Scaling the Use of Publicly Available Information Across the U.S. Government

Scalable and fiscally efficient access to the complex and dynamic P/CAI ecosystem is difficult across USG but remains essential to strengthen situational awareness and enable strategic decision making across a wide range of missions. This paper first assesses the challenges with acquiring and using P/CAI across the USG at scale. It then recommends centralized, shared solutions that could be employed to minimize duplicate data purchases, promote data integration and development of advanced analytics, and manage risks associated with sharing information across authorities. Research questions focus on opportunities for enterprise coordination to centralize the collective buying power of the USG through adaptable acquisition and technical approaches that support scalability and automation, while considering how to limit legal risk among different USG agencies in a relatively novel problem space. 

Disconnected initiatives and independent purchasing authorities lead to duplicative purchases and development efforts. Adopting an enterprise contracting approach would centralize buying power, streamline opportunities for collaboration, and reduce duplication. Various contracting strategies that optimize or offer opportunities in addition to the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) are key tools that can facilitate efficient procurement through an enterprise model. A modular contracting approach would leverage the strengths of different contracting tools, allowing scalability based on evolving national security requirements.

The integration of P/CAI requires overcoming technical challenges, including data processing and the use of advanced analytics through artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML). A centralized approach to acquisition and scalable data adaptation enables incorporation of the data preparation required for rapid and reliable deployment of AI and ML models. USG organizations can benefit from private industry’s commercial frameworks and software solutions for data conditioning and management, adapting them to government systems and requirements through close partnerships.

Given the potential for P/CAI to contain sensitive information about U.S. persons, robust privacy and civil liberties frameworks are essential. A central library of authorities that can be used to track and standardize adherence to privacy laws across the USG would facilitate simplified data sharing across agencies while ensuring compliance with legal standards. This approach would enable agencies to tag their analysis with applicable authorities, empowering them to determine what derivative analysis they can share and receive from others.

It requires significant knowledge of commercial industry to implement these recommendations, e.g., utilizing and adapting existing commercial products, developing workforce expertise in P/CAI, identifying a USG agency to manage enterprise contracting, and fostering interagency collaboration. A centralized acquisition authority will need experts in data acquisition, analytic applications, data management, and authorities alignment to enact these solutions. Interagency collaboration can be formalized through congressional actions or interagency agreements, creating opportunities for efficiency and best practice sharing.

P/CAI is incredibly valuable to national security missions, and scalable data acquisition, data harnessing, and compliance considerations are necessary to unleash it for the USG. By leveraging centralized shared services, USG can enhance its ability to use P/CAI effectively.