Fostering Scientific Integrity

Feb 8, 2016

Top 400 Taxpayers See Tax Rates Rise, But There’s More to the Story

As Americans were gathering party supplies to greet the New Year, the Internal Revenue Service released their annual report of cumulative tax data reported on the 400 tax r...

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Feb 4, 2016

Chlorine Bleach Plants Needlessly Endanger 63 Million Americans

Chlorine bleach plants across the U.S. put millions of Americans in danger of a chlorine gas release, a substance so toxic it has been used as a chemical weapon. Greenpeace’s new repo...

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Jan 25, 2016

U.S. Industrial Facilities Reported Fewer Toxic Releases in 2014

The Toxics Release Inventory (TRI) data for 2014 is now available. The good news: total toxic releases by reporting facilities decreased by nearly six percent from 2013 levels. Howe...

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Jan 22, 2016

Methane Causes Climate Change. Here's How the President Plans to Cut Emissions by 40-45 Percent.

UPDATE (Jan. 22, 2016): Today, the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) released its proposed rule to reduce methane emissions...

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OMB Watch Data Quality Archive

This is a compilation of useful links relating to OMB Watch's work on Data Quality. Archive of Data Quality Resources OMB Watch letter to EPA on Data Quality Guidelines Citizens for Sensible Safeguards (CSS) Standard Letter to agencies on Data Quality List of agencies that received the CSS letter CSS Letter Requesting Extension of Deadline to Comment on Agency Data Quality Guidelines Comparison Chart of Agencies' Draft Data Quality Guidelines OMB Watch Sensible Principles on Data Quality Guidelines Background on Data Quality

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CSS Letter Requesting Extension of Data Quality Guidelines Comment Period

Citizens for Sensible Safeguards, a coalition of environmental, health, and safety organizations chaired by OMB Watch, sent a standard comment letter to over 50 federal agencies in response to requests for comment on agencies' data quality guidelines. For more on OMB Watch's work on the data quality guidelines click here.

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New Work on Data Quality

Data Quality Efforts OMB Watch has been extremely active on the Data Quality guidelines that have recently been drafted by most federal agencies. This article summarizes the main efforts OMB Watch has been involved in and the key documents and analysis we have produced. Background

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Principles for Agency Data Quality Guidelines

Federal agencies are currently seeking public input on their proposed data quality guidelines, which raise a number of significant concerns. Specifically, agencies should address the following areas as they finalize their guidelines:

Judicial Review. Agencies should clearly state that the guidelines do not provide any new adjudicatory authority. Nor are agencies legally bound by the guidelines and should reserve the right to depart from them when appropriate.
Administrative Mechanisms.

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CSS Letter Requesting Extension of Data Quality Guidelines Comment Period

The Citizens for Sensible Safeguards (CSS) coalition sent a letter to OIRA Administrator John Graham requesting an extension to the deadline for filing comments on federal agency data quality guidelines. Below is a copy of the letter. May 24, 2002 Dr. John Graham Administrator Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs Office of Management Budget Old Executive Office Building 17th Street and Pennsylvania Ave., NW Washington, D.C. 20503 Dear Dr. Graham:

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Background on Data Quality Guidelines

Most federal agencies recently issued draft guidelines on data quality. These guidelines were done within the parameters of implementing guidelines laid out by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), which in turn were required by an appropriations rider -- both of which are summarized below. The Data Quality Act

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Agencies "Adapt" Data Quality Guidelines

Federal agencies across the board recently released draft guidelines on data quality in response to a Fiscal Year 2001 appropriations rider. For most, the mere mention of "data quality" is likely to inspire a yawn. Yet for business interests, like the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, these guidelines represent an important new vehicle to challenge federal regulation, by challenging the information that supports it.

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Industry Targets EPA Data Quality

Government agencies are busy working on their data quality guidelines in order to release drafts for public comment by May 1, as they move toward the implementation deadline of Oct. 1, set by the Office of Management and Budget in January.

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Data Quality Approaches

Government agencies are busy working on their data quality guidelines with many looking to a draft release for public comment in May. According to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) guidelines, issued January 3, 2002, each agency must implement agency specific information quality guidelines by October 1, 2002.

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OMB Issues Final "Data Quality" Rules

On January 3, 2002, the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) issued final "data quality" rules, effective immediately. The rules were published pursuant to a rider on the FY 2001 Treasury and General Government Appropriations Act (P.L. 106-554), which requires OMB to publish guidelines that "provide policy and procedural guidance to Federal agencies for ensuring and maximizing the quality, objectivity, utility, and integrity of information (including statistical information) disseminated by Federal agencies." The rider requires agencies to issue their own implementing guidelines that include "administrative mechanisms allowing affected persons to seek and obtain correction of information maintained and disseminated by the agency."

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