The Federal Data Strategy’s 2020 action plan is here
The Federal Data Strategy 2020 Action Plan is finally here — and it’s the Office of Management and Budget’s present to us all this holiday season.
OMB released the finalized document on the evening of Dec. 23, thereby setting the stage for how agencies will be expected to prioritize data over the coming year. The document is an update, created with stakeholder feedback, from the draft version released in June.
“The 2020 Action Plan establishes a solid foundation that will support implementation of the strategy over the next decade,” the document reads. “Specifically, the plan identifies initial actions for agencies that are essential for establishing processes, building capacity, and aligning existing efforts to better leverage data as a strategic asset.”
“Thank you to all who provided feedback and looking forward to results delivered in 2020 for data driven government and strategic use of data!” Federal CIO Suzette Kent tweeted.
The document contains 20 actions, divided into three different categories: six agency actions, four community of practice actions to be “taken by a specific agency or group of agencies related to a common topic” and 10 shared solution actions. Much like the draft version of the plan, each action has a target date for completion ranging from one to 12 months.
Many of the actions in the plan come directly from the draft version, while some have been edited. Then there are the four totally new actions:
- Agency Action 6: Publish and update data inventories.
- Community of Practice Action 7: Launch a Federal Chief Data Officer Council.
- Shared Solution Action 19: Develop data quality measuring and reporting guidance.
- Shared Solution Action 20: Develop a data standards repository.
Data Coalition CEO Nick Hart, who has been closely involved in the creation of the action plan, welcomed the final draft as a “productive start.”
“In particular, the Data Coalition is pleased to see that a number of suggestions from industry and stakeholders outside government were thoughtfully incorporated into the final action plan,” he said in a statement.
The full final action plan includes:
Agency actions
- Action 1: Identify Data Needs to Answer Priority Agency Questions
- Action 2: Institutionalize Agency Data Governance
- Action 5: Identify Priority Data Assets for Agency Open Data Plans
- Action 6: Publish and Update Data Inventories
Community of practice actions
- Action 7: Launch a Federal Chief Data Officer Council
- Action 8: Improve Data and Model Resources for AI Research and Development
- Action 9: Improve Financial Management Data Standards
- Action 10: Integrate Geospatial Data Practices into the Federal Data Enterprise
Shared solution actions
- Action 11: Develop a Repository of Federal Enterprise Data Resources
- Action 12: Create OMB Federal Data Policy Committee
- Action 13: Develop a Curated Data Skills Catalog
- Action 14: Develop a Data Ethics Framework
- Action 15: Develop a Data Protection Toolkit
- Action 16: Pilot a One-stop Standard Research Application
- Action 17: Pilot an Automated Tool for Information Collection Reviews that Supports Data Inventory Creation and Updates
- Action 18: Pilot Enhanced Data Management Tool for Federal Agencies
- Action 19: Develop Data Quality Measuring and Reporting Guidance
- Action 20: Develop a Data Standards Repository
