Federal Chief Technology Officer Aneesh Chopra and Cass R. Sunstein, administrator of the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs, last week announced the recipients of The Leading Practices Awards, recognizing agencies that achieved above and beyond the requirements of the Open Government Directive in promoting transparency in the best and most innovative way.
Awards were determined on the basis of evaluation of the plans against the definition of “Leading Practice†by the agencies themselves. Chopra and Cass defined “Leading Practices” as a way to inspire a “race to the top†among government agencies for increased openness and innovation.
There are four categories of awards corresponding to each of the major goals of the Open Government agenda: Leadership, Governance and Culture Change; Transparency; Participation and Collaboration; and Flagship Initiative
“These awards represent the very best of the best in Open Government Plans — exemplary of the high levels of creativity and innovation that can be found in the open government activities of federal agencies today,” Chopra and Cass wrote on the Open Gov Blog.
Department of Transportation was awarded in the Leadership, Governance and Culture Change category. In the Transparency category, Department of Health and Human Services took home a prize. Department of the Treasury, Environmental Protection Agency and NASA were awarded in the Participation and Collaboration category. In the Flagship Initiative, six agencies were recognized: Department of the Interior, Department of Transportation, EPA, General Services Administration, NASA and Office of Personnel Management.
