Information Quality
In response to Section 515 of the Treasury and General Government Appropriations Act for Fiscal Year 2001 (Public Law 106-554), and to implement guidelines issued by the Office of Management and Budget, NOAA has issued Information Quality Guidelines for ensuring and maximizing the quality, objectivity, utility, and integrity of information which it disseminates. The NOAA guidelines also establish an administrative mechanism allowing affected persons to seek and obtain correction of information that does not comply with OMB or NOAA applicable guidelines.
NOAA Information Quality Guidelines
OMB’s Final Information Quality Bulletin for Peer Review (OMB Peer Review Bulletin) directs federal agencies to adopt or adapt the National Academy of Sciences (NAS) policy for evaluating conflicts of interest when selecting peer reviewers who are not federal government employees. (Federal employees are subject to federal ethics requirements.) NOAA has adapted the NAS policy. The OMB Peer Review Bulletin and the NOAA conflicts policy as adapted (“NOAA COI Policy”) appear below.
Disclosure forms for non-federal government peer reviewers, per NOAA COI Policy:
Confidential Conflict of Interest Disclosure Form for General Scientific and Technical Studies and Assistance (Microsoft Word file)
Confidential Conflict of Interest Disclosure Form for Studies Related to Government Regulation (Microsoft Word file)
NOAA Fisheries Information Quality Policy and Guidance
04-113 Policy on the Information Quality Act (rev. 6/2012) (6/27/2012)
- 04-113-02 Section 515 Pre-Dissemination Review and Documentation Form (6/27/2012)
- 04-113-03 Section 515 Pre-Dissemination Review and Documentation Guidelines (6/27/2012)
- 04-113-04 OMB Peer Review Guidance (6/27/2012)
NAO 216-115: Strengthening NOAA’s Research and Development Enterprise, with links to Handbook and Appendices (effective 7-20-11)
This Order incorporates requirements of the Information Quality Act (2001), the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Circular A-11 (OMB, 2009a), the Open Government Directive (OMB, 2009b), the GPRA (Government Performance and Results Act) Modernization Act (2010), and other relevant laws and policies. It reiterates established best practices and guiding principles recognized by NOAA.