The 34-page memo from Office of Management and Budget Director Shalanda D. Young corresponds with President Joe Biden’s October AI executive order, providing more detailed guardrails and next steps for agencies. It finalizes a draft of the policy that was released for public comment in November. 

“This policy is a major milestone for President Biden’s landmark AI executive order, and it demonstrates that the federal government is leading by example in its own use of AI,” Young said in a call with reporters before the release of the memo. 

Among other things, the memo mandates that agencies establish guardrails for AI uses that could impact Americans’ rights or safety, expands what agencies share in their AI use case inventories, and establishes a requirement for agencies to designate chief AI officers to oversee their use of the technology. 

Vice President Kamala Harris highlighted those three areas on the call with the press, noting those “new requirements have been shaped in consultation with leaders from across the public and private sectors, from computer scientists to civil rights leaders, to legal scholars and business leaders.”

“President Biden and I intend that these domestic policies will serve as a model for global action,” Harris said.

In addition to the memo, Young announced that the National AI Talent Surge established under the order will hire “at least 100 AI professionals into government by this summer.” She also said OMB will take action later this year on federal procurement of AI and is releasing a request for information on that work.

Under the policy, agencies are required to evaluate and monitor how AI could impact the public and mitigate the risk of discrimination. That includes things like allowing people at the airport to opt out of the Transportation Security Administration’s use of facial recognition “without any delay or losing their place in line,” or requiring a human to oversee the use of AI in health care diagnostics, according to a fact sheet provided by OMB.

Additionally, the policy expands existing disclosures that agencies must share publicly and annually that inventory their AI uses. Those inventories must now identify whether a use is rights- or safety-impacting. The Thursday memo also requires agencies to submit aggregate metrics about use cases that aren’t required to be included in the inventory. In the draft, the requirement for aggregate metrics applied only to the Department of Defense.

The policy also establishes the requirement for agencies to designate within 60 days of the memo’s publication a CAIO to oversee and manage AI uses. Many agencies have already started naming people for those roles, which have tended to be chief information, data and technology officials. 

“This is to make sure that AI is used responsibly, understanding that we must have senior leaders across our government who are specifically tasked with overseeing AI adoption and use,” Harris said of the CAIO role.

The post White House unveils AI governance policy focused on risks, transparency appeared first on FedScoop.

While the use of the Chinese-owned application is already banned on devices at the White House, the Department of Defense, the Department of Homeland Security and the State Department, the new guidance would expand the mandate to all government agencies.

The new requirements were included in a memo sent out by Office of Management and Budget Director Shalanda Young. Details of the policy document were first reported by Reuters.

Federal agencies will be required to adjust information technology contracts to ensure vendors keep U.S. systems safe by eliminating the use of TikTok on their devices and systems.

Congress in December voted to bar federal employees from using the video application on government-owned devices and gave the Biden administration 60 days to issue relevant directives.

The memo states that agencies must address any use of TikTok by its IT vendors through contracts within 90 days, and within 120 days must include a new prohibition on TikTok within contracting language for all new solicitations.

In recent months, TikTok has presented a detailed proposal to the Committee on Foreign Investment within the United States Treasury, which would seek to mitigate perceived security risks with the viral video app through an agreement with American tech giant Oracle.

Under the terms of the proposal, TikTok would divulge core segments of its technology to Oracle and a set of third-party auditors who would verify that the app is not promoting content in line with Beijing’s wishes or sharing U.S. user data with China. 

The post White House gives federal agencies 30 days to ban TikTok from all government devices appeared first on FedScoop.

In a memorandum sent to the heads of all executive departments and federal agencies, OMB director Shalanda Young said federal agencies will be required to use certain internet domain names as mandated by the DOTGOV Online Trust in Government Act of 2020.

“For the American people, the use of the .gov domain is a critical indicator that they are accessing official information, services, and communications,” Young wrote in the memo. “When .gov domains are used for websites, people have greater confidence that the information on those sites is authoritative and trustworthy.”

All federal agencies must use government domains “for all official communications, information, and services, except for third-party services operated by non-governmental entities on non-governmental domains that are needed to effectively interact with the public.” Examples of such third-party services include social media services, source code collaboration, and vulnerability disclosure reporting systems.

Furthermore, OMB will review the usage of all non-.gov domains by agencies to limit the use of non-.gov domain names for official communications and may require an agency to provide a rationale for the continued use of a non-.gov domain which, if rejected, could lead to the agency being forced to stop using that domain.

“Public trust in the .gov domain is contingent on clear and consistent use of government domains (i.e., “.gov” or “.mil”),” Young wrote in her memo. “A good government domain name should be memorable for the American people, not longer than necessary, and describes the relevant government organisation or service in an unambiguous way.”

Federal agencies must comply with all applicable .gov domain requirements specified in the memo within 180 days of its publication and agencies will be required to identify to OMB any domains that do not meet these requirements.

The post Office of Management and Budget mandates all federal agencies adopt ‘.gov’ or ‘.mil’ domains appeared first on FedScoop.

In a letter sent to Office of Management and Budget Director Shalanda Young on Nov. 21, the trade group said that technology providers would need further specific details before the new guidelines are rolled out.

It comes after the White House in September set out expectations that federal agencies will have to obtain self-attestation before deploying a software provider’s product on government systems.

ITI said the Biden administration should ensure that all federal agencies use the same form when requesting evidence of self-attestation from software providers, with the option to request addendums for mission-unique needs.

The trade group added that OMB should adjust the current implementation timeline of the proposals to allow for a standardized rollout and also that it should discourage agencies from requiring artifacts until software bills of materials are scalable and consumable.

It also petitioned the White House to pilot the collection of attestations and artifacts before pushing ahead with the implementation of requirements.

“To support the effective and consistent implementation of the government’s cybersecurity objectives, we call upon OMB to use its role in establishing cross-government objectives and timelines for the rollout of secure software development lifecycle requirements to maximize harmonization and built-in flexibility while software producers work to comply with new guidance on short notice,” ITI said in its letter.

Under the guidance, federal agencies would have to ensure that all third-party IT software deployed adheres to National Institute of Standards and Technology supply chain security requirements and get proof of conformance from vendors.

The September memo on self-attestation represented the latest policy initiative from the White House as the executive branch works to rapidly improve cybersecurity standards across federal agencies. FedScoop previously reported details of the forthcoming guidance, which had raised concern among technology industry leaders.

ITI is one of the largest trade groups representing the technology industry in Washington, D.C. Its members include Adobe, Amazon, Cisco, Fortinet, Google, IBM, Microsoft and Oracle.

The post Trade group calls on White House to clarify cybersecurity self-attestation proposals for software providers appeared first on FedScoop.

In fiscal 2024, executive agencies will be held to investing in a trio of cyber priorities: improving the defense and resilience of government networks by focusing on zero trust implementation and IT modernization; deepening cross-sector collaboration to defend critical infrastructure; and “strengthening the foundations of our digitally-enabled future.”

In addition to seeking adequate funding to support this work, OMB and ONCD will jointly “review agency responses to these priorities, identify potential gaps, and potential solutions to those gaps,” says the memo, signed by OMB Director Shalanda Young and National Cyber Director Chris Inglis.

“OMB, in coordination with ONCD, will provide feedback to agencies on whether the priorities are adequately addressed and consistent with the overall cybersecurity strategy and policy—aiding agencies’ multiyear planning through the regular budget process,” the memo says.

Much of the memo, however, is a rehash from earlier strategy documents and executive orders this administration or others have issued previously — such as pushing for the “accelerated adoption and use of secure cloud infrastructure and services, leveraging zero trust architecture,” and “exploring, as appropriate and within the bounds of their statutory authorities, alternative skills-based hiring and pay incentive practices to ensure skilled talent has access to opportunities in the IT and cyber workforce.”

The post OMB sets cyber priorities for fiscal 2024 ahead of agency budget submissions appeared first on FedScoop.

Orvis will oversee the decentralized Federal Statistical System, ensuring the government has high-quality, actionable data to inform policy decisions around issues like the pandemic, inflation, employment and education.

Her appointment comes after the role at the Office of Management and Budget remained vacant for more than two years.

OMB reposted the chief statistician job opening in October, after failing to fill the position when Nancy Potok left in January 2020 and missing deadlines for two Foundations for Evidence-Based Policymaking Act regulatory actions as a result.

“I am committed to ensuring the quality, integrity and objectivity of federal statistics and information used in decision making across the public and private sectors,” Orvis said in a statement. “I look forward to working with the leaders of the Federal Statistical System, including the Interagency Council on Statistical Policy, as well as other key stakeholders in both the public and private sector.”

Orvis will chair a number of committees, facilitate discussions on governmentwide data standards, serve as the U.S. statistical representative in international forums like the U.N. and drive implementation of the evidence act.

She previously served as director of the Department of Defense’s Defense Suicide Prevention Office.

“She’s an expert in statistical methods and appropriate data collection, who understands how data and evidence can inform policy to improve how government serves the American people,” said OMB Director Shalanda Young in a statement. “And as someone who has led development, implementation and evaluation of vital programs at the Department of Defense, she has invaluable experience to be a leader in the evolving Federal Statistical System.”

As of Oct. 8, OMB had yet to require the timely provision of data assets, identify legal exemptions, establish standards compliant with the Privacy Act, or establish a transparent request process — in accordance with the Evidence Act. OMB also hadn’t issued a past-due regulation requiring statistical agencies to ensure timely dissemination of information, accuracy and objectivity in their activities, and preservation of public trust through confidential and exclusive statistical use of responses.

The chief statistician role is at the level of branch chief, but Nick Hart, president of the Data Foundation, has suggested elevating it one level up to deputy associate director.

“The position is critical to ensuring objective and reliable government statistics and protecting trust in government statistics,” said Kathy Ensor, president of the American Statistical Association, in a statement. “Given its importance, I urge OMB to strengthen the position — which has become even more important since the Evidence Act of 2018 became law — so the chief statistician is better equipped to fulfill her many important roles.”

The post OMB fills chief statistician vacancy after 2 years appeared first on FedScoop.

Young is currently the deputy director of budget for OMB and since her confirmation in March has also served as acting director of the department. The permanent OMB director post has so far gone unfilled during Biden’s presidency.

“In her eight months as acting director of OMB, she’s continued to impress me and congressional leaders as well,” Biden said in a video announcing Young’s nomination. “Shalanda will not only be a tremendously qualified director; she’ll also be a historic director — the first black woman to hold the post.”

As director of OMB, Young would oversee some of the federal government’s most crucial IT management operations housed in the Office of E-Government and Information Technology, led by Federal CIO Clare Martorana. Her nomination also comes on the heels of the recent release of the President’s Management Agenda, which places a strong emphasis on the use of IT and data to achieve the administration’s larger management goals.

Neera Tanden was Biden’s original choice to head OMB, but she stepped away from the nomination when it became unlikely she would be confirmed in the role after old-but-since-deleted tweets critical of some lawmakers resurfaced, leading to opposition from Republicans in the Senate.

Prior to joining Biden’s OMB, Young served as a staffer for the House Committee on Appropriations for more than a decade. She got her start in government as a Presidential Management Fellow at the National Institutes of Health.

Biden Wednesday also nominated Nani Coloretti to take Young’s vacated role as deputy director of budget. Coloretti was deputy secretary of the Department of Housing and Urban Development during the second term of the Obama administration. Since then, she’s been senior vice president for financial and business strategy at the Urban Institute.

Coloretti, like Young, was also a Presidential Management Fellow, but she got her start in the federal government at OMB. Biden called her return to the agency a “homecoming.”

Late last year, Coloretti guest co-hosted an episode of the Gov Actually podcast discussing the Biden administration’s transition work.

As both women have been Senate-confirmed to senior leadership roles in the federal government, Biden urged the Senate to once again confirm them “so they can lead OMB at this important time.”

The post Biden nominates Shalanda Young to be OMB director appeared first on FedScoop.

USAID expanded its evaluation registry to include the questions in its learning agenda, which all agencies were required to develop by the Foundations for Evidence-Based Policymaking Act that went into effect in 2019.

The Evidence Act also has agencies release annual evaluation plans and capacity assessments for research, evaluations, statistics and other analyses, but USAID was one of the first agencies to have an evaluation policy in 2011 and remains ahead of the curve.

“The beauty of the Evidence Act is that its implementation is not limited to producing the required deliverables,” said Winston Allen, senior evaluation specialist at USAID, during a Results for America event Thursday. “But it also creates opportunities for agencies to apply the principles more broadly in building and using evidence.”

By expanding its evaluation registry, USAID can now require evaluations to specify which questions in its learning agenda they’re contributing to answering.

USAID further created a dashboard of all evaluations either completed or in the works from 2016 to the present.

“This allows USAID missions to learn from each other and use the evaluation findings to inform decisions about our programs,” Allen said.

USAID plans to launch a biannual report called “Evidence From the Field,” which will allow missions to showcase how they’re using evidence to make programmatic decisions.

The agency will also host an evidence and evaluation week in January to allow staff to explore trends and address lingering challenges.

Now that agencies have submitted their first-ever learning agendas, the Office of Management and Budget is reviewing them and determining how to improve equitable access to government services.

“This isn’t just about COVID-19; it’s about how we deliver programs that are from the ’70s like the Community Development Block Grants,” said Shalanda Young, acting director of OMB. “There are legacy programs that we need to make sure are getting to the right places.”

The post USAID going above and beyond Evidence Act requirements appeared first on FedScoop.

As leader of the Federal Statistical System, the chief statistician chairs a number of committees, facilitates discussions on governmentwide data standards, serves as the U.S. statistical representative in international forums like the U.N., and drives implementation of the Foundations for Evidence-Based Policymaking Act.

OMB tried and failed to fill the opening left by Nancy Potok in January 2020, even conducting interviews before removing the initial job posting, and the agency has missed deadlines for two Evidence Act regulatory actions as a result.

“All of those regulatory actions are behind schedule,” Nick Hart, president of the Data Foundation, told FedScoop. “The chief statistician role is one of the most important roles for the federal data infrastructure.”

OMB did not respond to multiple requests for comment.

Even if a chief statistician is eventually hired, the process will take months, Hart said.

In the absence of a chief statistician, other people have stepped in to chair the Advisory Committee on Data for Evidence Building and the Equitable Data Working Group in an acting capacity. But “major gaps” have emerged in the federal data infrastructure and discussions around race and ethnicity data standards have suffered, Hart said.

OMB missed the Evidence Act deadline to promulgate the Presumption of Accessibility regulation by Jan. 14, 2020, though it’s on the regulatory agenda for October. Under the rule, OMB is to require the timely provision of data assets, identify legal exemptions, establish standards compliant with the Privacy Act and establish a transparent request process.

The agency also missed the Jan. 14, 2020, deadline to promulgate the Responsibilities of Statistical Agencies regulation covering their timely dissemination of information, the accuracy and objectivity of their activities, and preserving public trust confidential and exclusive statistical use of their responses. While the Biden administration added the rule to the regulatory agenda for July, it has yet to be handled.

A chief statistician would normally be driving such efforts.

“For all of the really important things that the chief statistician does for the United States, it’s not a sufficiently senior role within the White House organizational structure today,” Hart said.

The role is at the level of branch chief, when it should probably be elevated one level up to a deputy associate director, he added.

OMB Director Shalanda Young could make that change, which would likely encourage more qualified candidates to apply for the job.

“It definitely needs a strong leader with some experience, both in government but also working with data issues,” Hart said. “There are probably a lot of people who are imminently qualified for that role.”

The post OMB looks to hire federal chief statistician again appeared first on FedScoop.