Taking a Fresh Look at APIs Across All the United States Federal Agencies

It has been a while since I looked at the 250K view of what is going on with APIs across federal government agencies in the United States. Since working for the Obama administration in 2013 I am perpetually on a quest to map out what is happening across federal agencies, helping drive the conversation forward. I belieive APIs can make the most impact when our federal government helps lead the way, and I am looking to help push things forward in the following ways.

  • Keep mapping out the Federal Government API Landscape - I am determined to produce a map of the APIs that exist across federal agencies and keep the list alive and active.
  • Establish Public API Workspaces for Federal Agencies - I am looking to establish public API workspaces for agencies who are implementing APIs--helping do some work from the outside-in.
  • Refresh My Memory of What is Happening - I thrive on knowing what is going on across federal agencies, and doing these reviews pushes me to refresh my awarenss of APIs at this level.
  • Fire Up new Conversations - These sotries always rise up in the SEO game and bring in new conversations with folks who are doing interesting things with APIs in government.

I always learn a lot looking through the different government agencies. I learn even more wading through the different datasets, databases, and various incarnations of APIs. There is way too much work here than one person can handle, and much of what I come across labeled as an API really isn't an API, but could be with a little work. While doing these roundups I always reach a point where I feel like I am not doing enough, but ultimately I have to strike a balance between being comprehensive and just scratching the surface. Providing just enough information to allow me to plant seeds that might grow into new conversations down the road, while not spend all of my days sifting through the backwaters of federal government websites. This is my latest attempt to map out what is happenign with APIs across federal agencies in 2020, with some learnings and ongoing thought about what else can be done down below.


Administration for Children and Families (ACF)

The Administration for Children and Families is a division of the United States Department of Health and Human Services. It is headed by the Commissioner and Deputy Commissioner. It has a $49 billion budget for 60 programs that target children, youth and families. 

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APIs

Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ)

The Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality is one of twelve agencies within the United States Department of Health and Human Services. The agency is headquartered in North Bethesda, Maryland, a suburb of Washington, D.C.

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APIs

Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS)

The Agricultural Marketing Service is an agency within the United States Department of Agriculture, and has programs in five commodity areas: cotton and tobacco; dairy; fruit and vegetable; livestock and seed; and poultry.

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APIs

Agricultural Research Service (ARS)

The Agricultural Research Service is the principal in-house research agency of the United States Department of Agriculture. ARS is one of four agencies in USDA's Research, Education and Economics mission area.

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APIs

Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB)

The Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau, statutorily named the Tax and Trade Bureau and frequently shortened to TTB, is a bureau of the United States Department of the Treasury, which regulates and collects taxes on trade and imports of alcohol, tobacco, and firearms within the United States.

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Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS)

The Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service is an agency of the United States Department of Agriculture based in Riverdale, Maryland responsible for protecting animal health, animal welfare, and plant health.

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APIs

Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives

The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF, BATF, and BATFE) is a federal law enforcement organization within the United States Department of Justice.[4] Its responsibilities include the investigation and prevention of federal offenses involving the unlawful use, manufacture and possession of firearms and explosives; acts of arson and bombings; and illegal trafficking of alcohol and tobacco products. The ATF also regulates via licensing the sale, possession, and transportation of firearms, ammunition, and explosives in interstate commerce. Many of ATF's activities are carried out in conjunction with task forces made up of state and local law enforcement officers, such as Project Safe Neighborhoods. ATF operates a unique fire research laboratory in Beltsville, Maryland, where full-scale mock-ups of criminal arson can be reconstructed.

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Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS)

The Bureau of Industry and Security is an agency of the United States Department of Commerce that deals with issues involving national security and high technology. A principal goal for the bureau is helping stop the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction, while furthering the growth of United States exports.

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Bureau of International Labor Affairs (ILAB)

The Bureau of International Labor Affairs is an operating unit of the United States Department of Labor which manages the department's international responsibilities.

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APIs

Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS)

The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) is a unit of the United States Department of Labor. It is the principal fact-finding agency for the U.S. government in the broad field of labor economics and statistics and serves as a principal agency of the U.S. Federal Statistical System. The BLS is a governmental statistical agency that collects, processes, analyzes, and disseminates essential statistical data to the American public, the U.S. Congress, other Federal agencies, State and local governments, business, and labor representatives. The BLS also serves as a statistical resource to the Department of Labor, and conducts research into how much families need to earn to be able to enjoy a decent standard of living.

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APIs

Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM)

The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management is an agency within the United States Department of the Interior, established in 2010 by Secretarial Order.

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Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM)

Welcome to the Data Center. Here, users can access public information and data pertaining to the appropriate subject matter. Data are available via online queries, as well as downloadable PDF reports, ASCII files, and scanned documents available in PDF format. Some files are available for purchase on CD/DVD/Blu-Ray media. Information may be cross referenced among different subjects.

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Bureau of Reclamation

The United States Bureau of Reclamation (USBR), and formerly the United States Reclamation Service, is a federal agency under the U.S. Department of the Interior, which oversees water resource management, specifically as it applies to the oversight and operation of the diversion, delivery, and storage projects that it has built throughout the western United States for irrigation, water supply, and attendant hydroelectric power generation.

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APIs

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is a national public health institute in the United States. It is a United States federal agency, under the Department of Health and Human Services, and is headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia.

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APIs

Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services

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The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), previously known as the Health Care Financing Administration (HCFA), is a federal agency within the United States Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) that administers the Medicare program and works in partnership with state governments to administer Medicaid, the State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP), and health insurance portability standards. In addition to these programs, CMS has other responsibilities, including the administrative simplification standards from the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA), quality standards in long-term care facilities (more commonly referred to as nursing homes) through its survey and certification process, clinical laboratory quality standards under the Clinical Laboratory Improvement Amendments, and oversight of HealthCare.gov.

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APIs

Code.gov

Code.gov leverages the power of code sharing and collaboration to help the US Government cut down on duplicative software development and save millions of taxpayer dollars for the American people.

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APIs

Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB)

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The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) is an independent agency of the United States government responsible for consumer protection in the financial sector. Its jurisdiction includes banks, credit unions, securities firms, payday lenders, mortgage-servicing operations, foreclosure relief services, debt collectors and other financial companies operating in the United States.

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APIs

Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC)

The United States Consumer Product Safety Commission is an independent agency of the United States government. The CPSC seeks to promote the safety of consumer products by addressing “unreasonable risks” of injury; developing uniform safety standards; and conducting research into product-related illness and injury.

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APIs

Corporation for National and Community Service (CNCS)

The Corporation for National and Community Service is an independent agency of the United States government that engages more than five million Americans in service through AmeriCorps, Senior Corps, the Volunteer Generation Fund, and other national service initiatives.

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APIs

Department of Agriculture

USDA is committed to providing safe and nutritious food, conservation, sustainable food production and revitalizing rural America.

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APIs

Department of Commerce

Commerce.gov is the official website of the United States Department of Commerce and Secretary of Commerce.

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APIs

Department of Defense

Established in 1949, the U.S. Department of Defense is America's oldest and largest government agency. Secretary of Defense Ash Carter currently heads the organization which employs over 1.4 million active duty service members and 1.1 million National Guard.

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Department of Education

Welcome to my page. If you're looking for the official source of information about the U.S. Department of Education, please visit our homepage at www.ed.gov.

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APIs

Department of Energy

Building the new clean energy economy. Reducing nuclear dangers & environmental risks. Expanding the frontiers of knowledge via scientific research.

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Department of Health and Human Services (HHS)

The United States Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), also known as the Health Department, is a cabinet-level department of the U.S. federal government with the goal of protecting the health of all Americans and providing essential human services. Its motto is "Improving the health, safety, and well-being of America".[3] Before the separate federal Department of Education was created in 1979, it was called the Department of Health, Education, and Welfare (HEW).

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APIs

Department of Homeland Security

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is a cabinet department of the United States federal government, created in response to the September 11 attacks, and with the primary responsibilities of protecting the United States and its territories (including protectorates) from and responding to terrorist attacks, man-made accidents, and natural disasters. The Department of Homeland Security, and not the United States Department of the Interior, is equivalent to the Interior ministries of other countries. 

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APIs

Department of Housing and Urban Development

The United States Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) is a Cabinet department in the Executive branch of the United States federal government. Although its beginnings were in the House and Home Financing Agency, it was founded as a Cabinet department in 1965, as part of the "Great Society" program of President Lyndon Johnson, to develop and execute policies on housing and metropolises.

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Department of Justice

The United States Department of Justice (DOJ), also known as the Justice Department, is the U.S. federal executive department responsible for the enforcement of the law and administration of justice, equivalent to the justice or interior ministries of other countries. The Department is led by the Attorney General, who is nominated by the President and confirmed by the Senate and is a member of the Cabinet. The current Attorney General is Eric Holder.

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APIs

Department of Labor

The United States Department of Labor (DOL) is a cabinet-level department of the U.S. federal government responsible for occupational safety, wage and hour standards, unemployment insurance benefits, re-employment services, and some economic statistics; many U.S. states also have such departments. The department is headed by the U.S. Secretary of Labor.

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APIs

Department of State

The United States Department of State (DoS),[3] often referred to as the State Department, is the United States federal executive department responsible for international relations of the United States, equivalent to the foreign ministry of other countries. The Department was created in 1789 and was the first executive department established.

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APIs

Department of the Interior

The United States Department of the Interior (DOI) is the United States federal executive department of the U.S. government responsible for the management and conservation of most federal land and natural resources, and the administration of programs relating to American Indians, Alaska Natives, Native Hawaiians, territorial affairs, and insular areas of the United States.

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APIs

Department of the Treasury

The Department of the Treasury (DoT) is an executive department and the treasury of the United States federal government. It was established by an Act of Congress in 1789 to manage government revenue. The Department is administered by the Secretary of the Treasury, who is a member of the Cabinet. Jack Lew is the current Secretary of the Treasury; he was sworn in on February 28, 2013.

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APIs

Department of Transportation

The United States Department of Transportation (USDOT or DOT) is a federal Cabinet department of the U.S. government concerned with transportation. It was established by an act of Congress on October 15, 1966, and began operation on April 1, 1967. It is governed by the United States Secretary of Transportation.

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APIs

Department of Veterans Affairs (VA)

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The United States Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) is a government-run military veteran benefit system with Cabinet-level status. With a total 2009 budget of about $87.6 billion, VA employs nearly 280,000 people at hundreds of Veterans Affairs medical facilities, clinics, and benefits offices and is responsible for administering programs of veterans’ benefits for veterans, their families, and survivors. In 2012, the proposed budget for Veterans Affairs was $132 billion.[1] The VA 2014 budget request for 2014 was $152.7 billion. This included $66.5 billion in discretionary resources and $86.1 billion in mandatory funding. The discretionary budget request represented an increase of $2.7 billion, or 4.3 percent, over the 2013 enacted level.

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APIs

Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA)

The Drug Enforcement Administration is a United States federal law enforcement agency under the United States Department of Justice, tasked with combating drug trafficking and distribution within the United States.

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Economic Development Administration (EDA)

The U.S. Economic Development Administration (EDA) is an agency in the United States Department of Commerce that provides grants and technical assistance to economically distressed communities in order to generate new employment, help retain existing jobs and stimulate industrial and commercial growth through a variety of investment programs.

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Economic Research Service

USDA is committed to providing safe and nutritious food, conservation, sustainable food production and revitalizing rural America.Comment Policy: http://www.usda.gov/newmedia

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APIs

Election Assistance Commission (EAC)

The Election Assistance Commission is an independent agency of the United States government created by the Help America Vote Act of 2002. The Commission serves as a national clearinghouse and resource of information regarding election administration.

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Employment and Training Administration (ETA)

The Employment and Training Administration is part of the U.S. Department of Labor. Its mission is to provide training, employment, labor market information, and income maintenance services.

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Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)

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The United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA or sometimes USEPA) is an agency of the U.S. federal government which was created for the purpose of protecting human health and the environment by writing and enforcing regulations based on laws passed by Congress. The EPA was proposed by President Richard Nixon and began operation on December 2, 1970, after Nixon signed an executive order. The order establishing the EPA was ratified by committee hearings in the House and Senate. The agency is led by its Administrator, who is appointed by the president and approved by Congress. The current administrator is Gina McCarthy. The EPA is not a Cabinet department, but the administrator is normally given cabinet rank.

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APIs

Farm Service Agency (FSA)

The Farm Service Agency is the United States Department of Agriculture agency that was formed by merging the farm loan portfolio and staff of the Farmers Home Administration and the Agricultural Stabilization and Conservation Service.

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APIs

Federal Aviation Administration (FAA)

The Federal Aviation Administration is the largest modern transportation agency and a governmental body of the United States with powers to regulate all aspects of civil aviation in that nation as well as over its surrounding international waters.

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Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI)

The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is the domestic intelligence and security service of the United States, which simultaneously serves as the nation's prime federal law enforcement agency. Operating under the jurisdiction of the U.S. Department of Justice, the FBI is concurrently a member of the U.S. Intelligence Community and reports to both the Attorney General and the Director of National Intelligence. A leading U.S. counterterrorism, counterintelligence, and criminal investigative organization, the FBI has jurisdiction over violations of more than 200 categories of federal crimes.

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APIs

Federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP)

The Federal Bureau of Prisons is a United States federal law enforcement agency under the Department of Justice responsible for the care, custody, and control of incarcerated individuals.

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Federal Communications Commission (FCC)

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The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is an independent agency of the United States government, created by Congressional statute (see 47 U.S.C. § 151 and 47 U.S.C. § 154) to regulate interstate and international communications by radio, television, wire, satellite, and cable in all 50 states, the District of Columbia and U.S. territories. The FCC works towards six goals in the areas of broadband, competition, the spectrum, the media, public safety and homeland security. The Commission is also in the process of modernizing itself.

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APIs

Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC)

The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation is one of two agencies that provide deposit insurance to depositors in U.S. depository institutions, the other being the National Credit Union Administration, which regulates and insures credit unions.

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APIs

Federal Election Commission (FEC)

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The Federal Election Commission is an independent regulatory agency of the United States whose purpose is to enforce campaign finance law in United States federal elections.

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APIs

Federal Emergency Management Agency

The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) is an agency of the United States Department of Homeland Security, initially created by Presidential Reorganization Plan No. 3 of 1978 and implemented by two Executive Orders on April 1, 1979. The agency's primary purpose is to coordinate the response to a disaster that has occurred in the United States and that overwhelms the resources of local and state authorities. The governor of the state in which the disaster occurs must declare a state of emergency and formally request from the president that FEMA and the federal government respond to the disaster. 

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APIs

Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC)

The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission is the United States federal agency that regulates the transmission and wholesale sale of electricity and natural gas in interstate commerce and regulates the transportation of oil by pipeline in interstate commerce.

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Federal Highway Administration (FHWA)

The FHWA, a USDOT agency, supports state and local governments in the design, construction and maintenance of the nation's highway system, and roads on federally and tribally owned lands.

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Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA)

The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) is an independent federal agency in the United States created as the successor regulatory agency of the Federal Housing Finance Board (FHFB), the Office of Federal Housing Enterprise Oversight (OFHEO), and the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development government-sponsored enterprise mission team,[2] absorbing the powers and regulatory authority of both entities, with expanded legal and regulatory authority, including the ability to place government sponsored enterprises (GSEs) into receivership or conservatorship.

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Federal Maritime Commission (FMC)

The United States Federal Maritime Commission is an independent federal agency based in Washington, D.C. that is responsible for the regulation of oceanborne international transportation of the U.S.

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Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA)

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration is an agency in the United States Department of Transportation that regulates the trucking industry in the United States. The primary mission of the FMCSA is to reduce crashes, injuries and fatalities involving large trucks and buses.

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APIs

Federal Reserve System

The Federal Reserve System is the central banking system of the United States of America. It was created on December 23, 1913, with the enactment of the Federal Reserve Act, after a series of financial panics led to the desire for central control of the monetary system in order to alleviate financial crises.

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APIs

Federal Student Aid (FAFSA)

The U.S. Department of Education's office of Federal Student Aid provides more than $120 billion in financial aid to help pay for college or career school each year.

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Federal Trade Commission (FTC)

The Federal Trade Commission is an independent agency of the United States government whose principal mission is the enforcement of civil U.S. antitrust law and the promotion of consumer protection.

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APIs

Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS)

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The United States Fish and Wildlife Service is an agency of the US federal government within the US Department of the Interior dedicated to the management of fish, wildlife, and natural habitats.

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APIs

FOIA.gov

The Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. § 552, is a federal freedom of information law that allows for the full or partial disclosure of previously unreleased information and documents controlled by the United States government. The Act defines agency records subject to disclosure, outlines mandatory disclosure procedures and grants nine exemptions to the statute. It was originally signed into law by President Lyndon B. Johnson, despite his misgivings, on July 4, 1966, and went into effect the following year.

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APIs

Food and Drug Administration

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA or USFDA) is an agency of the United States Department of Health and Human Services, one of the United States federal executive departments. The FDA is responsible for protecting and promoting public health through the regulation and supervision of food safety, tobacco products, dietary supplements, prescription and over-the-counter pharmaceutical drugs (medications), vaccines, biopharmaceuticals, blood transfusions, medical devices, electromagnetic radiation emitting devices (ERED), cosmetics and veterinary products.

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APIs

Food and Nutrition Service (FNS)

The Food and Nutrition Service is an agency of the United States Department of Agriculture. The FNS is the federal agency responsible for administering the nation’s domestic nutrition assistance programs. The service helps to address the issue of hunger in the United States.

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APIs

Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS)

The Food Safety and Inspection Service, an agency of the United States Department of Agriculture, is the public health regulatory agency responsible for ensuring that United States' commercial supply of meat, poultry, and egg products is safe, wholesome, and correctly labeled and packaged.

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Foreign Agricultural Service (FAS)

The Foreign Agricultural Service is the foreign affairs agency with primary responsibility for the United States Department of Agriculture's overseas programs — market development, international trade agreements and negotiations, and the collection of statistics and market information.

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APIs

Forest Service

To sustain the health, diversity, and productivity of the Nation’s forests and grasslands to meet the needs of present and future generations. At the heart of our agency’s mission is our purpose—the ultimate answer to why we do what we do. Everything we do—across our broad and diverse agency—is intended to help sustain forests and grasslands for present and future generations. Why? Because our stewardship work supports nature in sustaining life. This is the purpose that drives our agency’s mission and motivates our work across the agency. It’s been there from our agency’s very beginning, and it still drives us.

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APIs

General Services Administration (GSA)

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The General Services Administration (GSA) is an independent agency of the United States government, established in 1949 to help manage and support the basic functioning of federal agencies. The GSA supplies products and communications for U.S. government offices, provides transportation and office space to federal employees, and develops government-wide cost-minimizing policies, and other management tasks.

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APIs

HealthData.gov

Welcome to HealthData.gov! This site is dedicated to making high value health data more accessible to entrepreneurs, researchers, and policy makers in the hopes of better health outcomes for all. In a recent article, Todd Park, United States Chief Technology Officer, captured the essence of what the Health Data Initiative is all about and why our efforts here are so important.

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APIs

HistoryAtState

The Office of the Historian is an office of the United States Department of State within the Bureau of Public Affairs. The Office is responsible, under law, for the preparation and publication of the official historical documentary record of U.S. foreign policy in the Foreign Relations of the United States series. It researches and writes historical studies on aspects of U.S. diplomacy for use by policymakers in the Department and in other agencies as well for the public.

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Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS)

The Institute of Museum and Library Services is an independent agency of the United States federal government established in 1996.

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International Trade Administration (ITA)

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The International Trade Administration (ITA) strengthens the competitiveness of U.S. industry, promotes trade and investment, and ensures fair trade through the rigorous enforcement of our trade laws and agreements. ITA works to improve the global busi...

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APIs

Library of Congress (LOC)

The Library of Congress is the largest library in the world, with millions of books, recordings, photographs, newspapers, maps and manuscripts in its collections. The Library is the main research arm of the U.S. Congress and the home of the U.S. Copyright Office.

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APIs

Maritime Administration

The United States Maritime Administration is an agency of the United States Department of Transportation. Its programs promote the use of waterborne transportation and its seamless integration with other segments of the transportation system, and the viability of the U.S. merchant marine.

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Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC)

The Millennium Challenge Corporation is a bilateral United States foreign aid agency established by the U.S. Congress in 2004, applying a new philosophy toward foreign aid. It is an independent agency separate from the State Department and USAID.

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National Aeronautics and Space Administration

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) is the United States government agency that is responsible for the civilian space program as well as for aeronautics and aerospace research. President Dwight D. Eisenhower established the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) in 1958[5] with a distinctly civilian (rather than military) orientation encouraging peaceful applications in space science. The National Aeronautics and Space Act was passed on July 29, 1958, disestablishing NASA's predecessor, the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (NACA).

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APIs

National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS)

The National Agricultural Statistics Service is the statistical branch of the U.S. Department of Agriculture and a principal agency of the U.S. Federal Statistical System.

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APIs

National Archives and Records Administration

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The National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) is an independent agency of the United States government charged with preserving and documenting government and historical records and with increasing public access to those documents, which comprise the National Archives.[6] NARA is officially responsible for maintaining and publishing the legally authentic and authoritative copies of acts of Congress, presidential proclamations and executive orders, and federal regulations. The NARA also transmits votes of the Electoral College to Congress.

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APIs

National Center for Education Statistics (NCES)

The National Center for Education Statistics is the part of the United States Department of Education's Institute of Education Sciences that collects, analyzes, and publishes statistics on education and public school district finance information in the United States.

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APIs

National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency (NGA)

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The National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency is a combat support agency under the United States Department of Defense and a member of the United States Intelligence Community, with the primary mission of collecting, analyzing, and distributing geospatial intelligence in support of national security.

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APIs

National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST)

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The National Institute of Standards and Technology is a physical sciences laboratory and a non-regulatory agency of the United States Department of Commerce. Its mission is to promote innovation and industrial competitiveness.

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APIs

National Institutes of Health

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The National Institutes of Health (NIH) is a biomedical research facility primarily located in Bethesda, Maryland, USA. An agency of the United States Department of Health and Human Services, it is the primary agency of the United States government responsible for biomedical and health-related research. The NIH both conducts its own scientific research through its Intramural Research Program (IRP) and provides major biomedical research funding to non-NIH research facilities through its Extramural Research Program. With 1,200 principal investigators and more than 4,000 postdoctoral fellows in basic, translational, and clinical research, the IRP is the largest biomedical research institution on Earth, while, as of 2003, the extramural arm provided 28% of biomedical research funding spent annually in the US, or about US$26.4 billion.

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APIs

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)

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The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration is an American scientific agency within the United States Department of Commerce that focuses on the conditions of the oceans, major waterways, and the atmosphere.

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APIs

National Park Service (NPS)

This API is designed to provide authoritative National Park Service (NPS) data and content about parks and their facilities, events, news, alerts, and more. Explore the NPS API below and even try to make API calls. In order to try an API call, you'll need to click on the "Authorize" button below and add your API key. 

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APIs

National Renewable Energy Laboratory

The National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) is the nation's primary laboratory for renewable energy and energy efficiency research and development (R&D).

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APIs

National Science Foundation

The National Science Foundation (NSF) is a United States government agency that supports fundamental research and education in all the non-medical fields of science and engineering. Its medical counterpart is the National Institutes of Health. With an annual budget of about US$7.0 billion (fiscal year 2012), the NSF funds approximately 20% of all federally supported basic research conducted by the United States' colleges and universities. In some fields, such as mathematics, computer science, economics and the social sciences, the NSF is the major source of federal backing.

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APIs

National Security Agency (NSA)

The National Security Agency (NSA) is an intelligence organization of the United States government, responsible for global monitoring, collection, and processing of information and data for foreign intelligence and counterintelligence purposes – a discipline known as signals intelligence (SIGINT). NSA is concurrently charged with protection of U.S. government communications and information systems against penetration and network warfare.

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National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA)

The National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) is an agency of the United States Department of Commerce that serves as the President's principal adviser on telecommunications policies pertaining to the United States' economic and technological advancement and to regulation of the telecommunications industry.

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National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB)

The National Transportation Safety Board is an independent U.S. government investigative agency responsible for civil transportation accident investigation.

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Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS)

Natural Resources Conservation Service, formerly known as the Soil Conservation Service, is an agency of the United States Department of Agriculture that provides technical assistance to farmers and other private landowners and managers.

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APIs

Nuclear Regulatory Commission

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is an independent agency of the United States government, established by the Energy Reorganization Act of 1974, and began operations on January 19, 1975. As one of two successor agencies to the United States Atomic Energy Commission, the NRC's role is to protect public health and safety related to nuclear energy. It oversees reactor safety and security, reactor licensing and renewal, licensing of radioactive materials, radionuclide safety, and spent fuel management including storage, security, recycling, and disposal.

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APIs

Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA)

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration is a large regulatory agency of the United States Department of Labor that originally had federal visitorial powers to inspect and examine workplaces.

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Office of Justice Programs

The Office of Justice Programs (OJP) is an agency of the United States Department of Justice that focuses on crime prevention through research and development, assistance to state and local law enforcement and criminal justice agencies through grants, and assistance to crime victims.

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Office of Personnel Management

The United States Office of Personnel Management (OPM) is an independent agency of the United States government that manages the civil service of the federal government.

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APIs

Search.gov

Powering over 2,000 search boxes on Federal websites. It would be impossible to match the value of GSA’s Search service by procuring, building, and configuring a custom solution ourselves. With the combination of a very feature-rich search service and knowledgeable staff, this is the most appealing search tool for government websites.

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APIs

Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission is a large independent agency of the United States federal government that was created following the stock market crash in the 1920s to protect investors and the national banking system.

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Small Business Administration

The Small Business Administration (SBA) is a United States government agency that provides support to entrepreneurs and small businesses. The mission of the Small Business Administration is "to maintain and strengthen the nation's economy by enabling the establishment and viability of small businesses and by assisting in the economic recovery of communities after disasters". The agency's activities are summarized as the "3 Cs" of capital, contracts and counseling.

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APIs

Small Business Innovation Research

The Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) and Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) programs are highly competitive programs that encourage domestic small businesses to engage in Federal Research/Research and Development (R/R&D) with the potential for commercialization. Through a competitive awards-based program, SBIR and STTR enable small businesses to explore their technological potential and provide the incentive to profit from its commercialization. By including qualified small businesses in the nation's R&D arena, high-tech innovation is stimulated, and the United States gains entrepreneurial spirit as it meets its specific research and development needs.

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APIs

Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA)

The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA; pronounced /ˈsæmsə/) is a branch of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. It is charged with improving the quality and availability of treatment and rehabilitative services in order to reduce illness, death, disability, and the cost to society resulting from substance abuse and mental illnesses. The Administrator of SAMHSA reports directly to the Secretary of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. SAMHSA's headquarters building is located outside of Rockville, Maryland.

Links

Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA)

The Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) is a federally owned corporation in the United States created by congressional charter on May 18, 1933, to provide navigation, flood control, electricity generation, fertilizer manufacturing, and economic development to the Tennessee Valley, a region particularly affected by the Great Depression. Senator George W. Norris (R-Nebraska) was a strong sponsor of this project. TVA was envisioned not only as a provider, but also as a regional economic development agency that would use federal experts and rural electrification to help modernize the rural region's economy and society.

Links

U.S. Department of State Office of the Historian

The Office of the Historian is staffed by professional historians who are experts in the history of U.S. foreign policy and the Department of State and possess unparalleled research experience in classified and unclassified government records. The Office’s historians work closely with other federal government history offices, the academic historical community, and specialists across the globe. The Office is directed by The Historian of the U.S. Department of State.

Links

U.S. Geological Survey (USGS)

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The United States Geological Survey (USGS, formerly simply Geological Survey) is a scientific agency of the United States government. The scientists of the USGS study the landscape of the United States, its natural resources, and the natural hazards that threaten it. The organization has four major science disciplines, concerning biology, geography, geology, and hydrology. The USGS is a fact-finding research organization with no regulatory responsibility.

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APIs

United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS)

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services is an agency of the United States Department of Homeland Security that administers the country's naturalization and immigration system.

Links

United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE)

The U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement is a federal law enforcement agency under the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. ICE's stated mission is to protect the United States from the cross-border crime and illegal immigration that threaten national security and public safety.

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United States International Trade Commission (USITC)

The United States International Trade Commission is an independent, bipartisan, quasi-judicial, federal agency of the United States that provides trade expertise to both the legislative and executive branches.

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United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO)

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The United States Patent and Trademark Office (PTO or USPTO) is an agency in the U.S. Department of Commerce that issues patents to inventors and businesses for their inventions, and trademark registration for product and intellectual property identification. The USPTO is "unique among federal agencies because it operates solely on fees collected by its users, and not on taxpayer dollars". Its "operating structure is like a business in that it receives requests for services—applications for patents and trademark registrations—and charges fees projected to cover the cost of performing the services it provides.

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APIs

United States Postal Service (USPS)

The United States Postal Service is an independent agency of the executive branch of the United States federal government responsible for providing postal service in the United States, including its insular areas and associated states.

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APIs

USDA Rural Development (RD)

The United States Department of Agriculture, also known as the Agriculture Department, is the U.S. federal executive department responsible for developing and executing federal laws related to farming, forestry, rural economic development, and food.

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This represents about two days worth of work, which is also upon some work I've done over the years. There are definitely more APIs out there that I couldn't easily catalog, but I've begun setting up workspaces to help me continue building on this work in an ongoing, community driven way. This sprint is just meant to get all of these federal agencies loaded up in my brain again, stir up thoughts about what is happening, and push me to propose some next steps for specific agencies, but also the overall API conversation. After doing this work here are a few of my thoughts about what is going on and what might come next.

  • Growth In APIs - There are definitely more APIs that when I last looked across agencies, and there are some agencies you can tell have embraced an API way of doing things.
  • Lots of 404s - There are a lot of 404s when I look through legacy lists of APIs I was familiar with, and it can be tough to actually tell if there is anyone home behind some of the APIs.
  • Templates Matter - The agencies who have provided portal templates, and open blueprints for publishing APIs makes a big difference, making their APIs much more consistent and usable.
  • Swagger Usage Has Grown - There is a significant uptick in the usage of Swagger across agencies, including adoption of OpenAPI 3.0, demonstrating the value of the specifications across government APIs.
  • Huge Data Opportunity (As Always) - I included a link to any agency's data landing page because some of them have APIs I may not have indexed yet, but also because they represent the API opportunity across data.
  • Standardized API Management - The usage of API Umbrella by GSA and it's standardized usage across agencies has made an impact on working with APIs, and reduced friction when it comes to onboarding with APIs.

I went into this work fairly depressed about what I might find at the close of the current administration, but I left fairly optimistic about the work that is going on across agencies. Don't get me wrong, the overall API conversation across federal government is still in a pretty sad state. There is a massive wealth of data resources available, but discovery and integration with these datasets are not at all standardized, and there are few of the affordances we often take for granted in the private sector. I always view federal government as being a minimum of 5-10 years beyond what is going on in the private sector, but we are going to need a huge amount of investment in APIs across federal agencies if they are going to play catch up, let alone begin to lead in the API conversation.

Getting to Work on APIs Across Federal Agencies

I could spend months profiling the APIs that exist across the agencies profiled above. I could spend 1000x that amount of time turning the data resources available across these federal agencies into APIs. I have begun setting up workspaces for the agencies who had Swagger and OpenAPI available, while also allowing me to begin reverse engineering some of the easier APIs using Postman Interceptor -- helping me create collections and OpenAPIs just by using an API. I will be spending time each week working within the public workspace fore each of the federal agencies and begin setting up new workspaces for some of the other agencies. I finally have the time, resources, and the platform to begin making a dent in this work. Historically I have been profiling APIs for federal agencies, but it was more just about bookmarking whatever I have found and organizing them into lists. Now, with Postman public workspaces I can conduct this work out in the open while also potentially sharing the load with the community, while getting more precise in how I define and map out each of the APIs using the Postman platform.

GitHub has made a massive impact on the federal government over the last decade and I am confident that Postman public workspaces are going to take the API conversation across federal agencies to similar levels. I can keep mapping out the APIs that exist, which is something I will keep doing, but I also want to provide resources to help the people doing the hard-work behind these APIs and datasets understand the benefits of publishing consistent, simple, and usable APIs by default. There is too much work out there for use to do after the fact, or from the outside-in. Ultimately we need the stewards of all of this valuable information to be API literate, understanding what is possible when we are publishing APIs in a consistent way, and help them get beyond talking about it, and actually doing it. It is extremely important that federal agencies not just do APIs across the board, but also be there to lead conversations. Similar to what we are seeing with the Fast Healthcare Interoperability Resources (FHIR). While there is still a huge amount of work to be done here, the API specification is finally seeing the type of industry wide adoption needed to make an impact on the healthcare space. We need to begin doing this for every other industry, helping stabilize and standardize the API conversation across all of the top business sectors. The most important investment our federal government can make in the next administration is to invest in API education and training across the board, taking the lead when it comes to the valuable resources our economy need to stay ahead of the curve.