The administration on Friday launched a new beta website called BusinessUSA.gov to simplify online interaction between businesses and the government. BusinessUSA.gov matches “businesses with the services relevant to them, regardless of where the information is located or which agency’s website, call center, or office they go to for help,” federal Chief Information Officer Steven VanRoekel said in a blog post Friday. The website is currently in a beta version but will evolve to incorporate user feedback. Business owners can browse the site and customize their search results to receive information about topics of interest, such as federal contracting, grants, or opportunities that meet…
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Politico’s Mike Allen scores a scoop today on the Obama campaign’s playlist — music to be played at rallies and other reelection events. Most of it would make a really good Spotify playlist*, and it contains a mix of classic soul music (including, of course, “Let’s Stay Together”) and indie-ish rock such as Arcade Fire, Wilco and Florence + the Machine. But I heard a record scratch sound in my head when I came across not one, but two songs by Darius Rucker. Really? Hootie? (We’ll see if Obama blames that one on Axelrod.) After the jump, you can find…
The Project On Government Oversight launched a new web page today to track how long agencies have been left without inspectors general, hoping to spur government officials to appoint leadership to the watchdog roles as soon as possible. “Congress and the public rely on [Offices of Inspectors General] reports to hold agencies and individuals accountable for wrongdoing, identify a need for legislation, and evaluate the effectiveness of government programs and policies,” POGO says on the site. The longest vacancy has been at the State Department, which has operated more than four years without a permanent inspector general, the website shows. This is at a time when…
The nation’s first federal chief technology officer is leaving his post, the White House announced Friday. “As the federal government’s first Chief Technology Officer, Aneesh Chopra did groundbreaking work to bring our government into the 21st century,” President Obama said in a statement. “Aneesh found countless ways to engage the American people using technology, from electronic health records for veterans, to expanding access to broadband for rural communities, to modernizing government records.” Chopra is considering running for lieutenant governor of Virginia, and he has been in conversations with influential political figures and donors, said a democratic official familiar with the situation, who…
Perhaps to their relief, federal employees didn’t hear much that would directly affect them in tonight’s State of the Union speech. Last year, after all, President Obama used the prime-time address to call for a government reorganization and a five-year freeze on domestic discretionary spending, besides reminding Congress that he had already imposed a two-year freeze on base federal salaries. This year? Hardly a mention of overarching management and budget initiatives. The closest that Obama came was almost an hour into the speech when he brought up his recent bid to get “fast-track” authority from Congress to restructure and consolidate federal…
In opening my emails every morning I’m accustomed to a plethora of press releases. Today the release that caught my eye was the announcement of President Obama signing an executive order to cut federal agency travel, printing and IT costs. However it wasn’t the “news” in the release that has me blogging. It’s the use of the word swag. Sports reporters have been using the word for months now. There is no doubt that you will hear swag used if you tune into ESPN’s SportsCenter. But I didn’t expect the White House to jump on the bandwagon. Is it just…
A new online platform set to launch on whitehouse.gov will allow people to create, share and sign petitions “asking the Obama administration to take action on a range of important issues facing our country,” the White House announced Thursday. The web-based feature, called We the People, provides a new way to submit e-petitions, garner support and get an official response from the administration based on how many signatures are received, according to whitehouse.gov. The administration has not announced when the platform will launch, but people are encouraged to create their petitions now and begin promoting their ideas. Here’s how We the People…
Agencies have a year to follow through on a White House memo requiring their chief information officers to receive greater authority. By August 2012, agencies will report through the President’s Management Council and the CIO Council on their progress in expanding the CIO’s role in four areas: • Commodity IT purchases, such as data centers, desktops, email and business systems. • Management of large IT projects and programs. • Information security programs. “As the IT Reform plan continues to be implemented we will see more results from this fundamental shift in IT policy, permanently removing the barriers that have prevented…
As part of an effort to eliminate and consolidate thousands of federal websites, the White House this week released a list of 1,759 top-level sites and named a 17-member task force to lead the cost-cutting initiative. Under the new policy, outlined by federal Chief Performance Officer Jeffrey Zients in a June 13 memo, the White House is freezing creation of all new .gov domains for 90 days. The effort is expected to eliminate waste and duplication, save money and enhance the public’s online interaction with the government. The .gov task force, whose 17 members include–Todd Park, chief technology officer at the Health and…