# Open Government Data MCP Servers

A curated catalog of Model Context Protocol (MCP) servers providing programmatic access to U.S. government datasets.

## What is MCP?

The [Model Context Protocol](https://modelcontextprotocol.io) (MCP) is an open standard that enables AI assistants to securely connect to data sources and tools. MCP servers act as bridges between AI models and external systems.

## Why are MCP servers important for open federal data? 

MCP servers act as a bridge between AI systems and datasets accessible via an API and can greatly increase the accuracy of AI model responses, as discussed in [this report](https://digitalcorps.gsa.gov/pdfs/MCP_Report.pdf). 

## Available Servers

<!-- BEGIN GENERATED TABLE -->
| Dataset | Agency | Repository | Remote URL | Status |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| CDC PLACES | Centers for Disease Control and Prevention | https://github.com/GSA-TTS/cdc-places-mcp-server | http://cdc-places-mcp-server-friendly-kangaroo-rk.app.cloud.gov/mcp | ![status](https://img.shields.io/website?url=http%3A%2F%2Fcdc-places-mcp-server-friendly-kangaroo-rk.app.cloud.gov%2Fhealth) |
| USA Analytics | General Services Administration | https://github.com/GSA-TTS/usdc-arc-mcp-demo |  | — |
| NIH Reporter | National Institutes of Health | https://github.com/GSA-TTS/nih-reporter-mcp-server/tree/main | http://nih-reporter-mcp-server-turbulent-impala-zh.app.cloud.gov/mcp | ![status](https://img.shields.io/website?url=http%3A%2F%2Fnih-reporter-mcp-server-turbulent-impala-zh.app.cloud.gov%2Fhealth) |
| U.S. Census Data | U.S. Census Bureau | https://github.com/uscensusbureau/us-census-bureau-data-api-mcp |  | — |
| USA Spending Data | U.S. Department of the Treasury | https://github.com/GSA-TTS/usa-spending-mcp-server-DEMO/tree/main | https://usa-spending-mcp-server-brash-armadillo-hw.app.cloud.gov/mcp | ![status](https://img.shields.io/website?url=https%3A%2F%2Fusa-spending-mcp-server-brash-armadillo-hw.app.cloud.gov%2Fhealth) |
<!-- END GENERATED TABLE -->


## Contributing

Have an MCP server for government data? We'd love to include it!

See [CONTRIBUTING.md](./CONTRIBUTING.md) for detailed instructions.

**Quick start:**
1. Fork this repo
2. Add your entry to `catalog.json`
3. Open a pull request

## Usage

To use these servers:

1. **Local installation**: Clone the server repository and follow its setup instructions
2. **Remote endpoint**: If a Remote URL is provided, configure your MCP client to connect directly

### Example Configuration

For Claude Desktop, add to your config file:

```json
{
  "mcpServers": {
    "census": {
      "command": "node",
      "args": ["/path/to/census-mcp/index.js"]
    }
  }
}

```

## License

This catalog is released under CC0-1.0. Individual servers have their own licenses - check each repository.

## Maintained By

This catalog is community-maintained. For questions or issues, please [open an issue](../../issues).