Deputy Secretary Letter on DOT Open Government Plan 2.0

Introductory Letter from DOT Deputy Secretary John D. Porcari on DOT Open Government Plan 2.0

Dated April 12, 2012

I am pleased to present the 2012 Open Government Plan for the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT). This updated Plan is published in accordance with the President's January 21, 2009, Memorandum on Transparency and Open Government and the Office of Management and Budget's December 8, 2009, Open Government Directive.

Since the publication of the last Open Government Plan in 2010, DOT has made significant strides in laying the groundwork for increased transparency, participation and collaboration. We have begun institutionalizing an Open DOT culture by creating new policies, releasing more data and streamlining our Web sites. We have increased citizen participation, both in our key activities through the Regulation Room and through a series of online public dialogues. Within DOT, we have encouraged collaboration and innovation through IdeaHub, an ideation tool for
DOT employees.

In this updated 2012 Open Government Plan, we have advanced our commitment to openness and engagement by focusing our efforts on new initiatives and supporting activities that create
public value. We will continue to engage DOT employees, stakeholders and the public as we begin to implement the initiatives and activities proposed within this Plan. To meet the challenges of the future, DOT must continue to harness the ingenuity of the American people in new and innovative ways. With this Plan, we again embrace that vision.
Our flagship initiative is to launch a safety community on data.gov. This initiative will be an interagency project that will empower people to make informed decisions about safety. It will
make safety data from various government agencies easier to find.

We believe the updated 2012 Open Government Plan reflects the evolution of open government and public engagement at DOT. I am proud of our progress, and I look forward to future
innovation in the coming years through this Open Government Plan. We welcome your comments, and we encourage you to send feedback on this Plan to open@dot.gov.