By unanimous consent, on June 27, the Senate passed the E-Government Act (S. 803), which seeks to promote greater use of Internet-based information technology across the federal government. The administration opposed the bill as originally introduced by Sen. Joseph Lieberman (D-CT), but following negotiations over the last year, Sen. Fred Thompson (R-TN) became a cosponsor and a compromise agreement was eventually struck, clearing the way for passage. It remains unclear if the House will act on its companion version (H.R. 2458), introduced a year ago by Rep. Jim Turner (D-TX). A spokesman for Rep. Tom Davis (R-VA), who chairs the Government Reform Committee’s Technology and Procurement Policy Subcommittee, which has jurisdiction over the legislation, told Federal Computer Week that the new homeland security department proposed by the president would take priority. If enacted, S. 803 would mark the first comprehensive legislative effort aimed specifically at electronic information. Specifically, the bill: Creates a new office to oversee e-government (Sec. 101).The bill creates an Office of Electronic Government within the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), whose administrator is to be appointed by the president with the advice and consent of the Senate. This office is to provide overall leadership across federal agencies on e-government -- working with the administrator of OMB’s Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA), which has broad authority over information policy under the Paperwork Reduction Act (chapter 35 of title 44, United States Code) -- and generally assist and oversee the activities directed by the bill. This includes, among other things, providing advice on necessary resources, making policy recommendations, promoting innovative uses of technology, and facilitating interaction between different branches and levels of government. The director of OMB is to ensure that the Office of Electronic Government, as well as OIRA, has adequate staff and resources to fulfill the bill’s requirements. The administration does not support the requirement that the position be confirmed by the Senate. The Bush administration hired Mark Foreman for a position that is similar to the position described in the bill. Foreman was not confirmed by the Senate. Critics contend that S. 803 does not go far enough, that the position should be at a higher level and with greater clarity. They argue that the Paperwork Reduction Act already provides authority to OIRA and that this bill only muddies the water because it does not specify exactly what functions will stay under the responsibility of the OIRA administrator and what will be moved to the new E-Government administrator. Creates a new interagency forum to address information issues (Sec. 101). The bill creates a Chief Information Officers Council, composed of OMB’s deputy director for management, who is to act as chair, the administrator of the Office of Electronic Government, who is to lead activities of the Council on behalf of the deputy director, the administrator of OIRA, the chief information officer of each agency covered by the bill, as well as the Central Intelligence Agency and the three branches of the military. This council is to be “the principal interagency forum for improving agency practices related to the design, acquisition, development, modernization, use, operation, sharing, and performance of Federal Government information resources.” Specifically, this includes:

• Development of recommendations on information resources management;
• Sharing of experiences, ideas, best practices and innovative approaches;
• Coordination of multi-agency projects and other innovative initiatives;
• Promoting the use of common performance measures for agency resources management;
• Working with the National Institute of Standards and Technology to develop recommendations on information technology standards, including standards on interconnectivity and interoperability, categorization of electronic information, and computer system efficiency and security; and
• Working with the Office of Personnel Management to assess and address the hiring, training, classification, and professional development needs of the government.

There already is an existing CIO Council, but it has never been authorized by law. The activities of the CIO Council have largely been unaccountable to the public. S. 803 seeks to change that. Establishes an e-government fund (Sec. 101).The bill establishes an E-Government Fund, with authorized appropriations up to $45 million for fiscal year 2003, $50 million for 2004, $100 million for 2005, and $150 million for 2006. OMB, with assistance from its new Office of Electronic Government, created by the bill, will direct these funds to support agency projects that make federal information and services more readily available to the public through the Internet. Directs OMB to submit an annual report to Congress on e-government (Sec. 101).This report is to summarize agency reports to OMB on implementation of the E-Government Act (which are directed by the bill), report on the operation of the e-government fund (discussed above), and describe overall compliance with the act. Instructs agencies to develop electronic performance measures (Sec. 202). Based on these performance measures, agencies are to submit an annual status report on compliance with the act, implementation of e-government initiatives, and an explanation of how such initiatives “improve performance in delivering programs to constituencies.” Agencies are further instructed to ensure access for people with disabilities and that access to government services is not diminished for people who lack an Internet connection. Promotes secure electronic signatures, interoperable across agencies (Sec. 203). Agencies are to ensure their methods for electronic signatures are in compliance with standards issued by OMB. Supporting this effort, the General Services Administration is to establish “a framework to allow efficient interoperability among Executive agencies when using electronic signatures, including certification of digital signatures,” and is authorized $8 million in fiscal year 2003 for this purpose. Requires a federal Internet portal (Sec. 204). OMB is to work with GSA and other agencies to maintain an integrated federal Internet portal to provide public access to government information and services, with an authorized appropriations of $15 million for fiscal year 2003. GSA already houses such a portal, FirstGov.gov, though this would be its first legislative blessing. Promotes web sites for federal courts (Sec. 205). Each federal court must create a web site that provides, among other things, docket information for each case, access to all written opinions, and all documents filed with the court in electronic form. Requires electronic dockets for rulemakings (Sec. 206). The bill instructs regulatory agencies to provide online “electronic dockets for rulemakings,” including any notices published in the Federal Register, supporting materials, as well as public comments, which agencies are to accept through electronic means (e.g., email) “to the extent practicable.” OMB is to establish a timeline for implementation of agency e-dockets. The Bush administration, under the e-government initiative led by Mark Foreman, is already pursuing efforts to support electronic dockets under the leadership of the Department of Transportation (see www.ombwatch.org/node/711). Orders new government-wide policies on accessibility, usability, and preservation of government information (Sec. 207). Specifically:

• OMB is to set standards to enable the organization and categorization of information, “in a way that is searchable electronically, including by searchable identifiers”;
• The National Archives and Records Administration is to develop policies to ensure that records management laws (specifically, 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;
• OMB is to develop policies to “promote coordinated access to educational resources materials on the Internet”;
• Each agency is to identify information to be made available through the Internet, including priorities and schedules for making such information available;
• The National Science Foundation (with authorized appropriations of $2 million in each of the fiscal years 2003 to 2005) is to develop and maintain a database, made searchable through a government web site, that fully integrates “all essential information on federal research and development that is gathered and maintained by agencies,” such as the name of the person or persons performing the research, the objective of the research, and the amount of federal funds provided; and
• Two years from the bill’s enactment, OMB and each agency must develop and establish a directory of “subjects used to review and categorize” federal government web sites, and post the directory on the Internet with a link to the integrated web portal discussed above. The Office of Electronic Government is to update this directory at least every six months.

These policies are to be guided by recommendations from an interagency committee (the Interagency Committee on Government Information) composed of representatives of OMB, the National Archives and Records Administration, and the offices of the chief information officers from each agency. More broadly, this committee is to engage in public consultation, conduct studies and submit recommendations, assist agencies in the bill’s implementation, and “share effective practices for access to, dissemination of, and retention of Federal information.” The committee may terminate once it has submitted recommendations on the above areas. This section may have significant implications for improving public access to government information, depending on how OMB chooses to implement it. For example, the implementation of searchable identifiers can become the building blocks for searching across agencies or departments to obtain information. A facility or corporate identifier, for example, would allow the public to identify information across the government on a particular company. Today, this is virtually impossible. Orders standards for agency web sites (Sec. 207(i)). One year from the bill’s enactment, OMB is to promulgate guidance on agency web sites and “minimum agency goals” to assist public navigation, including speed and relevance of search results, as well as “tools to aggregate and disaggregate data.” OMB is to specifically require that agency web sites provide direct links to “descriptions of the mission and statutory authority of the agency,” the electronic reading rooms of the agency relating to the Freedom of Information Act (section 552 of title 5, United States Code), information about the agency’s organizational structure, and the agency’s strategic plan developed under the Government Performance and Results Act (section 306 of title 5, United States Code). Requires privacy impact assessments (Sec. 208). Agencies are to conduct a privacy impact assessment whenever they develop or procure information technology or initiate a new collection of information that allows for identification of specific individuals and is to be disseminated electronically. OMB is to issue guidance to agencies “specifying the required contents of a privacy impact assessment.” Among other things, this assessment is to include an explanation as to “how the information will be secured,” with whom it will be shared, its intended use, and any “notice or opportunities” for individual consent. Along these same lines, OMB is to also develop guidance for privacy notices on agency web sites. Seeks to bolster the technology skills of the federal workforce through creation of a training center (Sec. 209). The Office of Personnel Management is to “oversee the development and operation of a Federal Information Technology Training Center” (with authorized appropriations of $7 million in fiscal year 2003). This training center is to analyze personnel needs on an ongoing basis and oversee the development of curricula, as well as the training of federal employees on information technology and resource management. Seeks to reduce redundancy and promote collaboration in regards to geographic information (Sec. 210). The Dept. of Interior is to facilitate the creation of common protocols for the “development, acquisition, maintenance, distribution, and application of geographic information” -- in other words, information that involves locational data, such as maps. More concretely, these standards are to establish interoperable information systems that allow “widespread, low-cost use and sharing of geographic data” and maximize electronic compatibility of such information from various sources. This effort is to be overseen by OMB and done in collaboration with an interagency group -- which is to specifically include the National Institute of Standards and Technology -- and other interested parties, including “private sector experts” and state and local governments. Allows agencies to recoup savings from technology innovations (Sec. 211). The Clinger-Cohen Act of 1996 (40 USC 1491) is amended to make it easier for agencies to retain funds saved from technology innovations. Specifically, under the E-Government Act, OMB may authorize agency heads to carry out a total of five pilot projects (Clinger-Cohen limits this to one pilot project each for two agency heads) in which a private contractor is paid “an amount equal to a portion of the savings” derived from an “information technology solution.” Moreover, the bill also allows agencies to retain savings from these pilot projects -- up to half of the amount left over after paying the contractor. These funds are then to be applied to acquiring “additional information technology.” After five pilot projects have been completed, OMB is to report to Congress on the results and offer recommendations on whether such a contracting system should be applied generally. Promotes integrated reporting and dissemination (Sec. 212). OMB is to designate up to five pilot projects that “integrate data elements.” At least one project must address the following: (1) eliminating duplicative data collection within two or more reporting requirements; (2) creating interoperability between databases maintained by multiple agencies to facilitate public access; and (3) developing software to reduce errors of electronically-submitted information. Three years after the bill’s enactment, OMB is to submit a report to Congress on progress toward integrating federal information systems across agencies in the areas addressed by these pilot programs. This report is also to include recommendations on how to further “reduce the burden on reporting and strengthen public access to databases within and across agencies” through information technology. These pilots could be linked with the requirement for developing searchable identifiers in Section 207. Under these pilots, it should be possible to provide one-stop reporting and public access to databases across agencies. Promotes community technology centers (Sec. 213).To strengthen community technology centers (CTCs) -- which seek to provide Internet and computer access to low-income neighborhoods -- the Dept. of Education is authorized $2 million in each of the next two fiscal years, and such funds as necessary through 2007, to carry out the following:

• A report to Congress on the best practices of community technology centers (CTCs) that receive federal funds. Besides identifying best practices, this report “may consider” a strategy for sharing information and resources, methods to expand use of best practices, a database of all CTCs receiving federal funds, and an analysis of whether CTCs have been effectively deployed across the nation’s rural and urban areas;
• An “online tutorial” that explains how to access government information and services on the Internet, and provides a guide to online resources; and
• Public promotion to raise awareness of the availability and location of community technology centers.

Given Congress is wrestling with whether to continue the CTC program at the Department of Education, this requirement may need some modification. Seeks to improve coordination of information on disaster preparedness and response (Sec. 214). The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) is to contract a study -- to be delivered to Congress within two years of the contract -- on using information technology to “enhance crisis response and consequence management of natural and manmade disasters.” Based on the results of this research, FEMA is instructed to “initiate pilot projects or report to Congress on other activities that further the goal of maximizing the utility of information technology in disaster management.” Requires study of disparities in Internet access (Sec. 215). The National Academy of Sciences (at the request of the National Science Foundation and acting through the National Research Council) is to contract a study on the “disparities in Internet access for online Government services,” which is to be delivered to Congress within two years of the contract. This study is to describe the nature and reasons for disparities in access, how that influences the effectiveness of online services, and recommendations to ensure that online initiatives do not have “the unintended result of increasing any deficiency in public access…” Instructs OMB to notify Congress of counterproductive provisions (Sec. 216). OMB is to notify the Senate Governmental Affairs Committee and the House Government Reform Committee if it determines any provision of the E-Government Act is “obsolete or counterproductive.” Makes permanent policies on information security (Sec. 301). The E-Government Act repeals the expiration date set for information security policies laid out in the Paperwork Reduction Act (44 USC Sec. 3534), which require agencies to take a number of steps to ensure the “integrity, confidentiality, authenticity, availability, and nonrepudiation” of information. Authorizes necessary appropriations (Sec. 401). Except where appropriations are explicitly authorized, as indicated above, the bill authorizes to be appropriated “such sums as are necessary” from fiscal years 2003 to 2007 to carry out new responsibilities under the bill, which are to take effect 120 days after enactment (Sec. 402).