Senator Warner gave the keynote address at the second annual DATA Act Summit on Wednesday, June 10, speaking on the importance of data in government and transparency in the modern age. Specifically, Senator Warner touched on the importance of implementing the bipartisan DATA Act, a bill which allows taxpayers to track dollars spent by federal agencies. The President signed Senator Warner’s bipartisan legislation into law last May.

Hosted by the DATA Transparency Coalition, the DATA Act Summit brought together Congressional members, lead implementers at the Treasury Department and the White House, agencies, and the tech industry to work toward a common vision for implementing the DATA Act and achieving full transparency across all domains of federal spending data. 

The DATA Act will enable taxpayers and policy makers to track federal spending more effectively by establishing a government-wide website to search spending data for taxpayers and policy makers; analyzing federal spending data to proactively prevent waste, fraud, and improper payments; and improving the quality of spending data from federal agencies.

During his remarks, Senator Warner spoke on the many ways that improved transparency aids citizens in terms of both efficiency and efficacy in our increasingly data-driven world. With the summit occurring just day after the disclosure of the the OPM data hack, he also spoke on the issue of cybersecurity, emphasizing the need for a strong, nimble US cyber defense.