XBRL US submitted a letter commenting on the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) – Proposed Designation of Databases for Treasury’s Working System Under the Do Not Pay Initiative. The OMB proposal would add 12 databases to the DoNotPay (DNP) web portal, which federal agencies use to evaluate, track, and monitor the individuals and organizations receiving payment, as well as the payments being made. One of the proposed data sources to be added is the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Electronic Data Gathering and Retrieval (EDGAR) System. Given that much of the data reported to the SEC is in structured (XBRL) format, we proposed that now is the time for federal agencies to adopt data standards for all data used in the DNP initiative. Structured, machine-readable data would ensure that agencies have access to the most timely, accurate, consistent data. In our letter, we noted,
“The U.S. government collects data from millions of entities including individuals, businesses, and governments. Leveraging this vast pool of information to protect against underpayments and overpayments, mistakes, and potentially fraud, is an important and worthwhile initiative, not only for the U.S. government but for the various entities entitled to payment. The Treasury proposal to include an additional 12 databases in the DNP web portal, could increase its value by providing more resources through which agencies can evaluate, track, and monitor the individuals and organizations receiving payment, and the payments being made.”
“As a data standards consortium, we recognize that the DNP web portal can only be effective if the data it provides to agencies is clean, accurate, consistent, and current. We also understand the challenges of collecting data, and in particular, of combining multiple sources of information.
The Treasury plan to add 12 more databases into DNP highlights the need, and poses an opportunity, to vastly increase the efficiency of the system through data standards.“
Read the letter: XBRL US Comment on DoNotPay Initiative 2_22_2021
