(2) AGENCY FUNCTIONS- Any agency that funds Federal research and development under this subsection shall provide the information required to populate the repository in the manner prescribed by the Director of the Office of Management and Budget.

(3) COMMITTEE FUNCTIONS- Not later than 18 months after the date of enactment of this Act, working with the Director of the Office of Science and Technology Policy, and after consultation with interested parties, the Committee shall submit recommendations to the Director on--

(A) policies to improve agency reporting of information for the repository established under this subsection; and

(B) policies to improve dissemination of the results of research performed by Federal agencies and federally funded research and development centers.

(4) FUNCTIONS OF THE DIRECTOR- After submission of recommendations by the Committee under paragraph (3), the Director shall report on the recommendations of the Committee and Director to Congress, in the E-Government report under section 3606 of title 44 (as added by this Act).

(5) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS- There are authorized to be appropriated for the development, maintenance, and operation of the Governmentwide repository and website under this subsection--

(A) $2,000,000 in each of the fiscal years 2003 through 2005; and

(B) such sums as are necessary in each of the fiscal years 2006 and 2007.

§ 3504. Authority and functions of Director

(a)(1) The Director shall oversee the use of information resources to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of governmental operations to serve agency missions, including burden reduction and service delivery to the public. In performing such oversight, the Director shall--

(A) develop, coordinate and oversee the implementation of Federal information resources management policies, principles, standards, and guidelines; and

(B) provide direction and oversee--

(i) the review and approval of the collection of information and the reduction of the information collection burden;

(ii) agency dissemination of and public access to information;

(iii) statistical activities;

(iv) records management activities;

(v) privacy, confidentiality, security, disclosure, and sharing of information; and

(vi) the acquisition and use of information technology, including alternative information technologies that provide for electronic submission, maintenance, or disclosure of information as a substitute for paper and for the use and acceptance of electronic signatures.

(2) The authority of the Director under this subchapter shall be exercised consistent with applicable law.

(b) With respect to general information resources management policy, the Director shall--

(1) develop and oversee the implementation of uniform information resources management policies, principles, standards, and guidelines;

(2) foster greater sharing, dissemination, and access to public information, including through--

(A) the use of the Government Information Locator Service; and

(B) the development and utilization of common standards for information collection, storage, processing and communication, including standards for security, interconnectivity and interoperability;

(3) initiate and review proposals for changes in legislation, regulations, and agency procedures to improve information resources management practices;

(4) oversee the development and implementation of best practices in information resources management, including training; and

(5) oversee agency integration of program and management functions with information resources management functions.

(1) review and approve proposed agency collections of information;

(2) coordinate the review of the collection of information associated with Federal procurement and acquisition by the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs with the Office of Federal Procurement Policy, with particular emphasis on applying information technology to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of Federal procurement, acquisition and payment, and to reduce information collection burdens on the public;

(3) minimize the Federal information collection burden, with particular emphasis on those individuals and entities most adversely affected;

(4) maximize the practical utility of and public benefit from information collected by or for the Federal Government;

(5) establish and oversee standards and guidelines by which agencies are to estimate the burden to comply with a proposed collection of information;

(6) publish in the Federal Register and make available on the Internet (in consultation with the Small Business Administration) on an annual basis a list of the compliance assistance resources available to small businesses, with the first such publication occurring not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of the Small Business Paperwork Relief Act of 2002.

(d) With respect to information dissemination, the Director shall develop and oversee the implementation of policies, principles, standards, and guidelines to--

(1) apply to Federal agency dissemination of public information, regardless of the form or format in which such information is disseminated; and

(2) promote public access to public information and fulfill the purposes of this subchapter, including through the effective use of information technology.

(e) With respect to statistical policy and coordination, the Director shall--

(1) coordinate the activities of the Federal statistical system to ensure--

(A) the efficiency and effectiveness of the system; and

(B) the integrity, objectivity, impartiality, utility, and confidentiality of information collected for statistical purposes;

(2) ensure that budget proposals of agencies are consistent with system-wide priorities for maintaining and improving the quality of Federal statistics and prepare an annual report on statistical program funding;

(3) develop and oversee the implementation of Governmentwide policies, principles, standards, and guidelines concerning--

(A) statistical collection procedures and methods;

(B) statistical data classification;

(C) statistical information presentation and dissemination;

(D) timely release of statistical data; and

(E) such statistical data sources as may be required for the administration of Federal programs;

(4) evaluate statistical program performance and agency compliance with Governmentwide policies, principles, standards and guidelines;

(5) promote the sharing of information collected for statistical purposes consistent with privacy rights and confidentiality pledges;

(6) coordinate the participation of the United States in international statistical activities, including the development of comparable statistics;

(7) appoint a chief statistician who is a trained and experienced professional statistician to carry out the functions described under this subsection;

(8) establish an Interagency Council on Statistical Policy to advise and assist the Director in carrying out the functions under this subsection that shall--

(A) be headed by the chief statistician; and

(B) consist of--

(i) the heads of the major statistical programs; and

(ii) representatives of other statistical agencies under rotating membership; and

(9) provide opportunities for training in statistical policy functions to employees of the Federal Government under which--

(A) each trainee shall be selected at the discretion of the Director based on agency requests and shall serve under the chief statistician for at least 6 months and not more than 1 year; and

(B) all costs of the training shall be paid by the agency requesting training.

(f) With respect to records management, the Director shall--

(1) provide advice and assistance to the Archivist of the United States and the Administrator of General Services to promote coordination in the administration of chapters 29, 31, and 33 of this title with the information resources management policies, principles, standards, and guidelines established under this subchapter;

(2) review compliance by agencies with--

(A) the requirements of chapters 29, 31, and 33 of this title; and

(B) regulations promulgated by the Archivist of the United States and the Administrator of General Services; and

(3) oversee the application of records management policies, principles, standards, and guidelines, including requirements for archiving information maintained in electronic format, in the planning and design of information systems.

(g) With respect to privacy and security, the Director shall--

(1) develop and oversee the implementation of policies, principles, standards, and guidelines on privacy, confidentiality, security, disclosure and sharing of information collected or maintained by or for agencies; and

(2) oversee and coordinate compliance with sections 552 and 552a of title 5, sections 20 and 21 of the National Institute of Standards and Technology Act (15 U.S.C. 278g-3 and 278g-4), section 11331 of title 40 and subchapter II of this title, and related information management laws. and

(3) Repealed. Pub.L. 107-296, Title X, § 1005(c)(1)(C), Nov. 25, 2002, 116 Stat. 2272]

(h) With respect to Federal information technology, the Director shall--

(1) in consultation with the Director of the National Institute of Standards and Technology and the Administrator of General Services--

(A) develop and oversee the implementation of policies, principles, standards, and guidelines for information technology functions and activities of the Federal Government, including periodic evaluations of major information systems; and

(B) oversee the development and implementation of standards under section 11331 of title 40;

(2) monitor the effectiveness of, and compliance with, directives issued under subtitle III of title 40 and directives issued under section 322 of title 40;

(3) coordinate the development and review by the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs of policy associated with Federal procurement and acquisition of information technology with the Office of Federal Procurement Policy;

(4) ensure, through the review of agency budget proposals, information resources management plans and other means--

(A) agency integration of information resources management plans, program plans and budgets for acquisition and use of information technology; and

(B) the efficiency and effectiveness of inter-agency information technology initiatives to improve agency performance and the accomplishment of agency missions; and

(5) promote the use of information technology by the Federal Government to improve the productivity, efficiency, and effectiveness of Federal programs, including through dissemination of public information and the reduction of information collection burdens on the public.

§ 3515. Administrative powers

Upon the request of the Director, each agency (other than an independent regulatory agency) shall, to the extent practicable, make its services, personnel, and facilities available to the Director for the performance of functions under this subchapter.

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