The official withdrawal of the United States from the Open Government Partnership (OGP) formalized what advocates, scholars, and watchdogs have been telling the American people from the last year: under President Trump, the executive branch of the United States government is no longer committed to government transparency, accountability, participation, and collaboration with the American people it serves. Official lies, corruption, and maladministration have become now the default, not the honesty, integrity, and trustworthy governance the public expects and deserves. 

Instead of working with the American people to co-create new commitments to improve good governance, fix the broken Freedom of Information Act, open access to the public information our government holds in trust for all Americans, or invest in classification reforms, the Trump administration is simply walking away from the table.

In the letter of withdrawal, General Services Administration Administrator Scott Forst claimed that OGP “erodes sovereignty,” is “demonstrably ineffective,” has “divisive ideological agendas,” “wastes money,” and “degrades democratic integrity.” While some of this is false, it is accurate to state that OGP has been ineffective in the United States and that the most recent national action plan contained many commitments unrelated to open government.

We warned both the first Trump administration and Biden administration of significant issuesn during co-creation and implementation, to little avail. The story of the past decade is one ofmissed opportunities, opacity, lack of accountability for broken promises around past commitments, and systemic failures in collaboration, co-creation, and public engagement, as noted public comment filed at Regulations.gov. Responsibility for that outcome lies not just with President Trump and President Biden, but President Obama’s initial design of OGP, which left out Congress and the press.

This US government leaving OGP is no surprise, given the closure of the Federal Advisory Committee on Open Government that would have hosted this activity, dissolution of the Open Government Secretariat, lack of participation in OGP’s Summit, and illiberal claims about journalists and non-governmental organizations.

It is a confirmation, however, that this voluntary multi-stakeholder approach to improving government transparency and accountability in the executive branch is dead under this administration. In its place, Congress, the courts, the free press, watchdogs, and the American people will work together to make our government transparent and hold officials accountable for corruption under the rule of law. 

A full statement on today’s news from the American Governance Institute follows:

United States Quits Open Government Partnership

Civil society groups had pressed U.S. to meet transparency commitments

January 28, 2026 — The United States has formally withdrawn from the Open Government Partnership (OGP), a voluntary international collaboration founded in 2011 by eight countries, including the United States, to advance government transparency, participation, and accountability in partnership with domestic civil society organizations.

In March 2025, eleven civil society organizations urged the Open Government Partnership to place the United States under review for “rolling back existing flagship commitments,” and calling for U.S. suspension if the administration failed to work with civil society to advance meaningful transparency commitments. A July 2025 letter renewed the request, citing accelerating attacks on government transparency, across anti-corruption efforts, civic space, fiscal openness, justice, and the foundation of open government. 

A December 2025 OGP report found that “the second Trump administration revoked or replaced several executive orders that supported key commitments, including those related to equity, data transparency, and law enforcement accountability. It also disbanded the federal advisory committee in February 2025. These actions have undermined or halted the continuity and durability of reforms initiated during the action plan cycle.”

The U.S. government withdrawal statement, signed by General Services Administration Administrator Edward Forst, was replete with misstatements and omits the fact the first Trump administration participated in the Open Government Partnership. The statement takes no responsibility for its dismantling of the domestic Open Government Federal Advisory Committee. Nor does it note the administration’s increasing attacks on the press, the removal of data from government websites, the failure to collect and share information about government activities.

The following statement may be attributed to Daniel Schuman, executive director of the American Governance Institute and former chair of the Open Government Federal Advisory Committee:

“The Trump administration is not only the least transparent government in American history; its policies are antithetical to democracy, of which transparency is an essential element. Today’s withdrawal from the Open Government Partnership is yet another data point in a broader pattern of opacity by this administration.”

In a statement, Open Government Partnership CEO Aidan Eyakuze said, “Anyone who has followed developments over the last year will not be surprised by this decision of the US government. We recognize the impressive efforts of reformers in government and civil society who have advanced openness and accountability over the years.