Top iPhone Apps for Government

The success of programs like Apps for Democracy, Federal CIO Vivek Kundra’s contest to develop iPhone Apps for the city of Washington, DC, has proven the usefulness of smart phone apps and crowd-sourcing.  Currently, the federal government is in the process of launching similar programs to increase public engagement and government transparency.

Below is our list of the top iPhone Apps for Government.

• My Government This app contains all the contact information for all members of Congress and what bills are currently being considered by which committees.  You can also break down spending information by district, state or contractor to stay informed of where your tax dollars are heading.
• MyLanguage Pro This app comes with access to 55 languages as well as frills like a searchable translation history, the ability to rate translations and suggest more accurate wording, transliteration (phonetic sounding-out of languages that use different alphabets), and the ability to enlarge text so you can just show the screen to the cab driver or shopkeeper to get your point across.  Is it perfect? No.  Is it 55 languages in your pocket? Yes.
• Most Wanted Let’s say you’re standing in line at the post office and you spot Osama Bin Laden.  How do you report him to the FBI?  This free app means you’ll never have to ask that question again.  The FBI’s official app includes both the top 10 Most Wanted lists for terrorists and run-of-the-mill fugitives, as well as a list of missing children with photographs.  It even lets you report sightings using your phone’s GPS.
• U.S. Citizenship Test This reference app lets anyone in the ICE community see if they too have what it takes to become a citizen.  It contains all the questions on the citizenship test and even lets you skip questions by shaking your iPhone, as well as the option to have your test results e-mailed to you when you’re done.
• iFAR It’s the Federal Acquisition Regulation in its entirety, with a PDF version in case you need to e-mail someone an excerpt.  This is a really useful resource for anyone in government or government contracting.
• GAO News Reader This app makes GAO’s frequent reports digestible for the iPhone user.  It keeps you updated with both the full and summary versions of all GAO reports, testimony, legal decisions and opinions so you can be the first to know the decision on a particular bid protest.
• FedTravel Having trouble memorizing Federal Travel Regulation 301?  There’s an app for that.  This one contains the whole FTR in a searchable format, and it’s available offline for when you can’t get a signal but still need to know if you’ll get reimbursed for calling a cab.
• The Law Pod Okay, this isn’t just one app, but the Law Pod’s collection of federal criminal and civil procedures are a great resource to anyone at DOJ, or anyone who’s curious whether they’re criminally or civilly liable for a project that goes belly-up.  And at $0.99 per app, they’re a lot cheaper than legal advice