Public Printer Proposes Changing GPO’s Name at Congressional Hearing

The U.S. Government Printing Office's (GPO) Public Printer Davita Vance-Cooks testified before the Committee on House Administration on the topic: GPO in 2023: Keeping America Informed in a Post-Print World. Vance-Cooks discussed changing the agency's name from the Government Printing Office to the Government Publishing Office to reflect GPO's broadening menu of digitally-based services to serve the information product needs of Congress, Federal agencies and the public. GPO does more than just printing, the agency publishes Government information digitally, produces apps and ebooks.

"With more than 95 percent of Government information being published digitally, the time has come for our name to reflect that," said Public Printer Davita Vance-Cooks. "We are the Government Publishing Office. GPO's current name reflects a century and a half of proud tradition and history, but it is limiting. It doesn't describe what we do anymore. GPO is the Nation's Publisher and our future lies in providing Government information to the American people in the forms and formats they want and need. This is what the Academy's report has endorsed, and it is what I hope to achieve soon."

Vance-Cooks emphasized that GPO's digital efforts support President Obama's Roadmap for a Digital Government and the recommendations made by the National Academy of Public Administration following their study of GPO as requested by Congress. In transforming its business model from a print-centric to a content-centric publishing operation, GPO is focusing on managing content for customer and public use both today and in the future. GPO will use its extensive experience and expertise with digital systems to provide both permanent public access to Government information in a variety of formats and the most efficient and effective means for printing when required, all within a secure setting that is responsive to the customer's needs.

About the U.S. Government Printing Office (GPO)
GPO is the Federal Government's official, digital, secure resource for producing, procuring, cataloging, indexing, authenticating, disseminating, and preserving the official information products of the U.S. Government. The GPO is responsible for the production and distribution of information products and services for all three branches of the Federal Government, including U.S. passports for the Department of State as well as the official publications of Congress, the White House, and other Federal agencies in digital and print formats. GPO provides for permanent public access to Federal Government information at no charge through its Federal Digital System, partnerships with approximately 1,200 libraries nationwide participating in the Federal Depository Library Program, and its secure online bookstore.