The federal Information Quality Act directed the US Office of Management and Budget (OMB) to issue government-wide regulations or guidelines "for ensuring and maximizing the quality, objectivity, utility, and integrity of information (including statistical information) disseminated by Federal agencies." The law requires OMB to direct agencies to establish administrative systems whereby affected persons (essentially anyone) may seek and obtain the correction of error. The OMB Guidelines were finalized in Febrary 2002. By October 1, 2002, each federal agency was required to issue its own agency-specific guidelines modeled on (and consistent with) the OMB Guidelines.

Regulatory Checkbook maintains a database consisting of every publicly-available error correction request submitted to each federal agency, every agency response, every appeal, and every agency response to an appeal.