GOVERNMENT OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA
[INSERT AGENCY NAME]

Open Government Report 2014

To institutionalize a culture of transparent and open government, accountability, and to
expand opportunities for resident participation and collaboration, this Report describes
how the Mayor’s Office of GLBT Affairs has and will continue to develop and enhance
transparency, public participation, and collaboration. In accordance with Mayor’s Order
2014-170, this report addresses the following topics:
1)

Transparency
Describe the steps your agency has taken or plans to take to be more transparent.
Please include a description of:


How and to what extent your agency shares information with the public, e.g.
publication of information in the District register and on the agency website,
press releases, and documents in the agency’s FOIAXpress reading room.
The Mayor’s Office of GLBT Affairs shares info with the public through its
weekly News & Notes newsletter. The newsletter is one of the primary modes
of communication with the public. In addition, the Mayor’s Office of GLBT
Affairs utilizes its Facebook page and Twitter account to disseminate
information to the public. The Office occasionally collaborates with the
Mayor’s Communications Office on press releases on pertinent issues. The
agency website is in the process of being updated, which should be concluded
by the end of November 2014. Once fully updated, the website will become a
principal means by which the agency shares info with the public.



How the agency meets its obligations pursuant to the District’s Freedom of
Information Act and Open Meetings Act.
The Mayor’s Office of GLBT Affairs meets its obligations under the District’s
Freedom of Information Act and Open Meetings Act in the following ways: 1)
notice for meetings of the Advisory Committee to the Mayor’s Office of
GLBT Affairs is posted to the Office’s Facebook page and News & Notes
listserv at least 5 days prior to the meeting; 2) the public, through the meeting
notice, is allowed to submit comments in advance of the meeting; 3) members
of the public in attendance are invited to give two-minute remarks at the
beginning of the Advisory Committee meetings; and 4) the meetings are
recorded.



Steps your agency will take to increase public access to information.
1

By November 30th, the Office will update its website and begin disseminating
more information through it. For example, the Office will begin posting the
meeting minutes from and recordings of the Advisory Committee meetings to
the GLBT Affairs website.


Steps your agency will take, including an implementation timeline, to webcast
live and archive on the internet board or commission meetings. (This
question only applies to agencies that are overseen or advised by a board or
commission that is subject to the Open Meetings Act.)
The Mayor’s Office of GLBT Affairs will take the following steps to come
into greater compliance with the Open Meetings Act: 1) by November 30,
2014, the Office will post the meeting minutes from and recordings of the
Advisory Committee meetings; 2) by January 30, 2015, the Office will begin
to webcast the Advisory Committee meetings; 3) by March 31, 2015, the
Office will start an archive for taped Advisory Committee meetings on the
agency website.



How your agency has taken or plans to take steps to make more of its data
available to the public.
The Mayor’s Office of GLBT Affairs is working closely with the Office of the
City Administrator (OCA) and the Office of the Chief Technology Officer
(OCTO) to identify a significant number of datasets that OCA and OCTO
expect to publish online later this year. If no dataset from the Mayor’s Office
of GLBT Affairs is selected to be included in this 2014 release, we will
continue to work with OCA and OCTO to identify datasets appropriate to
publish in 2015. In the future, requirements for open data reporting will be
provided by the Chief Data Officer.

2)

Public Engagement and Participation
Describe the steps your agency has taken or plans to take to enhance or expand
opportunities for the public to participate in agency decision-making. Please include
a description of:
 How your agency provides online access to proposed rules and regulations
and secures public input on them. Please list links to specific websites.
The Mayor’s Office of GLBT Affairs currently provides access to proposed
rules and regulations to the members of the Advisory Committee to the
Mayor’s Office of GLBT Affairs. As members of the public, the Advisor
Committee is diverse and represents the community. In order to expand
opportunities for the public to participate in agency decision-making, the
2

Office will begin to post proposed rules and regulations on its website and on
its Facebook page by January 30, 2015. The public will have a two-week
window to provide input.


How your agency shares information and resources to keep the public
properly informed, e.g. community meetings, public hearings, FAQs, and
ways the public can provide input such as Twitter, grade.dc.gov, email
contacts.
The Mayor’s Office of GLBT Affairs shares information and resources to
keep the public informed through its weekly News & Notes e-newsletter,
Facebook, and Twitter. The public is able to provide input via Twitter,
Facebook, and the agency’s general email address (which is posted on the
website). Moreover, members of the public are invited to the meetings of the
Advisory Committee to the Mayor’s Office of GLBT Affairs, where they can
provide input at the beginning of each meeting. In addition, the Office holds
annual events and participates in community activities, which are open to the
public and provide opportunities for the public to provide input, such as: the
Sheroes of the Movement Awards Reception; and tabling during each of the
District’s Pride celebrations.



How your agency identifies stakeholders and invites their participation.
The Office identifies stakeholders through multiple community events held
throughout the year. In addition, the Office interacts regularly with
stakeholders through monthly meetings in which it participates or facilitates,
such as: the Violence Prevention and Response Team (VPART), which it
facilitates; the Office on Latino Affairs (OLA) LGBTQ Task Force Meeting;
the DC Concerned Providers’ Coalition (DCCP); and many more.



Steps your agency will take to improve public engagement and participation
including any new feedback tools or mechanisms the agency is considering.
In FY15, the Office will improve public engagement by specifically reaching
out to the public through Twitter and Facebook to ask for community input.
Twice each fiscal year, the Office will invite the public what it would like the
Office to prioritize.

3)

Collaboration
Describe the steps your agency has taken or plans to take to enhance or expand
cooperation among departments, other governmental agencies, the public, and nonprofit and private entities in fulfilling its obligations. Please include a description of:
 How your agency currently collaborates with the above parties. Please list
links to specific websites if appropriate.

3

The Office currently works across multiple departments and other
governmental agencies to fulfill its obligations. These include, but are not
limited to: 1) coordinating LGBTQ cultural competency training for all DC
government agencies under the Mayor’s authority; 2) working with the DC
Office of Human Rights (OHR) on educating DC government employees and
private citizens of the District’s human rights protections and on Bullying
Prevention Policy review and implementation; 3) collaborating with the
Metropolitan Police Department’s Gay & Lesbian Liaison Unit (GLLU) on
the VPART meetings and training officers on LGBTQ cultural competency;
4) collaborating with the OLA LGBTQ Task Force; 5) collaborating with
Office of the State Superintendent for Education (OSSE) on the Gay, Lesbian,
and Straight Education Network (GLSEN) Safe Space Initiative; 6) working
with DC Public Schools (DCPS) on their Transgender Policy; 7) working with
the US Attorney’s Office – DC to solicit Community Impact Statements from
members of the LGBTQ community; and 8) participating in the District’s
Age-Friendly City Initiative.
In addition, the Office collaborates with the public and nonprofit entities in a
number of ways, including but not limited to: 1) the VPART meetings, in
which several nonprofits participate; 2) participating in/tabling at the
District’s 6-7 annual Pride celebrations, which engage myriad nonprofits and
thousands of constituents; 3) attending nonprofit events throughout the year,
including the annual SMYAL Brunch, ManDate Conference, DC Center Fall
Reception, and many others; 4) providing LGBTQ cultural competency at
nonprofit shelters; and 5) participating in the Latino GLBT History Project’s
Annual Heritage Awards.


Steps your agency will take to improve collaboration with the above parties
including any new feedback tools or mechanisms the agency is considering,
e.g. prizes, competitions, and other innovative methods.
The Mayor’s Office of GLBT Affairs will improve collaboration with the
public in the following ways: 1) fully updating its website by November 30,
2014, in order to better utilize it for public engagement; 2) reach out to more
community-based organizations for collaborative activities, such as the
Sheroes of the Movement Awards Reception; and 3) hold Advisory
Committee meetings in nongovernmental locales around the city (currently,
the Advisory Committee meets in different quadrants of the city, but only in
government buildings, which may dissuade some community members from
attending).

4