How to Meet the Federal Open Data Mandate’s Deadline

"To some degree, the enormous significance of the White House mandate on open data has gotten lost in the down-in-the-weeds discussion of the details. But, it is worth revisiting the intent and vision behind the Executive Order before diving in further ... For the immediate future, agencies are focused squarely on how to ensure compliance. The Federal Open Data Policy outlines five steps for adhering to the open data mandate. By November 1, agencies must: [1] Create and maintain an enterprise data inventory [2] Make data available through a public data listing [3] Create a process to engage with the public [4] Strengthen measures to ensure that privacy and confidentiality are fully protected [5] Clarify roles and responsibilities for promoting effective data release

Although the OMB published implementation guidance on the Project Open Data website in August, the information on this site is sometimes dense and difficult to penetrate. To make it easier for agency leaders to assimilate this information and accelerate compliance efforts, we have made a number of resources available on our own website, including an easy-to-read guide entitled 'How to Achieve Compliance with the U.S. Federal Open Data Mandate.' This guide was written by Socrata’s Director of Open Data, Ian Kalin, one of the first U.S. Presidential Innovation Fellows and a recognized expert in the field.  In September, Kalin also hosted a webinar, in which he addressed the challenges of complying with the mandate, offered tips and best practices for achieving compliance, and described how the Socrata platform can help federal agencies meet every requirement. You can watch the playback of that webinar here.    We can’t change the deadline. But as the date ticks ever closer, we invite federal agencies to take full advantage of these resources we have to offer ..."