Blake Farenthold

See the following -

Bill to Make Federal Data Open, Machine-Readable Reintroduced in Both Chambers

Samantha Ehlinger | Fed Scoop | March 30, 2017

A bipartisan and bicameral group of lawmakers reintroduced Wednesday the OPEN Government Data Act — a bill that passed the Senate last year but stalled in the House. The bill, which would set a presumption that federal data should be published online in a machine-readable format, has a broad support from open data advocates, government spending watchdogs and the technology industry...

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Commentary: It’s Time For Congress To Take On Patent Trolls

Gary Shapiro | Nextgov | August 5, 2013

Innovation is the backbone of the American Dream. Our nation has always encouraged entrepreneurs to turn their inventive and problem-solving ideas into the successful enterprises that drive our economy and create jobs. [...] Read More »

Open Source Software Now Permitted in the U.S. House of Representatives

Press Release | OpenGov Foundation, Sunlight Foundation, Congressional Data Coalition | June 25, 2015

The OpenGov Foundation, the Sunlight Foundation and the Congressional Data Coalition (CDC) today announced that Members, Committees, and staff within the U.S. House of Representatives are now able to use official resources to procure open source software, to fully participate in open source software communities, and to contribute software code developed with taxpayer dollars back to the public under an open source license. Read More »

The Current State of Open Data in the US Government

In this article I will discuss the importance of open data in government, the current state of open data in government, and what we need to do to implement true open data. When I read an article on the Center for Data Innovation site, Congress Is Stepping Up to Protect Open Data, I was struck by two feelings: elation and surprise... The article links to a 2013 McKinsey report, Open data: Unlocking innovation and performance with liquid information, that says the national open data initiative of "open by default" represents real economic and transparency value for the public. The report points out that there is no assurance that open data will survive the end of the current administration...

VA and VistA: Can they be fixed?

Aisha Chowdhry | FCW | July 27, 2016

pivoting away from VistA, the agency's homegrown electronic health record system, would be a major shift for the VA. Former VA CIO Roger Baker said VistA is the only EHR designed by doctors, not technologists. "That is the real power of VistA, and it remains the real power of VistA," he added. The system, rooted in 1970s code, is designed to assist doctors in their daily work. Providers at the various VA medical facilities nationwide customize it for their specific needs.

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VA and VistA: Can They Be Fixed?

Aisha Chowdry | FCW | July 27, 2016

The Department of Veterans Affairs is rushing to make changes to its IT infrastructure and systems before the next administration enters the White House. And skeptical lawmakers, oversight bodies and outside experts are cautiously optimistic about the eventual outcomes. The key words, though, are "cautiously" and "eventual"...

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