Overview of Exchange Network Briefing for Tribal Lands and Environment Forum August 2016 Matt Leopard, Director Office of Information Management
Overview What is the Exchange Network? Partnership among the EPA, states, tribes and territories to exchange environmental data securely over the Internet Collaborative effort that uses technology, data standards, open-source software, shared services and reusable tools and applications to provide real-time access to high quality data Proven communication, data and services platform for sharing environmental information to foster informed environmental decision-making The Exchange Network is the place where States, Tribes, and EPA collaborate on technological innovations, solutions, and services The information Management/Technology foundation for E Enterprise 2
Key Elements Key Elements: Partnership among EPA, states, tribes and territories Joint governance model Data and technology standards Shared and reusable services Automated exchange capacity National grant program Program support for states and tribes Environmental Council of the States (ECOS) and Institute of Tribal Environmental Professionals (ITEP) Cross Media Electronic Reporting Rule (CROMERR) provides EN partners with standards for e-reporting 3
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Evolution of the EN Why the EN? Concept born out of Information Management Workgroup in 1998 to streamline data reporting from co-regulators to EPA to address: Burdensome, repetitive data entry - Data quality and reliability issues Inefficient processes for sharing data with EPA - More demands for money and staff Difficulty sharing data with other partners - Duplication of efforts across program areas EN governance structure and EN grant program established in 2002 Established the Exchange Network Leadership Council (ENLC) and subgroups Included representations from states, tribes, territories and EPA Phase 1 (completed 2012) focused on reporting to 10 of EPA s national priority data systems (AQS, ebeaches, EIS, FRS, ICIS-NPDES, RCRAInfo, SDWIS, TRIS, UIC, WQX) EN Governance reorganized in 2013 to develop innovative technologies Implementation Plan approved to guide the next phase of development EN governance formally merges with E-Enterprise for the Environment in 2015 5
Evolution of EN (cont.) Exchange Network provides technological foundation necessary to achieve critical E-Enterprise objectives 6
Governance Joint EPA / State / Territorial / Tribal governance Exchange Network governance has been partnership-led since inception Collaborative E-Enterprise governance structure modeled on EN paradigm E-Enterprise Leadership Council (EELC) E-Enterprise Executive Committee EE & EN Management Board (MB) EE & EN Interoperability and Operations Team (IOT) Cooperative Agreement with ECOS to provide program support for Exchange Network and E-Enterprise (EE) Cooperative Agreement with ITEP to provide program support for Exchange Network, Tribal outreach and TGG support Contractual support: ITS-BISS task order with ICF (subcontract with Ross Strategic) provides strategic analysis and facilitation Meeting and technical support and facilitation Technical documents and papers 7
EN Grant Program $10 million annual grant program $9 million for competitive grants $1 million for associated program support FY 2002 - FY 2015: 757 Grants worth $200 million awarded to all states, 74 tribes and five territories 163 grants worth $18 million are active Awards funds to states, tribes and territories to build infrastructure and applications needed to exchange and use environmental data Opportunities for collaborative projects Provides funds for tribal capacity building Full lifecycle management of EN grants in partnership with all ten regional offices Major elements of annual cycle: pre-award (solicitation notice, review panel meeting) post-award (financial monitoring, progress reporting) 8
Tribal Participation Special focus on tribal engagement Tribal sovereignty Resource constraints Infrastructure gaps Cooperative agreement established in 2013 with Institute for Tribal Environmental Professionals (ITEP) to expand tribal EN participation Stakeholder outreach Participation in EN governance Collaboration and mentoring EPA commits to awarding a minimum of 10% of its EN grant funds to tribes Through FY 2015, EPA awarded to tribes 168 grants worth $30 million (15% of the total amount of EN funds awarded over life of the program In FY 2016 we had 8 applications received from tribes requesting $2.9 million 6 applications from tribes recommended for funding ($2.2 million) Approximately 25% of FY16 available funding awarded to tribes 9
Current Priorities Expanding Network publishing (data owners making their information available to other partners on the Network using automated services) Developing applications and websites that analyze and/or display data from Exchange Network services Extending Network to include additional EPA data systems Expanding intra-partner data sharing with programs where EPA does not have a central data store (e.g., institutional controls for cleanup sites) Developing new technologies that make using the Network easier and less costly Expanding electronic reporting Building solutions by integrating data and technological services 10
Examples of Success Toxic Release Inventory (TRI) E-Permitting Pesticides Data Accessibility and Label Matching US EPA/National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) Data Transfer Tribal Emergency Response Application Northwest Indian Fisheries Commission 11
Challenges and Opportunities Challenges: Identifying objective performance metrics that better reflect Phase 2 goals Maintaining consistent level of operational program funds: significantly cut (more than 55% reduction since 2007) Ensuring smooth transition during OEI reorganization Opportunities: Leveraging EN technology and methodology to support E-Enterprise Developing new technology to improve services and business processes Expanding outreach to EN partners outside traditional framework to promote communication and technology transfer Making data available and usable for environmental decision makers Incorporating CIO vision and leadership 12
Exchange Network Questions? 13
Informational Resources EPA Exchange Network website http://www2.epa.gov/exchangenetwork ECOS Exchange Network website http://www.exchangenetwork.net/ Tribal Exchange Network website http://www.tribalexchangenetwork.org/ E-Enterprise website http://www.epa.gov/e-enterprise 14