18F
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| Agency overview | |
|---|---|
| Formed | March 19, 2014 |
| Headquarters | General Services Administration Building 1800 F Street NW Washington, D.C. |
| Employees | >100 (2015) |
| 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]
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.[3][4][5][6] On September 12, 2015, the group launched the College Scorecard.[7] 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
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