Agencies are to meet basic information quality standards, noting that the  more important the information, “the higher the quality standards to  which it should be held,” but that “agencies should weigh the costs …  and the benefits of higher information quality in the development of  information.”
Agencies are to apply the guidelines in “a common-sense and workable  manner,” meaning that agency guidelines are not to “impose  unnecessary administrative burdens that would inhibit the agencies  from continuing to take advantage of the Internet and other  technologies to disseminate information that can be of great benefit and  value to the public.”
The guidelines, in elaborating on this last principle, explained that “OMB  encourages agencies to incorporate the standards and procedures required  by these guidelines into their existing … administrative practices rather  than create new and potentially duplicative or contradictory processes.”   The guidelines also noted that they were written to provide agencies with  flexibility as they developed their own guidelines. Only one cabinet-level agency, DHS, the newest and one of the largest  federal agencies, has no department-level IQA guidelines covering its 22  agencies, which issue a wide array of information used by the public. These 44 commissions, agencies, and  other independent entities gave no indication of any IQA guidelines or IQA  reports, nor any mention of IQA on their Web sites or on OMB’s Web site of  agencies’ IQA guidelines. Also, OIRA staff did not have copies  of the guidelines and said that they had focused their attention on cabinet  agencies and regulatory agencies. In the case  of the 15 other agencies, we found that accessing IQA information on their  Web sites was difficult because these agencies provided no discernable link  to IQA information on their home pages; provided access to their  guidelines and other information through “contact us,” “policies,” or other  less-than-obvious links, such as “resources”; or required multiple searches  using various terms related to IQA, as was the case with the Department of  Defense and the Department of State. From Fiscal Years 2003 to 2004, Three Agencies Reclassified Correction Requests to Concentrate on Substantive Matters

From fiscal year 2003 to fiscal year 2004, three agencies shifted to using  IQA to address primarily substantive requests—those dealing with the  underlying scientific, environmental, or other complex information—which  declined from 42 to 38. The total number of all IQA requests dropped from  over 24,000 in fiscal year 2003 to 62 in fiscal year 2004. FEMA’s requests were all related to flood  insurance rate maps. By comparison, of the 80 substantive  requests over the 2-year period, petitioners appealed 39 (almost half) of the  agencies’ decisions. As for the source of appeals, businesses, trade groups, and other profit- oriented organizations filed more appeals than other types of organizations  or individuals. Of these 25 appeals, 4 resulted in changes. Impact of IQA on Agencies Could Not Be Determined

The impact of IQA on agencies could not be determined because agencies  and OMB do not have mechanisms in place to track the effects of  implementing IQA. Agency IQA officials and OIRA staff and officials told us that administering  IQA has not been overly burdensome and that it has not adversely affected  agencies’ overall operations to date. Although there is a lack of comprehensive IQA-related cost or resource  data, evidence suggests that certain program staff or units involved in  creating IQA guidelines, including the correction mechanism, and  addressing IQA correction requests have seen their workloads increase  without any corresponding increase in resources. Moreover, our analysis of IQA requests shows that agencies have taken  from 1 month to more than 1 year to produce a final decision on  substantive IQA requests and appeals, while 2 appeals made during fiscal  years 2003 and 2004 are still ongoing after 2 years or longer. Agencies Treated Most IQA Rulemaking-Related Requests as Comments to Proposed Rules

According to OMB staff and agency IQA officials, IQA correction requests  have not adversely affected agency rulemaking procedures to date, partly  because agencies handled most IQA requests related to rulemaking as  public comments to proposed rules under the Administrative Procedure  Act rather than as IQA requests. Scope and Methodology

To assess the Office of Management and Budget’s (OMB) role in  implementing the Information Quality Act (IQA), we reviewed OMB’s IQA  documents, including memorandums sent to agencies, and interviewed  Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA) staff involved with  IQA. Independent Agencies Where Web Sites Were Checked for IQA Guidelines

and on Web site?
Why GAO Did This Study

The importance and widespread use of federal information makes its accuracy imperative. The Information Quality Act (IQA) required that the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) issue guidelines to ensure the quality of information disseminated by federal agencies by fiscal year 2003. GAO was asked to (1) assess OMB's role in helping agencies implement IQA; (2) identify the number, type, and source of IQA correction requests agencies received; and (3) examine if IQA has adversely affected agencies' overall operations and, in particular, rulemaking processes. In response, GAO interviewed OMB and agency officials and reviewed agency IQA guidelines, related documents, and Web sites.

What GAO Found

OMB issued governmentwide guidelines that were the basis for other agencies' own IQA guidelines and required agencies to post guidelines and other IQA information to their Web sites. It also reviewed draft guidelines and undertook other efforts. OMB officials said that OMB primarily concentrated on cabinet-level and regulatory agencies, and 14 of the 15 cabinet-level agencies have guidelines. The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) does not have department-level guidelines covering its 22 component agencies. Also, although the Environmental Protection Agency and 4 other independent agencies posted IQA guidelines and other information to their Web sites, 44 of 86 additional independent agencies that GAO examined have not posted their guidelines and may not have them in place. As a result, users of information from these agencies may not know whether agencies have guidelines or know how to request correction of agency information. OMB also has not clarified guidance to agencies about posting IQA-related information, including guidelines, to make that information more accessible. Of the 19 cabinet and independent agencies with guidelines, 4 had "information quality" links on their home pages, but others' IQA information online was difficult to locate. From fiscal years 2003 to 2004, three agencies shifted to using IQA to address substantive requests--those dealing with the underlying scientific, environmental, or other complex information--which declined from 42 to 38. In fiscal year 2003, the Federal Emergency Management Agency and two other agencies used IQA to address flood insurance rate maps, Web site addresses, photo captions, and other simple or administrative matters. But, in fiscal year 2004, these agencies changed their classification of these requests from being IQA requests and instead processed them using other correction mechanisms. As a result, the total number of all IQA requests dropped from over 24,000 in fiscal year 2003 to 62 in fiscal year 2004. Also, of the 80 substantive requests that agencies received during the 2-year period--over 50 percent of which came from businesses, trade groups, or other profit-oriented organizations--almost half (39) of the initial agency decisions of these 80 were appealed, with 8 appeals resulting in changes. The impact of IQA on agencies' operations could not be determined because neither agencies nor OMB have mechanisms to determine the costs or impacts of IQA on agency operations. However, GAO analysis of requests shows that agencies can take from a month to more than 2 years to resolve IQA requests on substantive matters. According to agency IQA officials, IQA duties were added into existing staff responsibilities and administering IQA requests has not been overly burdensome nor has it adversely affected agencies' operations, although there are no supporting data. But evidence suggests that certain program staff or units addressing IQA requests have seen their workloads increase without a related increase in resources. As for rulemaking, agencies addressed 16 correction requests related to rulemaking under the Administrative Procedure Act, not IQA.