GPO's D.C. Passport Facility Earns Global Manufacturing And Quality Certification
Washington – The U.S. Government Publishing Office (GPO) achieves the global standard of excellence for the
agency’s production of the U.S. passport and secure Federal credentials. GPO’s production facilities in
Washington, D.C. have achieved ISO 9001:2015 certification. GPO attained ISO certification in 2010 and this
recertification has been achieved by meeting the new standards and demonstrating a long standing practice of
consistency.
ISO is the International Organization for Standardization and the world’s largest developer of international
standards used by Government, business and new information technology companies and agencies. More than
one million companies and organizations in 170 countries are ISO 9001-certified. This standard is attained by
demonstrating a number of quality management principles including a strong customer focus, the motivation
and implication of top management, the process approach, and continual improvement. Using ISO 9001:2015
helps ensure that customers get consistent, good quality products and services, which in turn brings many
business benefits.
“This certification shows our Federal agency customers and the American public the high standards GPO sets
for the production of our Nation’s most secure credentials,” said GPO Director Davita Vance-Cooks. “GPO is
proud of our long-standing partnership with the Department of State in continuing to seek out the best process
and technology in making the U.S. passport the gold standard of secure credentials, as well as our capability to
produce secure credentials for Federal agencies that meet their requirements for security and operational
capability. ”
GPO has been producing passports for the Department of State since the 1920s at its secure facility in
Washington, D.C. In 2008, to meet the rising demand by American people for passports and the need for an
alternative production facility, GPO opened a second secure production facility in Mississippi. In 2012, GPO
implemented secure credential operations at the Mississippi facility to back up operations in Washington, DC.
GPO employees produced more than 20 million passports in FY 2016, and more than three million other secure
credentials.
GPO is the Federal Government's official, digital, secure resource for producing, procuring, cataloging,
indexing, authenticating, disseminating, and preserving the official information products of the U.S.
Government. The GPO is responsible for the production and distribution of information products and services
for all three branches of the Federal Government, including U.S. passports for the Department of State as well
as the official publications of Congress, the White House, and other Federal agencies in digital and print formats. GPO provides for permanent public access to Federal Government information at no charge through
www.govinfo.gov, partnerships with approximately 1,150 libraries nationwide participating in the Federal
Depository Library Program, and our secure online bookstore. For more information, please visit www.gpo.gov
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