Via e-mail: 

Nicholas Fraser 

nfraser@omb.eop.gov 

Karen Evans 

Administrator, Office of E-Government and Information Technology 

Office of Management and Budget 

Washington, DC 20503 

Ms. Evans: 

As required in OMB memorandum M-07-20, “FY 2007 E-Government Act Reporting 

Instructions,” attached is the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission’s FY 2007 

Annual E-Government Act Report. 

Should you have any questions, or require additional information, please contact Daniel 

Lisewski, Chief, Information Resources Management at Lisewskid@sec.gov , or at (202) 

551-8138. 

Sincerely, 

/original signed by/ 

R. Corey Booth 

Chief Information Officer 

Office of Information Technology 

U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission 

Attachment: 

U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission FY 2007 E-Government Act Report 
Attachment 

FY 2007 E-Government Act Report for the 

U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission 

Section 1 – Implementation of Electronic Government Initiatives 

XBRL Interactive Data Initiative 

The SEC supports the goals of the E-Government Act of 2002 by using technology to 

enhance the access to and delivery of government information and services to citizens, 

businesses, and other federal agencies. One SEC initiative that underscores the SEC’s 

commitment to a core fundamental goal of the E-Government Act is the eXtensible 

Business Reporting Language (XBRL) Interactive Data Initiative. 

A. How the Initiative is Transforming Agency Operations. 

The SEC’s XBRL Interactive Data Initiative is transforming the SEC’s operations on 

several fronts. For example, the initiative will increase access to information in the 

financial market place by transforming the manner in which individual investors, 

financial intermediaries, analysts, the financial media, and others access, use, and 

understand the wealth of financial disclosure information filed with the SEC. By 

providing a fast and easy way to extract, analyze, and compare financial information, 

the initiative has the potential to create a more informed investor base. In addition, 

analysts and the financial media will benefit through more efficient search, and more 

enhanced comparison capabilities. 

Also, companies preparing financial reports in XBRL will benefit from being able to 

communicate their financial results more effectively, and at a reduced cost. 

Regulators and the SEC will benefit from the ability to process information far more 

comprehensively, quickly, and accurately. We expect that our internal disclosure 

reviews for regulatory and enforcement purposes will also become more efficient and 

effective. 

Below are two examples of how the XBRL Interactive Data Initiative is transforming 

SEC operations to enhance the access to and delivery of government information and 

services to the public. 

Interactive Financial Report Reviewer 

To stimulate software development for the viewing and analysis of tagged data, 

the SEC released a prototype of an XBRL tool in FY 2007. The Interactive 

Financial Report Reviewer and its source code are available free on the SEC’s 

website at the following URL http://216.241.101.197/viewer. 

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Executive Compensation Viewer 

In addition to the Interactive Financial Report Viewer, the SEC’s Executive 

Compensation Viewer will make it easier for investors to get information on 

compensation paid to executives at public companies. The Executive 

Compensation Viewer provides investors with a clearer and more complete 

picture of the compensation earned by a company’s principal executive officer, 

principal financial officer and highest paid executive officers and members of its 

board of directors. 

The following link Spotlight On: Interactive Data and XBRL Initiatives provides 

additional information on how the SEC’s XBRL Interactive Data Initiative is 

transforming SEC operations. 

B. Maintaining a Dialogue with Interested Parties to Find Innovative Ways to Use 

Information Technology for the E-Government Initiative. 

The SEC maintains continuous dialogue with the national and international 

community on the XBRL Interactive Data Initiative. For example, the SEC 

encourages additional companies to participate in the interactive data initiative by 

joining the XBRL financial reporting test group (http://www.sec.gov/cgibin/voluntary-form). In addition, http://www.sec.gov/spotlight/xbrl.htm, which is the 

SEC’s Interactive Data Spotlight Page, provides additional examples of how the SEC 

maintains dialogue with interested parties about the XBRL Interactive Data Initiative. 

C. Collaborating with External Partners on the Initiative. 

The SEC uses a variety of forums and other methods to collaborate and communicate 

with its public partners who are involved in the XBRL Interactive Data Initiative. For 

example, the SEC conducts interactive data roundtables comprised of investors, 

issuers, auditors, analysts, technology professionals, regulators, and others. The 

roundtables serve as a forum to discuss interactive data initiatives that can benefit 

investors. The roundtables also provide the SEC the opportunity to learn from 

investors and other users of financial information how the SEC can improve its 

disclosure program. In addition, the SEC: 

• Makes routine public statements and speeches regarding the initiative and its 

significance to the financial community. 

• Issues routine press releases regarding the initiative. 

• Sponsors a voluntary interactive data test group. 

Additional information and more details on how the SEC collaborates with external 

partners on the initiative are at http://www.sec.gov/spotlight/xbrl.htm. 

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D. Improving Program Performance in Achieving Agency Objectives and Strategic 

Goals. 

An essential IT strategic objective of the SEC is to improve the effectiveness of 

agency programs and processes. The XBRL Interactive Data Initiative supports 

Initiative 1C - Electronic Disclosure. Specific goals of the strategic objective are to: 

• Improve the way the SEC collects information from registrants, internally 

processes and reviews the information, and enables the public to use the 

information for investment and educational purposes. 

• Improve the usability of the information filed with the SEC (for example, by 

converting more of it to interactive data formats). 

• Improve the ability for internal and external users to access and analyze the 

data. 

The Interactive Data Initiative will make disclosures more useful to investors, and 

will enable the public to quickly find and sort through vast amounts of SEC-mandated 

disclosure information and data, which is not possible with today’s technology. In 

addition, companies participating in our XBRL pilot program have told us that the 

substantial benefits of implementing XBRL will exceed the minimal costs to 

implement it. In addition to providing information that is far more useful to investors, 

the SEC believes that the use of interactive data will make companies’ internal 

processes more efficient, saving investors’ dollars for the costs of registration and 

compliance reporting to the SEC. In turn, the use of interactive data will make the 

SEC’s internal disclosure reviews more effective and productive. 

E. Achieving Cost Savings and Avoidances by Reducing or Eliminating IT 

Investments 

The XBRL Interactive Data Initiative is intended, in part, to stimulate software 

development for the viewing and analysis of tagged data. The SEC has released, on 

its public website, several free software prototypes and the related source code to 

encourage the marketplace to create additional software with more extensive features. 

The SEC recognizes that by not competing with the private market and private 

software developers, it will transfer the costs for developing the technology to the 

commercial sector, thereby, reducing the need for the SEC to unnecessarily: 

• Make large IT investments in developing software for the initiative. 

• Compete with popular financial websites. 

• Become a financial information portal to the Web. 

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In addition, it is widely recognized that the XBRL Interactive Data Initiative will 

serve as a driver to help modernize the government’s processes for compliance 

reporting, which in turn will make the process for registration and compliance 

reporting to the SEC more efficient, less costly to investors’ and taxpayers. The SEC 

also expects that the initiative will generate internal efficiencies and make the SEC’s 

disclosure and compliance reviews more effective and productive. 

F. Availability of SEC Information and Services for all Citizens. 

The SEC is committed to providing Agency information and services to all citizens, 

including those without access to the Internet. The SEC assists the public requesting 

information from the SEC through its Public Reference Room. Members of the public 

can obtain copies of filings from the SEC Public Reference Room either by visiting in 

person or by submitting a request in writing via fax, e-mail, or postal mail. The SEC 

is also equipped with a TTY machine to receive inquiries from the hearing impaired. 

G. Capital Planning and Investment Control Procedures. 

The SEC has an established Capital Planning and Investment Control (CPIC) process, 

which requires that all IT investments follow a defined select, control and evaluate 

model as prescribed by the Clinger-Cohen Act and OMB Circular A-130. As with all 

SEC IT investments, the XBRL Interactive Data Initiative is subject to the policies 

and procedures required by the SEC’s IT investment select, control, and evaluate 

CPIC model. 

Section 2 – Agency Information Management Activities 

A. Information Resources Management (IRM) Strategic Plan 

Pursuant to OMB Memorandum M-06-02, “Improving Public Access to and 

Dissemination of Government Information and Using the Federal Enterprise 

Architecture Data Reference Model,” the SEC’s IT Strategic Plan is accessible from 

the SEC’s website: http://www.sec.gov/about/secitstratplan2007-12.pdf 

B. Public Access to Electronic Information 

To accomplish the SEC’s mission of protecting investors and maintaining fair, 

honest, and efficient markets, the SEC provides a wide variety of electronic 

information to members of the public. Beginning in the 1980s, the Commission’s 

Electronic Data Gathering, Analysis and Retrieval system (EDGAR) made corporate 

and financial information available to investors, the financial community, and other 

interested parties in a matter of minutes after the information was filed. Since that 

time, the Commission has proactively disseminated useful and timely information to 

the public through the SEC website and through other mechanisms. 

Since the September 2004 requirement for identifying, prioritizing, and scheduling 

the publication of information to the public via the Internet, the SEC has continued to 

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publish an inventory of Commission information on the SEC’s website, including the 

priorities and schedules for making the information available and accessible. 

Determining the availability of SEC information 

The SEC’s prioritizes information and makes it available based upon how timesensitive it is. The SEC uses the following criteria to determine how quickly to post 

information to the SEC website: 

 Urgent and time-sensitive information is Priority 1 and is typically posted within 

minutes of receipt; 

 Time-sensitive information is Priority 2 and is typically posted within an hour of 

receipt; 

 Information frequently requested by the public is Priority 3 and typically is 

posted the same day it is received; 

 Other information that may be useful is Priority 4 and typically is posted within 

24 hours of receipt. 

To ensure that users of the site do not overlook newly posted material, a “What’s 

New” page on the SEC website highlights new information. The SEC updates the 

page daily. Additionally, the SEC has developed RSS (Really Simple Syndication) 

feeds on the public website (http://www.sec.gov/info/edgar/ednews/xbrlrss.htm) 

for several of the most popular and frequent information types, including Press 

Releases, Administrative Proceedings, Litigation Releases, and News Digests. RSS is 

a simple system based on XML (eXtensible Markup Language) that notifies and 

delivers desired information to users. With RSS, users can immediately get updates to 

information that the SEC makes public. 

Priorities and schedules for information availability 

The table below includes categories of information representative of the SEC’s 

website content, and the publication priorities assigned to the categories. This 

information is available to the public on the SEC’s website: 

http://www.sec.gov/about/inventory.shtml. 

Type of Document Priority Level 

News & Public Statements 

News Digest 1 

Press Releases 1 

Speeches and Public Statements 3 

Congressional Testimony 3 

Webcasts 1 

Special Studies 4

SEC Strategic Plan 1

SEC Conference Materials 4 

Regulatory and Rulemaking Matters 

Proposed Rules 2 

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Type of Document Priority Level 

Final Rules 2 

Concept Releases 2 

Interpretive Releases 2 

Policy Statements 2 

PCAOB Rulemaking 2 

Self-Regulatory Organization Rulemaking 3 

Exchange Act Exemptive Applications 4 

Exemptive Orders 4 

Public Petitions for Rulemaking 4 

SEC Rules of Practice 4 

Staff Interpretations 

Staff Accounting Bulletins 3 

Staff Legal Bulletins 3 

Staff No Action, Interpretive and Exemptive Letters 3 

Frequently Asked Questions and Staff Guidance 4 

Litigation 

Litigation Releases - Federal Court Actions 2 

Administrative Proceedings - Notices & Settlements 2 

ALJ Initial Decisions & Orders 2 

Reports of Investigations 2 

Commission Opinions & Orders 2 

Trading Suspensions 1 

Appellate Briefs 3 

Disgorgement Plans 3 

EDGAR 

Filings 1 

EDGAR News 2 

EDGAR Filer Manual 2 

EDGAR Filer Guidance 2 

Investor Information 

Questions: Get Fast Answers 2 

Online Publications 2 

SEC en Español 2 

Mutual Fund Fee Calculators 2 

Check Out Brokers and Advisors 2 

File a Tip or Complaint 2 

Investors Claims Funds 2 

Investor Education Links 2 

Additional Matters 

Job Listings 4 

Government Performance and Results Act Reports 4 

Annual FAIR Act Inventories 4 

FOIA Program 4 

Privacy Policy 4 

No FEAR Act 4 

No FEAR Act EEO Data 4 

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Type of Document Priority Level 

Whistleblower Protection Act Information 4 

Antidiscrimination Law Information 4 

Complaints of Employment Discrimination 4 

Data Quality Guidelines 4 

Organizational Structure 4 

SEC Mission and Statutory Authority 4 

SEC Annual Reports 4 

Small Business Information 4 

Site Map 4 

C. Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) 

In response to the requirements of Executive Order 13392, “Improving Agency 

Disclosure of Information,” the SEC appointed a Chief FOIA Officer, established a 

FOIA Public Service Center, and designated FOIA Public Liaisons. 

 The Commission’s primary FOIA website is located at 

http://www.sec.gov/foia.shtml. Links to all of our FOIA information can be 

found there. A link to this important information is also conveniently located on 

the home page of the www.sec.gov site. 

 The public can quickly find information regarding how to make a FOIA request at 

http://www.sec.gov/foia/howfo2.htm. 

 Frequently requested FOIA documents can be found at 

http://www.sec.gov/foia/foiadocs.htm. 

D. Federally Funded Research and Development (R&D) Activities. 

The SEC does not fund Federal research and development (R&D) activities. 

E. Formal agency agreements with external entities to improve access to and 

dissemination of information to the public. 

In addition to the SEC’s public website www.sec.gov, the SEC continues to 

substantially enhance the public and private sector’s access to and use of Electronic 

Data Gathering, Analysis and Retrieval (EDGAR) data using multiple external 

sources, entities and commercial search engines. 

The National Securities Markets Improvement Act of 1996 required the Commission, 

in part, to promote the rapid dissemination of, and access to, corporate disclosure 

material electronically filed by public companies with the SEC. 

The SEC’s privatization of the EDGAR Public Dissemination Service (PDS) data 

feed continues to facilitate wide availability of EDGAR data to the public from 

numerous non-governmental entities and subscribers, which include EDGAR Online; 

Yahoo!; and Thomson Financial, to name a few. Presently, hundreds of thousands of 

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citizens obtain data derived from filings to the EDGAR system on a regular and 

timely basis from private sector information providers who receive primary or 

secondary access to the SEC’s EDGAR data feed. The following link 

http://www.sec.gov/info/edgar/ednews/dissemin.htm provides additional information 

on the SEC’s privatized PDS feed, and the various subscribers who access the feed. 

In addition, the SEC is taking other steps to ensure that information is widely 

disseminated to investors and the public. For example: 

 Interactive Financial Report Viewer: The SEC is providing a new generation of 

“interactive” investor tools available through the SEC’s website, 

http://www.sec.gov/spotlight/xbrl/xbrlwebapp.htm. By using the Interactive 

Financial Report Viewer, investors can view and analyze companies’ financials 

filed in EDGAR using XBRL. The software tool are available to the public free of 

charge. 

 Really Simple Syndication (RSS) Feeds: www.sec.gov contains several RSS 

feeds that allow the public to obtain information about SEC releases as soon as 

they are posted. The RSS feeds, made available to the public through aggregators, 

allow individuals to subscribe to the specific RSS feeds of interest to them. 

 Your Money Podcast: The SEC has developed an audio podcast to help 

individual investors achieve their savings and retirement goals using iTunes; 

Yahoo! Podcasts; and other websites and software. 

F. Priorities and schedules for information availability 

Pursuant to the requirements of Section 207(e) of the E-Government Act of 2002, 

“Public Access to Electronic Information,” the SEC continues to manage records 

consistent with the requirements of OMB Circular A-130 and guidance from the 

National Archives and Records Administration (NARA). 

During FY 2007, the SEC continued to bolster its commitment to enhancing its 

records management practices by placing the program within the Office of the 

Secretary. In addition, the SEC hired a seasoned archivist to lead the SEC’s Records 

Management Program. The archivist is spearheading the Commission’s effort to 

formulate a plan and approach for attaining the detailed requirements of NARA 

Bulletin 2006-02, “NARA Guidance for Implementing Section 207(e) of the EGovernment Act of 2002.” The SEC’s records management plan and approach 

focuses on electronic records management. 

Specifically, the Commission’s records management program staff are systematically 

assessing the Commission’s records schedules by conducting a comprehensive 

inventory of all records regardless of media to ensure that the SEC is effectively 

identifying and transferring all electronic records requiring permanent retention to 

NARA, as required by, and appropriate for the SEC. 

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