Advances in computing technology have increased speed and storage capacity for mobile devices, enhancing consumers’ abilities to perform a wide range of online tasks, such as shopping, banking, and accessing government services, primarily via the following mobile broadband technology: Smartphones: Consumers can use smartphones to run a wide variety of general and special-purpose software applications, including accessing websites on the Internet. Smartphones typically have a larger graphical display with greater resolution than traditional cellphones and have either a keyboard or touch-sensitive screen for alphanumeric input. Smartphones also offer expansion capabilities and other built-in wireless communications (such as Wi-Fi and Bluetooth services). Tablets: A tablet personal computer (tablet) is a portable personal computer with a touch-sensitive screen. The tablet form is typically smaller than a notebook computer but larger than a smartphone. Consumers are shifting activities that have more traditionally been conducted on desktop or laptop computers to these mobile devices. According to the Pew Research Center, nearly two-thirds (63 percent) of cellphone owners now use their phone to access the Internet. In addition, more than half (56 percent) of all Americans own smartphones, and 93 percent of these smartphone owners use their phone to access the internet. .govReform Task Force, State of the Federal Web Report (Dec. 2011). use and accessible to persons with disabilities and those who are not proficient in English. OMB is the lead agency in providing support to help ensure federal websites are well designed and easily accessible by all types of devices, including mobile devices through implementation of the Digital Government Strategy. The Digital Government Strategy emphasized the need to develop a “content management system” and convened a Digital Services Advisory Group (DSAG) comprised of information technology leaders from across government. The DSAG helps federal agencies share information and best practices on interacting with the public digitally and makes recommendations to OMB leadership on changes to federal policies and standards on digital services. The Digital Government Strategy also directed certain federal agencies, those set forth under the Chief Financial Officers Act, as amended, to take actions to make government websites available “anytime, anywhere, on any device.” government information for those using mobile devices and required each agency to identify at least two online services that the public accesses and to optimize at least two of those identified for mobile use.report actions they take to meet these milestones online via digital strategy reports that are posted to their respective websites. OMB also uses these reports to track agencies’ status in meeting the milestones. The Chief Financial Officers Act agencies are the 24 executive branch agencies listed at 31 U.S.C. § 901(b). The Digital Government Strategy did not apply to other smaller, independent federal agencies. Of our six selected agencies, four fall under the requirements of the CFO Act. These are DOI, DOT, NWS (within the Department of Commerce) and FEMA (within the Department of Homeland Security). The other two agencies—FMC and NEA—do not. the federal government and assists agencies in identifying and applying new technologies to effective government operation. Officials indicated that GSA does not have authority to require that agencies take certain actions. Rather, GSA’s role is primarily to provide assistance, share best practices, and act as a resource to help agencies improve delivery of digital services, information, and data to the public. Agency officials also have other resources for accessing and sharing information on website design and digital services. For example, the Federal Chief Information Officers (CIO) Council consists of chief information officers and other high officials from executive branch agencies and shares experiences, ideas, best practices, and innovative approaches related to information resource management, among other responsibilities. Additionally, informal communities of practice have formed that include web content managers, data communities, and mobile government; members collaborate and share common challenges and ideas related to digital government services. According to the Pew Research Center, as of January 2014, 90 percent of American adults own a cell phone. Research indicates that the number of users who own a smartphone or tablet computer has increased since 2010. According to Pew Research Center, 56 percent of American adults owned a smartphone of some kind as of May 2013, compared to 35 percent in May 2011. This increasing trend in smartphone ownership will likely continue with 95 percent of teens going online and three in four teens accessing the Internet on mobile devices like smartphones. The number of tablet devices also has been on the rise, with Pew reporting that as of May 2013, about a third (34 percent) of individuals ages 18 and older owns a tablet device like an iPad, Samsung Galaxy Tab, Google Nexus, or Kindle Fire, almost twice as many as the 18 percent who owned a tablet in May 2012. Despite this increase in tablet ownership, the percentage of tablet owners is still less than the percentage of smartphone owners, according to Pew data (see fig. 1). Pew Research indicates access to the Internet using cellphones has increased steadily over the past 5 years, more than doubling between 2009 and 2013. Nearly two-thirds (63 percent) of cellphone owners now use their phone to access the Internet, an 8-point increase from the 55 percent who did so at a similar point in 2012, and a two-fold increase over the 31 percent who did so in 2009. (See fig. 2.) A number of factors may drive this trend: Lower cost: The cost to connect to the Internet via mobile devices has decreased over time, making it more affordable for consumers to access the Internet. In a 2013 mobile competition report, FCC notes that through the widespread introduction of smartphones, wireless operators like Verizon have responded by competing for customers on price, both by offering more data for the same money or by lowering prices for fixed amounts of data.average price per megabyte of data declined from about $0.11 in The FCC also noted that the 2009 to $0.06 in 2010 and to $0.03 in 2011 across nationwide mobile providers. Convenient access: Convenience may contribute to increased use of mobile devices to access the Internet. Smartphones can provide users access to information anytime and almost anywhere. For example, smartphone owners can access government services on mobile devices, such as weather information or automobile recalls and crash-test-rating data. In 2012, Pew Research Center reported that cellphone owners like the convenience and ease of connectivity associated with mobile devices (see table 1). Technological advances: Advances in the technological capabilities of mobile devices have also contributed to this trend, allowing consumers to carry out an ever broadening range of interactions, which previously required the use of a desktop or laptop computer. For example, smartphones can provide users with navigation tools and information relevant to their surroundings based on the user’s current location determined by Global Positioning System (GPS) and other methods. Location-based services have proved popular with mobile device users; the Pew Research Center reported that three- quarters of smartphone users were using such services as of February 2012. Faster Internet speeds: Faster connection speeds have also reportedly increased Internet access using mobile devices. According to the FCC, four nationwide mobile wireless service providers— Verizon Wireless, AT&T, Sprint Nextel, and T-Mobile—as well as other mobile operators, continue to upgrade and expand their networks and according to the FCC, all of the major providers have either begun to deploy, or announced plans to migrate to Long Term Evolution technology. Pew reported that in 2013, those who are young (18-29 years old), earn over $75,000, have a college degree or higher, or are African American have the highest rates of accessing the Internet with cellphones (see fig. 3). Hispanics (68 percent) and whites (59 percent) used their cellphones to access the Internet slightly less than African Americans (74 percent), according to Pew. Further, young, above-average income, college educated, and African-American populations all increased their rate of access using cellphones between 2012 and 2013 by 10 percentage points or more. Use of cellphones to access the Internet is lower among senior, less educated, or rural populations, compared to other demographic groups. Those who access the Internet at lower rates using cellphones include: people ages 65 and older (22 percent); people who received a high school diploma or no diploma (53 and 51 percent, respectively); and people who live in rural areas (50 percent).and 2013, the increase in Internet access among those who have no diploma or a high school diploma only and those in rural areas was not significant; seniors increased their Internet access by 6 percentage points. Individuals accessing the selected agencies’ websites primarily used desktops and laptops to do so. For example, in 2013, Google Analytics data provided by DOT showed that 92 percent of users who accessed DOT’s website, , used a desktop computer, compared to 6 percent who used a smartphone and 3 percent who used a tablet (see table 2). Similarly, 85 percent of users who accessed the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s (FEMA) website, www.fema.gov, used a desktop computer, compared to 9 percent who used a smartphone and 6 percent who used a tablet. Although individuals still primarily use desktop computers to access services at the six selected agencies, use of smartphones and tablets to access information and services at these agencies is increasing. For example, the number of visitors using smartphones and tablets to access NEA information and services—such as applying for grants and tracking grant applications—increased from 3,376 in 2010 to 287,932 in 2013 (see fig. 4). Similarly, individuals using smartphones and tablets to access DOI’s information increased from 57,428 in 2011 to 1,206,959 in 2013. Among the selected agencies, FEMA had the highest number of visitors who accessed its services using a smartphone and tablet (3.1 million visitors in 2013) followed by DOI, which received approximately 1.2 million visitors who accessed its main website via a smartphone or tablet.