The Nelson Memo
On August 25, 2022, the White House Office of Science & Technology Policy (OSTP) issued a memorandum on Ensuring Free, Immediate, and Equitable Access to Federally Funded Research that will make taxpayer-funded research immediately available for the public to freely access and fully use. The new guidance unlocks more than $90 billion in research that the U.S. government funds each year by calling on all federal agencies to generate policies that eliminate the current 12-month waiting period for access to the outputs of federally funded research, including articles and data.
In light of this guidance, federal grant agencies have worked with OSTP to update their public access and data sharing plans; for a final deadline of December 31, 2025. Consequently, most grant agencies require a data management plan that describes how research data will be preserved and published. For assistance in drafting data management plans or help finding information on grant agency requirements please contact the Digital Initiatives Librarian.
Agency Requirements
Funding Agency |
Timeline to Make Public |
Repository Solutions |
Public Access Plan |
|||
| Article | Data | Article Repository | Data Repository | Links to Public Access Plan | ||
| Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality | 12 months | With article publication | PubMed Central | Commercial repository | PA Plan | |
| Center for Disease Control (HSS)* | 12 months | With article publication and/or within 30 months of collection |
CDC Stacks via NIHMS |
PA Plan | ||
| 12 months | With article publication | PubMed Central | Disciplinary data repositories, where available | PA Plan | ||
| 12 months | TBD | ERIC | None specified or endorsed | PA Plan | ||
| 12 months | With article publication | NASA STI Repository | NASA archives (see question 16 on FAQ) or other repository | PA Plan | ||
| 12 months | With article publication | PubMed Central | Multiple solutions including NIH-supported repositories | PA Plan | ||
| National Institute for Standards and Technology | 12 months | 12 months from article publication | PubMed Central via NIST interface | EDI registry of datasets | PA Plan | |
| 12 months | 12 months from collection | NOAA Institutional Repository, using CDC Stacks | Multiple solutions (short term) + NOAA Data Centers (long term) | PA Plan | ||
| 12 months | TBD | NSF Public Access Repository (PAR) | An “appropriate repository” | |||
|
Directive 609 and 610 |
12 months | 12 months from collection | SRO | Smithsonian-managed and/or Smithsonian-approved repository | PA Plan | |
| Not addressed | Within 12 months of publication or patent is pending | Development Experience Clearinghouse (DEC) | Development Data Library, or other appropriate repository | PA Plan | ||
| U.S. Department of Agriculture | 12 months | TBD | PubAg | USDA registry of datasets, other repository options | PA Plan | |
| U.S. Department of Defense | 12 months | Within a reasonable time frame |
Defense Technical Information Center (DTIC) |
Public repository |
PA Plan | |
| 12 months | With article publication | Public Access Gateway for Energy and Science (PAGES) | Depends on the office within the DOE | PA Plan | ||
| 12 Months | With article publication | National Transportation Library | Publicly accessible repositories, "Conformant Repositories" | PA Plan | ||
| 12 months | With article publication | USGS Publications Warehouse | USGS approved repository | PA Plan | ||
| 12 months | TBD | PubMed Central | Partner with HHS, NIH, FDA, and DoD on “effective mechanisms" | PA Plan | ||
Table and information reused with permission, originally by Betty Rozum at Utah State University. Available at https://datamanagement.usu.edu/agency-requirements/Data_Pubs
- Sherpa Juliet This link opens in a new windowSHERPA Juliet is a searchable database and single focal point of up-to-date information concerning funders' policies and their requirements on open access, publication and data archiving. Check here for any agency not included above.
