18F
 | |
| Agency overview | |
|---|---|
| Formed | March 19, 2014 |
| Headquarters | General Services Administration Building 1800 F Street NW Washington, D.C. |
| Employees | 166 (2016) |
| Parent agency | General Services Administration (GSA) |
| Website | 18f |
18F is a digital services agency built on the lean startup model and based within the United States federal government.
Overview
18F is a digital services agency based within the United States' General Services Administration.[1] The group makes digital products for government organizations and uses lean startup methods, open source code, and contemporary programming languages.[1] Its name refers to its office location[2] in northwest Washington, D.C., on 18th and F Streets.[1] 18F is within the Office of Citizen Services and Innovative Technologies (OSCIT) and runs in parallel with the Digital Government Strategy's Digital Services Innovation (DSI) Center.[2]
In addition to it's Washington, D.C office, the agency has offices in New York, San Francisco, Chicago, and Dayton, Ohio.[3]
History
The group was started following multiple problems in the rollout of the HealthCare.gov health insurance marketplace, which began an effort to reform citizen-facing government technology.[1] The United Kingdom created a similar agency, Government Digital Service, following their own healthcare website issues, which saves an estimated $20 million a year over previous methods.[1] 18F runs on a cost recovery model where client agencies reimburse the digital agency for its work.[2] Their operation is closer to a traditional business than government organizations like the DSI Center.[2]
18F's creation was announced by GSA Administrator Dan Tangherlini on March 19, 2014 with a mission to simplify the government's digital services,[2] but no project-specific directive.[1] The agency started with 15 employees, including 11 former Presidential Innovation Fellows from both the private and public sectors.[2] The staff previously worked in front and backend development, design and usability, and product management.[2] The Verge's Adrienne Jeffries reported that the agency released a GSA website code update in a half hour, which would normally take weeks or longer. She added that the team did not appear equipped to handle a rollout similar to that of HealthCare.gov.[1]
Upon its opening, 18F began to host the Presidential Innovation Fellows program that started in May 2012 in the Digital Government Strategy.[2] An initial list of projects will be drafted in the months following the agency's creation.[2] A possible program called FBOpen, an open source small business and federal contractor interface for bidding on government contracts, was discussed at a Senate Homeland Security and Government Affairs hearing.[2]
On March 19, 2015, 18F and collaborators launched analytics.usa.gov.[4][5][6][7] On September 12, 2015, the group launched the College Scorecard.[8] Other projects of 18F have included myRA for the U.S. Department of the Treasury, Every Kid in a Park for the U.S. Department of the Interior, and MyUSA for the General Services Administration, in addition to redesigned websites for the PeaceCorps and Federal Election Commission.
See also
- United States Digital Service, at the Executive Office of the President
- Government Digital Service, for the UK's counterpart
References
- ^ a b c d e f g Jeffries, Adrianne (March 21, 2014). "The government now has a fast-moving IT office modeled after a startup". The Verge. Vox Media. Retrieved March 22, 2014.
{{cite web}}:|archive-date=requires|archive-url=(help); Unknown parameter|deadurl=ignored (|url-status=suggested) (help) - ^ a b c d e f g h i j Miller, Jason (March 19, 2014). "GSA envisions 18F will be the new hub of digital innovation". Federal News Radio. Archived from the original on March 22, 2014. Retrieved March 22, 2014.
{{cite web}}: Unknown parameter|deadurl=ignored (|url-status=suggested) (help) - ^ "People". 18F. Retrieved 2016-07-11.
- ^ "Turning Government Data into Better Public Service". White House. March 19, 2015. Retrieved March 21, 2015.
- ^ Ruiz, Rebecca (March 20, 2015). "A Real-Time Peek at Traffic to U.S. Government Websites". New York Times Bits blog. Retrieved March 21, 2015.
{{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in:|publisher=(help) - ^ Brown, Molly (March 19, 2015). "Several U.S. government websites now offer real-time analytics". GeekWire. Retrieved March 21, 2015.
{{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in:|publisher=(help) - ^ "Who's online now? 18F builds web analytics dashboard". GCN. March 19, 2015. Retrieved March 21, 2015.
- ^ "Fact Sheet: Empowering Students to Choose the College that is Right for Them". White House.
