Final A-130 revision reflects e-gov

Final revision of A-130

The Office of Management and Budget's final revision of the rule overseeing

federal information technology management brings it up to date with recent

regulations aimed at creating an electronic government.

OMB released the final revision of Circular A-130 last week. The revision,

first proposed in April, was intended to bring Circular A-130 in line with

the Clinger-Cohen Act of 1996, which includes several new IT management

requirements, such as the creation of agency chief information officers.

But many other laws from Congress and guidance from the administration

have updated the federal government's use of technology. Therefore, the

final revisions to A-130 also incorporate many OMB memoranda regarding IT

management and investment as well as the Government Paperwork Elimination

Act of 1998, which requires agencies to make electronic transactions available

to the public whenever possible by 2003.

OMB plans to further revise the circular in 2001, with a focus on Appendix

III, which regulates federal IT security. At that point, OMB will include

the security management reforms mandated by the Government Information Security

Reform section of the fiscal 2001 Defense Authorization Act, which was signed

by President Clinton in October.