Taking Another Look at the APIs and Data Available Across U.S. Federal Agencies

Kin Lane
Written by

Every couple of years I get motivated to take a fresh look at what is happening with APIs across the federal government. Since I worked for the Obama administration I have had a passion for understanding the state of, but also being an advocate for APIs in government. While there are plenty of things that frustrate me when it comes to government APIs, I also find that I am left pretty hopeful about what is happening across each of the federal agencies. Using the digital registry API I pulled a list of federal agencies, produced a cheat sheet for searching Google across a handful of terms, and got to work understanding where things are right now. I rated these agencies on a scale from 1-3, with three being a commitment to APIs evident, and 3 being no APis are found.

  • Access Board (3) - This is a very difficult one to search for due to the name. I see talk of doing APIs, but nothing really substantial.
  • Administration for Children and Families (ACF) (2) - APIs clearly aren’t a priority, but there is one, as well as a tone of amazing research that needs to be available.
  • Administration for Community Living** (2) - APIs clearly aren’t a priority, but there is one, as well as a tone of amazing research that needs to be available.
  • Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts** (2) - Pacer clearly is a priority, but lots of statistics, analysis, and other things that should be machine readable.
  • Advisory Council on Historic Preservation (ACHP) (3) - Nothing available, but they are working on their digital transformation.
  • Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) (2) - There was one API, and a whole bunch of valuable data and other resources available.
  • American Battle Monuments Commission (3) - No APIs, but there is data and an interesting database search that should be an API.
  • Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) (3) - No clear API efforts or even data, but APHIS should be an API, revealing all the data they have.
  • Architect of the Capitol (AOC) (3) - Nothing to show. Not even any data. Very sad.
  • Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) (3) - Lots of data that should be available via APIs, but isn’t easily accessible today.
  • Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) (1) - They get it and have lots of API and other tool driven access to their data.
  • Bureau of Engraving and Printing (BEP) (3) - No APIs. No data. Nothing of interest here. Sad.
  • Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) (3) - Lots of good data out there, with some great tools, but no first class APIs available.
  • Bureau of Indian Affairs and Bureau of Indian Education (3) - Nothing to see here. Couldn’t find any APIs, data, or tools for accessing resources.
  • Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) (3) - A data portal, but not much else. Seems like this would be a huge opportunity to me.
  • Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) (1) - They have a proper developer and data portals to make their work available.
  • Bureau of Land Management (BLM) (2) - They have an API, it has a PDF doorway, but it is there. Also a wealth of data resources to be mined (pun intended).
  • Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) (3) - Clearly have the data, but there isn’t any API activity to be found.
  • Bureau of Reclamation (1) - Wouldn’t call it a modern API, but they have APIs, as well as lots of valuable data.
  • Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement (BSEE) (3) - No APIs, but they have a lot of data that should be made available via simple Apis.
  • Bureau of the Census (1) - Census gets it and has a robust set of data and APIs to support what is needed.
  • Bureau of Transportation Statistics (BTS) (3) - No APIs, but lots of data that should be made available via APIs.
  • Center for Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships (CFBNP) (3) - No APIs, data, or anything else to be found.
  • Center for Nutrition Policy and Promotion (CNPP) (3) - Lots of valuable data, but nothing available as APIs to people to use.
  • Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) (1) - There are several APIs available, and a wealth of data that should be available via APIs.
  • Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) (1) - Proper set of APIs and data portal to make valuable data and information available.
  • **Commission on Civil Rights (USCCR) ** (3) - Some data showing, but no APIs to make things accessible.
  • Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) (3) - Lots of good data, no APIs to be found of any kind.
  • Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (1) - The CFPB gets it and is making data available via APIs as well as data.
  • Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) (2) - They have a simple API, but also lots of valuable data that should be available via APIs.
  • Corporation for National and Community Service (CNCS) (3) - Some data out there, but no first class APIs for anything.
  • Corps of Engineers–Civil Works (2) - They have a major API and they have a wealth of data that should also be available as APIs.
  • Courts of Appeals, District Courts, and other Judicial Services (3) - No APIs or data to be had.
  • Defense Commissary Agency (DeCA) (3) - No APIs or data to be had.
  • Defense Finance and Accounting Service (DFAS) (3) - No APIs or data to be had.
  • **Defense Human Resources Activity (DHRA)- **3No APIs or data to be had.
  • **Defense Information Systems Agency (DISA)- **3No APIs or data to be had.
  • **Defense Security Service (DSS)- **3No APIs or data to be had.
  • Department of Agriculture (USDA) (3) - The USDA gets it and has many APIs and data available for use programmatically.
  • Department of Commerce (1) - Commerce gets it and has a wealth of APIs and data available for us by developers.
  • Department of Defense (DOD) (1) - DOD gets it and has a dedicated API developer and data portals to get at resources.
  • Department of Education (ED) (2) - I see they took away their API portal, but still have a handful available and data sites.
  • Department of Energy (DOE) (2) - There is one API, and many groups within have APIs, but all of their data isn’t available via simple APIs.
  • Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) (1) - HHS has a dedicated developer and data area to get access to digital resources.
  • Department of Homeland Security (DHS) (1) - DHS has a dedicated developer and data portal to make resources available.
  • Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) (2) - Found a single API, but also a data portal which should be available as simple Apis.
  • Department of Justice (DOJ) (1) - DOJ has a dedicated developer and data portal to make resources available.
  • Department of Labor (DOL) (1) - DOL has a dedicated API and their data available for working with programmatically.
  • Department of State (1) - State has a dedicated developer area and data informed strategy.
  • Department of the Air Force (3) - I couldn’t find any sign of APIs, but they have a rich portal of data available.
  • Department of the Army (3) - I couldn’t find any signs of APIs or data available.
  • Department of the Interior (DOI) (1) - DOI has a dedicated developer area with a data portal as well for resources.
  • Department of the Navy (3) - I couldn’t find any signs of APIs or data available.
  • Department of the Treasury (2) - There are a handful of APIs and an open data portal available.
  • Department of Transportation (DOT) (1) - DOT has a dedicated developer area with a data portal as well for resources.
  • Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) (1) - The VA has it going on with their dedicated API and data portals making things accessible.
  • Economic Research Service (ERS) (1) - They have solid data APIs and have plenty of data products available for consumption.
  • Economics and Statistics Administration (ESA) (3) - I couldn’t find any signs of APIs or data available.
  • Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) (1) - The EPA has numerous APIs, as well as a robust data catalog for making resources available.
  • Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) (3) - Lots of data but no APIs to be found, which would help make things more accessible.
  • Farm Credit Administration (FCA) (3) - A little bit of data, but no APIs available.
  • Farm Service Agency (FSA) (3) - They have a little bit of data, but no APIs to be found.
  • Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) (1) - A dedicated API portal and a wealth of data available for access.
  • Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) (2) - A handful of APIs and open data that would be better available as an API.
  • Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) (3) - No APIs, but rich data tools and datasets that should be available via APIs.
  • Federal Election Commission (FEC) (1) - They have a great OpenFEC API, but not a lot of data that is easily available.
  • Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) (1) - They have an API and a rich set of datasets available for use by developers.
  • Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) (2) - They have a bunch of data and appear to have a submission API, but hard to find much else.
  • Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) (3) - Lots of good data, but no APIs to be had.
  • Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) (1) - They have a developer portal and data portal with some resources available.
  • Federal Reserve Board (3) - Data, but no APIs to be found.
  • Federal Retirement Thrift Investment Board (FRTIB) (3) - Looks like they pulled together a data plan, but no APIs or data to be found.
  • Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) (3) - A little bit of data but no APIs to be found that are easily found.)
  • Federal Trade Commission (FTC) (1) - Dedicated developer area, data, and visualizations available via APIs.
  • Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) (1) - They have a pretty robust data services setup with lots of data available.
  • Food and Drug Administration (FDA) (1) - They have a dedicated developer portal for the agency, and a data dashboard.
  • Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) (3) - They have a lot of data but couldn’t find any easy to use APIs.
  • Forest Service (2) - Lots of data and a handful of disparate APIs to use.
  • General Services Administration (GSA) (1) - Dedicated developer area and a data portal to access different resources.
  • Government Accountability Office (GAO) (3) - Lots of talk about data and governance, but no APIs or easy to find data.
  • Government Printing Office (3) - No data or APIs to be found.
  • Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) (1) - They have a developers area and a data portal for accessing resources.
  • Indian Health Service (IHS) (3) - They talk of having a data mart, but not much else to be seen.
  • Inter-American Foundation (IAF) (3) - They have some data reports, but no APIs or other data easily found.
  • Internal Revenue Service (IRS) (1) - They have an API and statistics, making their systems available.
  • Judicial Branch (3) - No APIs or data to be found.
  • Library of Congress (LOC) (1) - They have a set of APIs and datasets for research available.
  • Merit Systems Protection Board (MSPB) (3) - They have data available but no APIs.
  • Minority Business Development Agency (MBDA) (3) - Lots of data, but no APIs available to access any of it.
  • Missile Defense Agency (MDA) (3) - No data or APIs found.
  • National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) (1) - They have a robust API and data portal available for accessing resources.
  • National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) (1) - They have a developer area and data & statistics page.
  • National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) (1) - They have a dedicated developer portal and lots of data resources.
  • National Cancer Institute (2) - They have an API, and statistics data.
  • National Capital Planning Commission (NCPC) (3) - No data or APIs to be found.
  • National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) (1) - They have a data API and a data lab available for working with resources.
  • National Council on Disability (NCD) (3) - No data or APIs to be found.
  • National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) (3) - They have some datasets available but no APIs.
  • National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) (3) - They put together a plan, but don’t have any data or Apis.
  • National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency (NGA) (3) - No data or APIs to be found.
  • National Guard Bureau (3) - No data or APIs to be found.
  • National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) (2) - They have some APIs and datasets but no dedicated developer.
  • National Human Genome Research Institute (3) - There is a database, but no APIs or datasets to access.
  • National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) (1) - They have a couple of APIs and dedicated developer outreach.
  • National Institute on Drug Abuse (3) - Lots of data but no real Apis to any of it to work.
  • National Institutes of Health (NIH) (2) - They have a number of different APIs and lots of data that should be available via Apis.
  • National Library of Medicine (2) - Has a number of loose APIs and a dedicated data portal.
  • National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) (3) - No data or APIs to be found.
  • National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) (2) - Has some web services and data available for developers.
  • National Park Service (NPS) (1) - They have a pretty modern API, as well as tools, and different types of data.
  • National Science Foundation (NSF) (1) - Has a dedicated developer area, as well as data explorer, and open data to work with.
  • National Security Agency (NSA) (3) - No data or APIs to be found.
  • Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) (2) - There are some web services and data available but not any modern APIs.
  • Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) (1) - Has a dedicated developer area as well as a data portal.
  • Office of Government Ethics (USOGE) (3) - No data or APIs to be found.
  • Office of Management and Budget (3) - There is a lot of data, but no real APIs available for use.
  • Office of Personnel Management (OPM) (1) - They have a dedicated developer and data portals for accessing resources.
  • Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement (3) - No data or APIs to be found.
  • Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) (1) - They have a dedicated developer area as well as a section for statistics.
  • Office of the Director of National Intelligence (DNI) (3) - No data or APIs to be found.
  • Office of the United States Trade Representative (3) - They have some data, but no APIs or other resources.
  • Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) (1) - A dedicated developer area, API catalog, and rich sets of data.
  • Peace Corps (2) - They have some APIs and open data, but not any dedicated resources.
  • Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC). (2) - No APIs, but some data resources are available.
  • Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) (2) - They have some statistics, but no APIs are available.
  • Power Marketing Administration (3) - No data or APIs to be found.
  • Railroad Retirement Board (RRB) (3) - They have some data but there are no APIs available.
  • Risk Management Agency (RMA) (3) - No data or APIs to be found.
  • Saint Lawrence Seaway Development Corporation (SLSDC) (3) - No data or APIs to be found.
  • Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) (2) - They have one big API and a bunch of data available.
  • Selective Service System (SSS) (3) - No APIs, but they have some data in a portal.
  • Small Business Administration (SBA) (1) - They have a dedicated developer area, APIs, and a data portal to access resources.
  • Social Security Administration (SSA) (1) - They have a dedicated developer portal, APIs, and a data portal to access resources.
  • Social Security Advisory Board (3) - No data or APIs to be found.
  • Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) (3) - Lots of data, but no APIs available.
  • Transportation Security Administration (TSA) (2) - They have some APIs and data available.
  • U.S. Bankruptcy Courts (3) - No data or APIs to be found.
  • U.S. Court of Federal Claims (USCFC) (3) - Some reports and statistics but no APIs.
  • U.S. Court of International Trade (3) - No data or APIs to be found.
  • U.S. District Courts (3) - No data or APIs to be found.
  • U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) (1) - There is a developer portal, dashboard, and open data available.
  • U.S. Government Publishing Office (2) - They have one major API, but not much else.
  • U.S. International Development Finance Corporation (3) - There is a lot of data, but no aPIs or other resources.
  • U.S. Senate (2) - There is an API that is interesting, and statistics data, but not much else.
  • U.S. Sentencing Commission (USSC) (3) - Lots of data, but no real APIs to be found.
  • United States Agency for Global Media (USAGM) (3) - No data or APIs to be found.
  • United States Agency for International Development (USAID) (1) - They have a dedicated developer portal and data portal available for accessing resources.
  • United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) (1) - They have a dedicated developer portal as well as data, reports, and other resources.
  • United States Coast Guard (2) - They have a lot of APIs and data available, but no common developer portal.
  • United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit (3) - No data or APIs to be found.
  • United States Customs and Border Protection (CBP) (2) - They have a number of APIs, as well as statistics and other data.
  • United States Geological Survey (USGS) (2) - They have a bunch of aPIs as well as data available for accessing resources.
  • United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) (3) - No data or APIs to be found.
  • United States Postal Service (USPS) (1) - They have a dedicated web API tools and data for developers.
  • United States Sentencing Commission (3) - There is some data but no real APIs available for use.
  • Veterans Benefits Administration (VBA) (1) - There is a dedicated developer portal and APIs available.
  • Veterans Health Administration (VHA) (1) - There is a dedicated developer portal and APIs available.

I am making no assessment of each of the APIs, just whether or not the agency has made a commitment to doing APIs, centralizing developer resources, and moving beyond just publishing data. There were 49 agencies I gave a rating of 1 to, with 30 having a rating of 2, and 75 being in the 3 designation. There are some agencies who have no data and aPis, but there are many who have a wealth of data available, but just not seeing the aPI potential. I will write separately about the other thoughts I had throughout this assessment of federal government APIs.

I enjoy loading up this knowledge in my head. After doing this I really get a feel for agencies who have valuable data, and those who are investing in APIs. While I was disappointed to see agencies like the Department of Education rollback, I am still very happy to see 49 agencies make it into a rating of 1. I wish every agency had a dedicated developer as well as data portal, with parity between them when it comes to data for downloading, but also quick and easy APIs to use. At some point I am going to have to go back to producing this report in some sort of machine readable way, so that I can track whether or not we are moving forward or going backwards when it comes to government APIs.