doc web policies & best practices jennifer hammond noaa research webshop 2002 august 7, 2002

DOC Web Policies &Best Practices

http://www.doc.gov/webresources/

Jennifer Hammond

NOAA Research WebShop 2002

August 7, 2002

Web Policies (Mandatory)

1. Links to DOC Home Page2. Links to Organizational Home Page3. Identification of Web Site Owner4. Web Site Contact Information5. Domain Names6. Web Site Accessibility7. Privacy of Visitors

• Privacy Statement and Information Collection

8. Annual Web Site Certification

Web Policies (Mandatory)1. Links to DOC Home PagePolicy: http://www.noaa.gov must link to DOC’s

home page

Purpose: To identify high level organizations as part of DOC, while allowing flexibility and creativity in the development of Web pages and Web sites

Deadline:August 11, 2000

Web Policies (Mandatory)2. Links to Organizational Home PagePolicy: Any home page maintained by or for a DOC organization

shall include a link to home page of higher organization within its hierarchy*i.e. OAR must link to NOAA; OGP must link to OAR

Purpose: To establish a series of links that will eventually lead the user to the home page of one of the organization listed in Policy 1.

Deadline:Certification due June 21 annually; beginning in 2001

Web Policies (Mandatory)3. Identification of Web Site OwnerPolicy: All DOC web pages shall identify the Web

site owner*Policy does not spell out how or where on the page the identifier should appear

Purpose: To identify the DOC organization that manages the Web site

Deadline:August 11, 2000

Web Policies (Mandatory)4. Web Site Contact InformationPolicy: Every Web site of a DOC organization shall provide an

e-mail address for comments, inquiries, and accessibility issues

Purpose: To ensure that users of DOC Web sites are provided a way to contact the organization

Deadline:

Original Implementation: August 11, 2000

Accessibility Amendments: June 21, 2001

Web Policies (Mandatory)5. Domain NamesPolicy: All new Web sites of DOC organizations shall have .gov

as the top level domain. Within one year of the adoption of this policy, all existing Web sites shall have .gov as the top level domain

Purpose: To ensure that the public can easily recognize DOC Web sites as U.S. Government sites and to ensure that DOC Web sites are indexed by FirstGov.gov search engine

Deadline:February 8, 2002

Web Policies (Mandatory)6. Web Site AccessibilityPolicy: All new Web sites of DOC organizations shall be designed to ensure

that members of the public with disabilities, and Federal employees with disabilities, have access to, and use of, information and data that is comparable to the access and use available to persons who do not have disabilities, unless an undue burden would be imposed on the agency. (Section 508 – 36 CFR 1194.22)

Purpose: Incorporating 36 CFR 1194.22 as a DOC Web policy ensures that DOC organizations will certify the accessibility of their Web sites under Annual Web Site Certification Policy and provides a framework for the Department to provide guidance to DOC organizations attempting to make their Web sites accessible.

Deadline:ImmediateWeb pages posted before June 21, 2001 are grandfathered; however, DOC organizations are encouraged to make all pages compliant

Web Policies (Mandatory)7. Privacy of VisitorsPolicy: It is the policy of the Department of Commerce (DOC) to

respect the privacy of visitors to Web sites of Department of Commerce organizations to the maximum extent possible consistent with law.*Privacy Statement and Persistent Cookies

Purpose: To assure members of the public that their privacy will be respected when they view Web sites of Department of Commerce organizations

Deadline:Immediate


7. Privacy of Visitors – Privacy StatementMajor points of entry and any page where information is collected on any Department of Commerce organization's Web site shall include a clearly identifiable link to the Privacy Statement, which shall be labeled either "Privacy Statement" or "Privacy Notice." The Privacy Statement shall identify the information collection practices of the site with regard to the following elements, if applicable:

the kinds of information collected, how long the information is retained, how it is used, the conditions under which the information may be shared, who it might be shared with, the conditions under which the information may be made available to the public, and whether

information is collected from children.

In addition, the Privacy Statement shall specifically address:

how email is handled, and the use of "cookies" and the extent to which information gathered through the use of "cookies" is safeguarded.

Web Policies (Mandatory)7. Privacy of Visitors – Persistent Cookies

It is the policy of the Department to prohibit the use of persistent cookies on Department of Commerce Web sites except where: there is a compelling need; there are appropriate safeguards in place; the use is personally approved by the Secretary of Commerce; and there is clear and conspicuous notice to the public.

Approval Process: Before using a persistent cookie on any Department of Commerce Web site, the Web site owner must submit an Approval Request to the Secretary of Commerce through the Web site owner's CIO and the Department's Chief Information Officer.

Since the Approval Request may divulge methods used in safeguarding information it should always be marked as "For Official Use Only"

Web Policies (Mandatory)8. Annual Web Site CertificationPolicy: The CIOs listed in Policy 1 shall annually certify to the

Department's CIO that all Web sites of their organization comply with the Department's Web policies. If any deficiencies exist, the CIO shall provide a plan to bring the Web sites into compliance. The Department's CIO will determine whether the proposed approach is acceptable, and retains the authority to shut down any site for non-compliance.

Purpose: To ensure that Web sites of Department of Commerce organizations comply with Department Web policies

Deadline:Certification is due in April of each year

Web Policies (Proposed)

9. Content Management Policy

10. Endorsement Disclaimer Policy

Web Policies (Proposed)9. Content Management PolicyPolicy: Web sites of DOC organizations shall be related to the

mission, goals, and objectives of the Department and be subject to appropriate management controls*It is imperative that Web content be overseen by management to ensure its quality, relevance to the agency's mission, and that it is delivered in a usable and accessible form. The head of each DOC organization is ultimately responsible for the content on Web sites of his or her organization and for its delivery. Therefore, managers should consider establishing guidelines for the approval of Web content and its delivery.

Purpose: to ensure and maximize the quality of information on DOC Web sites

Deadline:Immediate

Web Policies (Proposed)

9. Content Management Policy

10. Endorsement Disclaimer Policy

Web Policies (Proposed)10. Endorsement Disclaimer PolicyPolicy: All DOC Web sites shall have a disclaimer stating that links to non-

Federal Government Web sites do not imply endorsement of any particular product, service, organization, company, information provider, or content.*The decision on where to place the disclaimer and the exact wording is left up to the individual Operating Units. It could be on a separate page linked to from the home page, adjacent to the link itself, or handled in any number of ways. However, it must be clear to the Web site visitor that no Department of Commerce endorsement is implied.

Purpose: to ensure that visitors to DOC Web sites know that links do not imply endorsement

Deadline:Thirty days following approval of this policy by the Department's CIO.

Web Best Practices (Recommended)

Identification of Content Source Process in Support of the Annual Web Site

Certification Testing Web Site Accessibility for Persons with

Disabilities Making Public Pages Easy to Find Internet Use Policy PDF GIF Licensing


Identification of Content Source

Best Practice: If the source of the content of a Web page of a Department of Commerce organization is not the "Web site owner," the source of the content should be identified

Purpose: To identify the source of the content when it is not the same as the Web site owner.


Process in Support of the Annual Web Site Certification

Best Practice: DOC CIOs should maintain a list of their organizations' Web sites and have in place a process designed to support annual certification so that as new Web sites are launched and existing Web sites are modified, ongoing compliance with Department Web site policies is maintained.

Web Best Practices (Recommended)Testing Web Site Accessibility for Persons

with Disabilities

Best Practice: All DOC organizations should establish a policy and procedures for testing their Web sites for compliance with Web Policy #6 (on Accessibility).

Purpose: To help CIOs and Department of Commerce organizations ensure that DOC Web sites comply with Web Policy 6 and to support the Annual Web Site Certification Policy.


Making Public Web Pages Easy to FindBest Practice: All DOC organizations should use HTML

title tags and appropriate meta tags to make their Web pages easier to find by Web search engines and should consider submission to the major search engines.

Purpose: To make DOC Web sites easy to find


PDF

GIF Licensing

doc web policies & best practices jennifer hammond noaa research webshop 2002 august 7, 2002

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