Our Vision

As the U.S. government's official web portal, USA.gov makes it easy for the public to get U.S. government information and services on the web. USA.gov also serves as the catalyst for a growing electronic government.

Who "Owns" USA.gov?

Many people and organizations have had a hand in creating our comprehensive, award-winning portal to government. And the government worked fast—Internet time—to launch it and to keep it responsive to the American people and the world.

USA.gov is an interagency initiative administered by the U.S. General Services Administration's Office of Citizen Services and Communications. It got its start when Internet entrepreneur Eric Brewer, whose early research was funded by the Department of Defense, offered to donate a powerful search engine to government. That gift helped accelerate the government's earlier work to create a government-wide portal.

In June 2000, the President announced the gift from the Federal Search Foundation, a nonprofit organization established by Brewer, and instructed that an official U.S. web portal be launched within 90 days. USA.gov went online on September 22, 2000 under the name FirstGov.gov. The GSA and 22 federal agencies funded the initiative in 2001 and 2002. Since 2002, USA.gov has received an annual appropriation from the U.S. Congress. In January 2007, FirstGov.gov officially changed its name to USA.gov.

So, who "owns" USA.gov? The American people. Visit our website FirstGov to learn more.