OMB Circulars A-130 and A-11 set expectations for how federal information is governed, protected, presented, and reported. For communicators, the practical takeaways are clear:

• Information as a strategic asset: Treat every public message, dataset, webpage, social post, and notice as part of your information inventory. A-130 focuses on information governance, privacy, security, records, and open data across the full lifecycle.
• Privacy and security by design: Bake privacy risk assessments, appropriate consent language, data minimization, and secure handling into campaigns, forms, and feedback channels.
• Accessibility and openness: Publish information in accessible, machine-readable formats with plain language. Ensure communications support open data objectives and Section 508 requirements.
• Performance transparency: Align public communications with A-11's strategic plans, priority goals, and performance reporting so stakeholders can trace activities to measurable outcomes.
• Records and FOIA readiness: Ensure content, comments, and social interactions are captured per records schedules, searchable, and retrievable for audits and FOIA.

The result is communications that inform the public, reduce risk, and demonstrate responsible stewardship.

Translate policy into day-to-day execution with these steps:

• Map messages to controls: For each campaign or page, map the purpose, audience, data collected, and dissemination method to A-130 requirements (privacy, security, records, open data) and A-11 reporting linkages.
• Plain-language, accessible content: Use clear summaries, meaningful headings, descriptive links, alt text, captions, and readable tables. Provide downloadable content in accessible, machine-readable formats (HTML first, then accessible PDF as needed).
• Privacy-forward engagement: Post clear notices for surveys, webinars, and sign-ups. Use minimal data collection, display retention periods, and link to a current privacy policy. Run a privacy review for forms and pixels.
• Data and records discipline: Tag content with metadata, apply retention schedules, and archive social content and comment submissions. Coordinate with records officers to ensure discoverability and FOIA responsiveness.
• Open data alignment: When releasing stats or reports, pair narrative summaries with machine-readable files and metadata. Publish data dictionaries and update cadences.
• Performance linkage: Tie major announcements and pages to strategic objectives and performance indicators. Where appropriate, cross-link to public performance dashboards and milestones.
• Incident and risk communications: Establish prepared statements and escalation paths for data incidents. Coordinate with security and privacy teams so messaging reflects accurate, timely risk information.

Make compliance durable with light-weight governance and measurable improvement:

• Roles and workflows: Define owners for privacy review, accessibility checks, records capture, and approvals. Use checklists at intake and pre-publish gates.
• Documentation: Maintain a communications inventory with purpose, audiences, datasets, retention rules, and performance linkages. Keep a playbook for recurring notices and outreach.
• Quality and accessibility checks: Track readability, accessibility issues, broken links, metadata completeness, and load times. Remediate on a fixed cadence.
• Metrics that matter: Measure task completion, comprehension, accessibility pass rates, FOIA response efficiency, and on-time performance reporting. Pair web analytics with qualitative feedback.
• Review cycles: Conduct quarterly audits against A-130 and A-11 touchpoints. Update templates, consent language, and metadata standards as policies evolve.

This operating model keeps communications compliant, useful, and trustworthy over time.