OMB issues A-130 revisions

In the midst of a lawsuit (Public Citizen v. Lew) to force federal agencies

to make public information more readily available to the public, the Office

of Management and Budget has issued revisions to its Circular A-130, which

details how agencies should manage their information systems.

But a preliminary review of the revisions suggest they don't go as far

as had been hoped, said Patrice McDermott, a lawyer for OMB Watch, a public

policy advocacy organization.

For example, A-130 regulations were supposed to be made consistent with

the Electronic Freedom of Information Act, which requires, among other things,

that agencies provide the public with information on where to find records.

But the OMB's proposed A-130 revisions would require agencies only to provide

a catalog of information they have, not a roadmap showing where to find

it, McDermott said.

The revisions were required because parts of A-130 are in conflict with

other laws, including the Paperwork Reduction Act and the Clinger-Cohen

Act.