Request for Information: Responsible Procurement of Artificial Intelligence in Government

Request for Information: Responsible Procurement of Artificial Intelligence in Government

Dates

Responses to this request for information will be accepted for consideration until April 29, 2024.

Supplementary Information

Consistent with Section 7224(d)(1) of the AI Act, this "initial means" (see SUMMARY section) will at a minimum:

-Address protection of privacy, civil rights, and civil liberties;

-Address the ownership and security of data and other information created, used, processed, stored, maintained, disseminated, disclosed, or disposed of by a contractor or subcontractor on behalf of the Federal Government;

-Include considerations for securing the training data, algorithms, and other components of any artificial intelligence system against misuse, unauthorized alteration, degradation, or rendering inoperable; and

-Address any other issue or concern determined to be relevant by the Director to ensure appropriate use and protection of privacy and Government data and other information. ⁽²⁾

The Administration has undertaken numerous efforts to advance responsible AI innovation and secure protections for people's rights and safety.

OMB has issued this RFI to help inform its development of an initial means to ensure the responsible procurement of AI by Federal agencies. OMB is specifically asking for information on the questions posed below. However, this list is not intended to limit the scope of topics that may be addressed by submissions. Commenters are invited to provide feedback on any topic believed to have implications for the procurement of AI by Federal agencies.

When responding to one or more of the questions below, please note in the text of your response the number of the question to which you are responding. Commenters should include a page number on each page of their submissions. Commenters are not required to respond to all questions, but OMB asks that comments be limited to no more than eight pages in length.

Strengthening the AI Marketplace

1. How may standard practices and strategies of Federal procurement, such as Statements of Objectives, Quality Assurance Surveillance Plans, modular contracts, use of contract incentives, and teaming agreements, ⁽³⁾ as well as innovative procurement practices, such as those in the Periodic Table of Acquisition Innovations, ⁽⁴⁾ be best used to reflect emerging practices in AI procurement? Are there additional materials or resources that OMB could provide to vendors or agencies to improve alignment between agency missions and technical requirements?

2. How can OMB promote robust competition, attract new entrants, including small businesses, into the Federal marketplace, and avoid vendor lock-in across specific elements of the technology sector, including data collectors and labelers, model developers, infrastructure providers, and AI service providers? Are there ways OMB can address practices that limit competition, such as inappropriate tying, egress fees, and self-preferencing?

3. Should the Federal Government standardize assessments for the benefits and trade-offs between in-house AI development, contracted AI development, licensing of AI-enabled software, and use of AI-enabled services? If so, how?

4. How might metrics be developed and communicated to enable performance-based procurement of AI? What questions should agencies be asking vendors to determine whether AI is already being used in performance-based services contracts?

Managing the Performance and Risks of AI

5. What access to documentation, data, code, models, software, and other technical components might vendors provide to agencies to demonstrate compliance with the requirements established in the AI M-memo? What contract language would best effectuate this access, and is this best envisioned as a standard clause, or requirements-specific elements in a statement of work?

6. Which elements of testing, evaluation, and impact assessments are best conducted by the vendor, and which responsibilities should remain with the agencies?

7. What if any terms should agencies include in contracts to protect the Federal Government's rights and access to its data, while maintaining protection of a vendor's intellectual property?

8. What if any terms, including terms governing information-sharing among agencies, vendors, and the public, should be included in contracts for AI systems or services to implement the AI M-memo's provisions regarding notice and appeal (sections 5(c)(v)(D) and (E))?

9. How might agencies structure their procurements to reduce the risk that an AI system or service they acquire may produce harmful or illegal content, such as fraudulent or deceptive content, or content that includes child sex abuse material or non-consensual intimate imagery?

10. How might OMB ensure that agencies procure AI systems or services in a way that advances equitable outcomes and mitigates risks to privacy, civil rights, and civil liberties?

⁽¹⁾  E.O. 14110, Executive Order on Safe, Secure, and Trustworthy Development and Use of Artificial Intelligence.

⁽²⁾  AI Act, Section 7224 (d) https://uscode.house.gov/view.xhtml?req=(title:40%20section:11301%20edition:prelim).

⁽³⁾  October 2023, Report on Recommendations on Procurement from the National Artificial Intelligence Advisor Committee (NAIAC).

⁽⁴⁾ https://acquisitiongateway.gov/periodic-table .