[Congressional Bills 115th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 4174 Enrolled Bill (ENR)]
H.R.4174
One Hundred Fifteenth Congress
of the
United States of America
AT THE SECOND SESSION
Begun and held at the City of Washington on Wednesday,
the third day of January, two thousand and eighteen
An Act
To amend titles 5 and 44, United States Code, to require Federal
evaluation activities, improve Federal data management, and for other
purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,

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(a) Short Title.--This Act may be cited as the ``Foundations for
Evidence-Based Policymaking Act of 2018''.
(b) Table of Contents.--The table of contents for this Act is as
follows:

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b5be856e52bb792eaddc3321b06eb4302831e1bcc0417f0bf2e207917b6b21a2

TITLE II

-OPEN GOVERNMENT DATA ACT

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TITLE III

-CONFIDENTIAL INFORMATION PROTECTION AND STATISTICAL

(a) In General.--Chapter 3 of part I of title 5, United States
Code, is amended--
(1) by inserting before section 301 the following:
``SUBCHAPTER I--GENERAL PROVISIONS''; and
(2) by adding at the end the following:
``SUBCHAPTER II--FEDERAL EVIDENCE-BUILDING ACTIVITIES
``Sec. 311. Definitions
``In this subchapter:
``(1) Agency.--The term `agency' means an agency referred to
under section 901(b) of title 31.
``(2) Director.--The term `Director' means the Director of the
Office of Management and Budget.
``(3) Evaluation.--The term `evaluation' means an assessment
using systematic data collection and analysis of one or more
programs, policies, and organizations intended to assess their
effectiveness and efficiency.
``(4) Evidence.--The term `evidence' has the meaning given that
term in section 3561 of title 44.
``(5) State.--The term `State' means each of the several
States, the District of Columbia, each territory or possession of
the United States, and each federally recognized governing body of
any Indian Tribe, band, nation, pueblo, or other organized group or
community which is recognized as eligible for the special programs
and services provided by the United States to Indians because of
their status as Indians.
``(6) Statistical activities; statistical agency or unit;
statistical purpose.--The terms `statistical activities',
`statistical agency or unit', and `statistical purpose' have the
meanings given those terms in section 3561 of title 44.
``Sec. 312. Agency evidence-building plan
``(a) Requirement.--The head of each agency shall include in the
strategic plan required under section 306 a systematic plan for
identifying and addressing policy questions relevant to the programs,
policies, and regulations of the agency. Such plan shall contain the
following:
``(1) A list of policy-relevant questions for which the agency
intends to develop evidence to support policymaking.
``(2) A list of data the agency intends to collect, use, or
acquire to facilitate the use of evidence in policymaking.
``(3) A list of methods and analytical approaches that may be
used to develop evidence to support policymaking.
``(4) A list of any challenges to developing evidence to
support policymaking, including any statutory or other restrictions
to accessing relevant data.
``(5) A description of the steps the agency will take to
accomplish paragraphs (1) and (2).
``(6) Any other information as required by guidance issued by
the Director.
``(b) Evaluation Plan.--The head of each agency shall issue in
conjunction with the performance plan required under section 1115(b) of
title 31, an evaluation plan describing activities the agency plans to
conduct pursuant to subsection (a) of this section during the fiscal
year following the year in which the performance plan is submitted.
Such plan shall--
``(1) describe key questions for each significant evaluation
study that the agency plans to begin in the next fiscal year;
``(2) describe key information collections or acquisitions the
agency plans to begin in the next fiscal year; and
``(3) any other information included in guidance issued by the
Director under subsection (a)(6).
``(c) Consultation.--In developing the plan required under
subsection (a), the head of an agency shall consult with stakeholders,
including the public, agencies, State and local governments, and
representatives of non-governmental researchers.
``Sec. 313. Evaluation Officers
``(a) Establishment.--The head of each agency shall designate a
senior employee of the agency as the Evaluation Officer of the agency.
``(b) Qualifications.--The Evaluation Officer of an agency shall be
appointed or designated without regard to political affiliation and
based on demonstrated expertise in evaluation methodology and practices
and appropriate expertise to the disciplines of the agency.
``(c) Coordination.--The Evaluation Officer of an agency shall, to
the extent practicable, coordinate activities with agency officials
necessary to carry out the functions required under subsection (d).
``(d) Functions.--The Evaluation Officer of each agency shall--
``(1) continually assess the coverage, quality, methods,
consistency, effectiveness, independence, and balance of the
portfolio of evaluations, policy research, and ongoing evaluation
activities of the agency;
``(2) assess agency capacity to support the development and use
of evaluation;
``(3) establish and implement an agency evaluation policy; and
``(4) coordinate, develop, and implement the plans required
under section 312.
``Sec. 314. Statistical expertise
``(a) In General.--The head of each agency shall designate the head
of any statistical agency or unit within the agency, or in the case of
an agency that does not have a statistical agency or unit, any senior
agency official with appropriate expertise, as a statistical official
to advise on statistical policy, techniques, and procedures. Agency
officials engaged in statistical activities may consult with any such
statistical official as necessary.
``(b) Membership on Interagency Council on Statistical Policy.--
Each statistical official designated under subsection (a) shall serve
as a member of the Interagency Council on Statistical Policy
established under section 3504(e)(8) of title 44.
``Sec. 315. Advisory Committee on Data for Evidence Building
``(a) Establishment.--The Director, or the head of an agency
designated by the Director, shall establish an Advisory Committee on
Data for Evidence Building (in this section referred to as the
`Advisory Committee') to review, analyze, and make recommendations on
how to promote the use of Federal data for evidence building.
``(b) Membership.--The members of the Advisory Committee shall
consist of the Chief Statistician of the United States, who shall serve
as the Chair of the Advisory Committee, and other members appointed by
the Director as follows:
``(1) One member who is an agency Chief Information Officer.
``(2) One member who is an agency Chief Privacy Officer.
``(3) One member who is an agency Chief Performance Officer.
``(4) Three members who are agency Chief Data Officers.
``(5) Three members who are agency Evaluation Officers.
``(6) Three members who are members of the Interagency Council
for Statistical Policy established under section 3504(e)(8) of
title 44.
``(7) At least 10 members who are representatives of State and
local governments and nongovernmental stakeholders with expertise
in government data policy, privacy, technology, transparency
policy, evaluation and research methodologies, and other relevant
subjects, of whom--
``(A) at least one shall have expertise in transparency
policy;
``(B) at least one shall have expertise in privacy policy;
``(C) at least one shall have expertise in statistical data
use;
``(D) at least one shall have expertise in information
management;
``(E) at least one shall have expertise in information
technology; and
``(F) at least one shall be from the research and
evaluation community.
``(c) Term of Service.--
``(1) In general.--Each member of the Advisory Committee shall
serve for a term of 2 years.
``(2) Vacancy.--Any member appointed to fill a vacancy
occurring before the expiration of the term for which the member's
predecessor was appointed shall be appointed only for the remainder
of that term. A vacancy in the Commission shall be filled in the
manner in which the original appointment was made.
``(d) Compensation.--Members of the Advisory Committee shall serve
without compensation.
``(e) Duties.--The Advisory Committee shall--
``(1) assist the Director in carrying out the duties of the
Director under part D of subchapter III of chapter 35 of title 44;
``(2) evaluate and provide recommendations to the Director on
how to facilitate data sharing, enable data linkage, and develop
privacy enhancing techniques; and
``(3) review the coordination of data sharing or availability
for evidence building across all agencies.
``(f) Reports.--The Advisory Committee shall submit to the Director
and make publicly available an annual report on the activities and
findings of the Advisory Committee.
``(g) Termination.--The Advisory Committee shall terminate not
later than two years after the date of the first meeting.''.
(b) Technical and Conforming Amendments.--The table of sections for
chapter 3 of part I of title 5, United States Code, is amended--
(1) by inserting before the item relating to section 301 the
following:
``subchapter i--general provisions''; and
(2) by adding at the end the following:
``subchapter ii--federal evidence-building activities
``311. Definitions.
``312. Agency evidence-building plan.
``313. Evaluation Officers.
``314. Statistical expertise.
``315. Advisory Committee on Data for Evidence Building.''.
(c) Agency Strategic Plans.--Section 306(a) of title 5, United
States Code, is amended--
(1) in paragraph (7), by striking ``; and'' at the end and
inserting a semicolon;
(2) in paragraph (8), by--
(A) striking the period at the end; and
(B) inserting after ``to be conducted'' the following: ``,
and citations to relevant provisions of the plans required
under section 312; and''; and
(3) by adding at the end the following:
``(9) an assessment of the coverage, quality, methods,
effectiveness, and independence of the statistics, evaluation,
research, and analysis efforts of the agency, including--
``(A) a list of the activities and operations of the agency
that are currently being evaluated and analyzed;
``(B) the extent to which the evaluations, research, and
analysis efforts and related activities of the agency support
the needs of various divisions within the agency;
``(C) the extent to which the evaluation research and
analysis efforts and related activities of the agency address
an appropriate balance between needs related to organizational
learning, ongoing program management, performance management,
strategic management, interagency and private sector
coordination, internal and external oversight, and
accountability;
``(D) the extent to which the agency uses methods and
combinations of methods that are appropriate to agency
divisions and the corresponding research questions being
addressed, including an appropriate combination of formative
and summative evaluation research and analysis approaches;
``(E) the extent to which evaluation and research capacity
is present within the agency to include personnel and agency
processes for planning and implementing evaluation activities,
disseminating best practices and findings, and incorporating
employee views and feedback; and
``(F) the extent to which the agency has the capacity to
assist agency staff and program offices to develop the capacity
to use evaluation research and analysis approaches and data in
the day-to-day operations.''.
(d) GAO Report.--Not later than 2 years after the date on which
each strategic plan required under section 306(a) of title 5, United
States Code, is published, the Comptroller General of the United States
shall submit to Congress a report that--
(1) summarizes agency findings and highlights trends in the
assessment conducted pursuant to subsection (a)(9) of section 306
of title 5, United States Code, as added by subsection (c); and
(2) if appropriate, recommends actions to further improve
agency capacity to use evaluation techniques and data to support
evaluation efforts.
(e) Evaluation and Personnel Standards.--
(1) Requirement.--Not later than 1 year after the date of
enactment of this Act, the Director of the Office of Management and
Budget, in consultation with any interagency council relating to
evaluation, shall--
(A) issue guidance for program evaluation for agencies
consistent with widely accepted standards for evaluation; and
(B) identify best practices for evaluation that would
improve Federal program evaluation.
(2) Guidance.--Not later than 90 days after the date on which
the guidance under paragraph (1) is issued, the head of each agency
shall oversee the implementation of such guidance.
(3) OPM guidance.--Not later than 180 days after the date on
which the guidance under paragraph (1) is issued, the Director of
the Office of Personnel Management, in consultation with the
Director of the Office of Management and Budget, shall--
(A) identify key skills and competencies needed for program
evaluation in an agency;
(B) establish a new occupational series, or update and
improve an existing occupational series, for program evaluation
within an agency; and
(C) establish a new career path for program evaluation
within an agency.
(4) Definitions.--In this Act:
(A) Agency.--Except as otherwise provided, the term
``agency'' has the meaning given the term ``Executive agency''
under section 105.
(B) Evaluation.--The term ``evaluation'' has the meaning
given that term in section 311 of title 5, United States Code,
as added by subsection (a).

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TITLE I

-FEDERAL EVIDENCE-BUILDING ACTIVITIES

This title may be cited as the ``Open, Public, Electronic, and
Necessary Government Data Act'' or the ``OPEN Government Data Act''.

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This title may be cited as the ``Confidential Information
Protection and Statistical Efficiency Act of 2018''.

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(a) In General.--Subchapter III of chapter 35 of title 44, United
States Code, as added by section 302, is amended by adding at the end
the following new part:
``PART D--ACCESS TO DATA FOR EVIDENCE
``Sec. 3581. Presumption of accessibility for statistical agencies and
units
``(a) Accessibility of Data Assets.--The head of an agency shall,
to the extent practicable, make any data asset maintained by the agency
available, upon request, to any statistical agency or unit for purposes
of developing evidence.
``(b) Limitations.--Subsection (a) does not apply to any data asset
that is subject to a statute that--
``(1) prohibits the sharing or intended use of such asset in a
manner as to leave no discretion on the issue; or
``(2) if enacted after the date of the enactment of this
section, specifically cites to this paragraph.
``(c) Regulations.--The Director shall prescribe regulations for
agencies to carry out this section. Such regulations shall--
``(1) require the timely provision of data assets under
subsection (a);
``(2) provide a list of statutes that exempt agencies from the
requirement under subsection (a) pursuant to subsection (b)(1);
``(3) establish clear and consistent standards, to the extent
possible, for complying with section 552a of title 5 (commonly
known as the `Privacy Act of 1974') and any other applicable law
requiring the protection and confidentiality of individually
identifiable information; and
``(4) require a transparent process for statistical agencies
and units to request data assets from agencies and for agencies to
respond to such requests.
``(d) Rule of Construction.--Nothing in this section may be
construed as altering existing intellectual property rights or the
terms of any contract or other binding, written agreement.
``Sec. 3582. Expanding secure access to CIPSEA data assets
``(a) Statistical Agency Responsibilities.--To the extent
practicable, each statistical agency or unit shall expand access to
data assets of such agency or unit acquired or accessed under this
subchapter to develop evidence while protecting such assets from
inappropriate access and use, in accordance with the regulations
promulgated under subsection (b).
``(b) Regulations for Accessibility of Nonpublic Data Assets.--The
Director shall promulgate regulations, in accordance with applicable
law, for statistical agencies and units to carry out the requirement
under subsection (a). Such regulations shall include the following:
``(1) Standards for each statistical agency or unit to assess
each data asset owned or accessed by the statistical agency or unit
for purposes of categorizing the sensitivity level of each such
asset and identifying the corresponding level of accessibility to
each such asset. Such standards shall include--
``(A) common sensitivity levels and corresponding levels of
accessibility that may be assigned to a data asset, including a
requisite minimum and maximum number of sensitivity levels for
each statistical agency or unit to use;
``(B) criteria for determining the sensitivity level and
corresponding level of accessibility of each data asset; and
``(C) criteria for determining whether a less sensitive and
more accessible version of a data asset can be produced.
``(2) Standards for each statistical agency or unit to improve
access to a data asset pursuant to paragraph (1) or (3) by removing
or obscuring information in such a manner that the identity of the
data subject is less likely to be reasonably inferred by either
direct or indirect means.
``(3) A requirement for each statistical agency or unit to
conduct a comprehensive risk assessment of any data asset acquired
or accessed under this subchapter prior to any public release of
such asset, including standards for such comprehensive risk
assessment and criteria for making a determination of whether to
release the data.
``(4) Requirements for each statistical agency or unit to make
any process or assessment established, produced, or conducted
pursuant to this section transparent and easy to understand,
including the following:
``(A) A requirement to make information on the assessment
of the sensitivity level of each data asset conducted pursuant
to paragraph (1) available on the Federal data catalogue
established under section 3511(c)(1).
``(B) A requirement to make any comprehensive risk
assessment, and associated determinations, conducted under
paragraph (3) available on the Federal data catalogue
established under section 3511(c)(1).
``(C) A requirement to make any standard or policy
established by the statistical agency or unit to carry out this
section and any assessment conducted under this section easily
accessible on the public website of such agency or unit.
``(c) Responsibilities of the Director.--The Director shall--
``(1) make public all standards and policies established under
this section; and
``(2) ensure that statistical agencies and units have the
ability to make information public on the Federal data catalogue
established under section 3511(c)(1), in accordance with
requirements established pursuant to subsection (b).
``Sec. 3583. Application to access data assets for developing evidence
``(a) Standard Application Process.--The Director shall establish a
process through which agencies, the Congressional Budget Office, State,
local, and Tribal governments, researchers, and other individuals, as
appropriate, may apply to access the data assets accessed or acquired
under this subchapter by a statistical agency or unit for purposes of
developing evidence. The process shall include the following:
``(1) Sufficient detail to ensure that each statistical agency
or unit establishes an identical process.
``(2) A common application form.
``(3) Criteria for statistical agencies and units to determine
whether to grant an applicant access to a data asset.
``(4) Timeframes for prompt determinations by each statistical
agency or unit.
``(5) An appeals process for adverse decisions and
noncompliance with the process established under this subsection.
``(6) Standards for transparency, including requirements to
make the following information publicly available:
``(A) Each application received.
``(B) The status of each application.
``(C) The determination made for each application.
``(D) Any other information, as appropriate, to ensure full
transparency of the process established under this subsection.
``(b) Consultation.--In establishing the process required under
subsection (a), the Director shall consult with stakeholders, including
the public, agencies, State and local governments, and representatives
of non-governmental researchers.
``(c) Implementation.--The head of each statistical agency or unit
shall implement the process established under subsection (a).''.
(b) Clerical Amendment.--The table of sections at the beginning of
chapter 35 of title 44, United States Code, as amended by preceding
provisions of this Act, is further amended by adding at the end the
following:
``Part D--Access to Data for Evidence
``3581. Presumption of accessibility for statistical agencies and units.
``3582. Expanding secure access to CIPSEA data assets.
``3583. Application to access data assets for developing evidence.''.
(c) Deadline for Guidance and Implementation.--Not later than 1
year after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Director of the
Office of Management and Budget shall promulgate or issue any
regulation or guidance required by subchapter III of title 44, United
States Code, as amended by this section, with a requirement for such
regulation or guidance to be implemented not later than 1 year after
the date on which such regulation or guidance has been promulgated or
issued.

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Nothing in this Act, or the amendments made by this Act, may be
construed--
(1) to require the disclosure of information or records that
are exempt from disclosure under section 552 of title 5, United
States Code (commonly known as the ``Freedom of Information Act'');
(2) to create or expand an exemption from disclosure under such
section;
(3) to override, limit, or otherwise affect intellectual
property rights, including rights under titles 17 and 35, United
States Code;
(4) to affect the authority of a Federal agency regarding the
use, disclosure, or licensing of--
(A) confidential business information that could be
withheld under section 552(b)(4) of title 5, United States
Code; or
(B) data assets restricted from disclosure under a contract
or other binding, written agreement; or
(5) to affect the independence, responsibilities, or work
products of an Inspector General of any agency.

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TITLE IV

-GENERAL PROVISIONS

To the extent practicable, the head of each agency shall use
existing procedures and systems to carry out agency requirements and
shall select existing employees for appointments under this Act and the
amendments made by this Act.

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Except as otherwise provided, this Act, and the amendments made by
this Act, shall take effect on the date that is 180 days after the date
of the enactment of this Act.
Speaker of the House of Representatives.
Vice President of the United States and
President of the Senate.

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Foundations for Evidence-Based Policymaking Act of 2018 — HR. 4174

Other Sections

TITLE II

TITLE III

TITLE I

TITLE IV

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