United States Digital Service

Last updated
United States Digital Service
U.S. Digital Service Logo.svg
Agency overview
FormedAugust 11, 2014 (2014-08-11)
Headquarters736 Jackson Place, Washington, D.C., U.S.
38°53′59″N77°02′17″W / 38.899614°N 77.038026°W / 38.899614; -77.038026
Agency executive
Parent department Executive Office of the President of the United States
Website www.usds.gov

The United States Digital Service is a technology unit [1] [2] housed within the Executive Office of the President of the United States. It provides consultation services to federal agencies on information technology. It seeks to improve and simplify digital service, and to improve federal websites. It was launched on August 11, 2014. [3] [4] [5] [6]

Contents

Activities

The U.S. Digital Service has created:

The United States Digital Service sends a report to Congress each year detailing its projects and accomplishments. [12] Its federal agency work spans across the Veterans Affairs, Department of Defense, Small Business Administration, General Services Administration, Department of Homeland Security, Department of Education, and Health and Human Services.

History

The United States Digital Service was the idea of Jennifer Pahlka, Chief Technology Officer of the United States. Pahlka's goal was to create an elite government technology unit at the White House that would be equivalent to the United Kingdom's Government Digital Service. [13]

The first head of the United States Digital Digital Service was Mikey Dickerson, a former Google engineer who was involved in the 2013–14 rescue of the HealthCare.gov website. [14] He was succeeded by Matt Cutts, who was in that position until April 2021. [15]

The third administrator of the United States Digital Service was Mina Hsiang. [16] [17] [18] During the Biden administration, Hsiang led the United States Digital Digital Service in deploying a new website about COVID-19 vaccines, Vaccines.gov. [19]

In 2021, United States Digital Service employed 215 people and was looking to expand further. [20]

The Florida Digital Service, created in 2020, was modeled after the U.S. Digital Service. [21]

See also

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References

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  3. "FACT SHEET: Improving and Simplifying Digital Service". The White House. 2014-08-11. Retrieved 2015-04-19.
  4. Scola, Nancy (2014-08-11). "White House launches 'U.S. Digital Service,' with HealthCare.gov fixer at the helm". The Washington Post. Retrieved 2015-04-19.
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  6. Shear, Michael D (August 11, 2014). "White House Picks Engineer From Google to Fix Sites". The New York Times . Retrieved April 19, 2015.
  7. "Digital Services Playbook". U.S. Chief Information Officers Council.
  8. "Draft Web Design Standards". United States Web Design System.
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  11. "Discovery Sprint Guide". U.S. Digital Service. Retrieved November 24, 2021.
  12. "United States Digital Service". United States Digital Service. Retrieved April 18, 2018.
  13. Levy, Steven (January 18, 2017). "The Final Days of Obama's Tech Surge". Wired Magazine. Retrieved November 10, 2018.
  14. Brill, Stephen (February 17, 2014). "Obama's Trauma Team". Time Magazine. Retrieved April 19, 2015. (subscription required)
  15. Cutts, Matt (April 14, 2021). "The Next Chapter for USDS". U.S. Digital Service. Retrieved August 20, 2021.
  16. "Office of Management and Budget Announces Mina Hsiang As New Administrator of the United States Digital Service". The White House. September 2, 2021. Retrieved October 5, 2021.
  17. "Mina Hsiang appointed USDS administrator". FedScoop. September 2, 2021. Retrieved October 5, 2021.
  18. "Introducing the Administrator of the U.S. Digital Service: Mina Hsiang". U.S. Digital Service. September 2, 2021. Retrieved October 5, 2021.
  19. "Exclusive: New boss for government's tech "SWAT team"". September 2, 2021.
  20. "Great Resignation boosts White House's tech talent hunt". January 18, 2022.
  21. Wood, Colin (2020-08-13). "Florida State Rep. James Grant to become state's new CIO". StateScoop. Retrieved 2024-05-08.
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