Do I need an API key?

No! Data.gov data is public domain and freely accessible. No authentication required.

How many datasets are available?

Data.gov catalogs 300,000+ datasets from over 200 federal agencies including NASA, USDA, EPA, NOAA, Department of Education, Census Bureau and many more.

What organizations publish data?

Over 200 federal agencies including NASA, USDA, EPA, NOAA, Department of Education, Census Bureau, Department of Transportation, FBI, CDC, FDA and many more.

What formats are available?

Common formats: CSV, JSON, XML, Shapefile, GeoJSON, PDF, HTML, RDF, KML, ZIP. Use list_resource_formats to see all available formats.

Data.gov MCP Server for CrewAI 13 tools — connect in under 2 minutes

Name: Data.gov
Availability: InStock
Author: Vinkius

docs.crewai.com/mcp/overview

Built by Vinkius GDPR 13 Tools Framework

Connect your CrewAI agents to Data.gov through Vinkius, pass the Edge URL in the `mcps` parameter and every Data.gov tool is auto-discovered at runtime. No credentials to manage, no infrastructure to maintain.

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python

from crewai import Agent, Task, Crew

agent = Agent(
    role="Data.gov Specialist",
    goal="Help users interact with Data.gov effectively",
    backstory=(
        "You are an expert at leveraging Data.gov tools "
        "for automation and data analysis."
    ),
    # Your Vinkius token. get it at cloud.vinkius.com
    mcps=["https://edge.vinkius.com/[YOUR_TOKEN_HERE]/mcp"],
)

task = Task(
    description=(
        "Explore all available tools in Data.gov "
        "and summarize their capabilities."
    ),
    agent=agent,
    expected_output=(
        "A detailed summary of 13 available tools "
        "and what they can do."
    ),
)

crew = Crew(agents=[agent], tasks=[task])
result = crew.kickoff()
print(result)

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* Every MCP server runs on Vinkius-managed infrastructure inside AWS - a purpose-built runtime with per-request V8 isolates, Ed25519 signed audit chains, and sub-40ms cold starts optimized for native MCP execution. See our infrastructure

About Data.gov MCP Server

Connect to Data.gov and explore the US government's open data catalog through natural conversation — no API key needed.

When paired with CrewAI, Data.gov becomes a first-class tool in your multi-agent workflows. Each agent in the crew can call Data.gov tools autonomously, one agent queries data, another analyzes results, a third compiles reports, all orchestrated through Vinkius with zero configuration overhead.

What you can do

Dataset Search — Search 300,000+ federal datasets by keyword, organization, tags and topic
Dataset Details — Get full metadata including descriptions, resource downloads, licenses and data dictionaries
Browse Organizations — Explore all federal agencies publishing open data (NASA, USDA, EPA, NOAA, Census Bureau, etc.)
Browse by Topic — Discover datasets organized by topic: agriculture, climate, education, health, finance, public safety
Browse by Tags — Find datasets by popular tags and categories
Resource Formats — Discover available download formats (CSV, JSON, XML, Shapefile, GeoJSON, PDF)

The Data.gov MCP Server exposes 13 tools through the Vinkius. Connect it to CrewAI in under two minutes — no API keys to rotate, no infrastructure to provision, no vendor lock-in. Your configuration, your data, your control.

How to Connect Data.gov to CrewAI via MCP

Follow these steps to integrate the Data.gov MCP Server with CrewAI.

Install CrewAI

Run pip install crewai

Replace the token

Replace [YOUR_TOKEN_HERE] with your Vinkius token from cloud.vinkius.com

Customize the agent

Adjust the role, goal, and backstory to fit your use case

Run the crew

Run python crew.py. CrewAI auto-discovers 13 tools from Data.gov

Why Use CrewAI with the Data.gov MCP Server

CrewAI Multi-Agent Orchestration Framework provides unique advantages when paired with Data.gov through the Model Context Protocol.

Multi-agent collaboration lets you decompose complex workflows into specialized roles, one agent researches, another analyzes, a third generates reports, each with access to MCP tools

CrewAI's native MCP integration requires zero adapter code: pass Vinkius Edge URL directly in the `mcps` parameter and agents auto-discover every available tool at runtime

Built-in task delegation and shared memory mean agents can pass context between steps without manual state management, enabling multi-hop reasoning across tool calls

Sequential and hierarchical crew patterns map naturally to real-world workflows: enumerate subdomains → analyze DNS history → check WHOIS records → compile findings into actionable reports

Data.gov + CrewAI Use Cases

Practical scenarios where CrewAI combined with the Data.gov MCP Server delivers measurable value.

Automated multi-step research: a reconnaissance agent queries Data.gov for raw data, then a second analyst agent cross-references findings and flags anomalies. all without human handoff

Scheduled intelligence reports: set up a crew that periodically queries Data.gov, analyzes trends over time, and generates executive briefings in markdown or PDF format

Multi-source enrichment pipelines: chain Data.gov tools with other MCP servers in the same crew, letting agents correlate data across multiple providers in a single workflow

Compliance and audit automation: a compliance agent queries Data.gov against predefined policy rules, generates deviation reports, and routes findings to the appropriate team

Data.gov MCP Tools for CrewAI (13)

These 13 tools become available when you connect Data.gov to CrewAI via MCP:

get_dataset

gov dataset by its ID or name. Returns full description, organization, tags, resource list (downloadable files), metadata dates, license info and data dictionary. Get detailed info for a specific dataset

get_group

Returns group name, description, image URL and published datasets (optional). Common groups: "agriculture", "climate", "education", "health", "finance", "public-safety". Get details for a specific topic group

get_group_datasets

Returns dataset titles, descriptions, organizations and download links. Get all datasets in a specific topic group

get_organization

gov. Returns organization name, description, contact info, image URL and published datasets (optional). Get details for a specific organization

get_organization_datasets

Returns dataset titles, descriptions, resource counts and download links. Get all datasets published by an organization

get_status

gov API including total counts of datasets, organizations, groups and tags. Get Data.gov API status and statistics

get_tag

Returns tag name, dataset count and associated datasets (up to 20). Get details for a specific tag

get_tag_datasets

Returns dataset titles, descriptions, organizations and download links. Get all datasets with a specific tag

list_groups

gov (e.g. agriculture, climate, education, health, finance). Returns group names, descriptions, image URLs and dataset counts. List all topic groups on Data.gov

list_organizations

gov. Returns organization names, descriptions, dataset counts, logos and contact info. List all organizations publishing data on Data.gov

list_resource_formats

). Useful for filtering datasets by preferred format. List all data formats available in Data.gov resources

list_tags

gov datasets. Returns tag names, dataset counts and display names. Useful for discovering common topics and filtering searches. List all tags used to categorize datasets

search_datasets

gov catalog of US federal government open datasets. Supports free-text search and filtering by organization, tags, groups. Returns dataset titles, descriptions, organizations, resource counts, tags and download links. Sort options include "metadata_modified desc" (recent), "views_recent desc" (popular). Search US government open data datasets

Example Prompts for Data.gov in CrewAI

Ready-to-use prompts you can give your CrewAI agent to start working with Data.gov immediately.

"Search for climate change datasets."

"What datasets does NASA publish?"

"Find education datasets about student performance."

Troubleshooting Data.gov MCP Server with CrewAI

Common issues when connecting Data.gov to CrewAI through the Vinkius, and how to resolve them.

MCP tools not discovered

Ensure the Edge URL is correct. CrewAI connects lazily when the crew starts. check console output.

Agent not using tools

Make the task description specific. Instead of "do something", say "Use the available tools to list contacts".

Timeout errors

CrewAI has a 10s connection timeout by default. Ensure your network can reach the Edge URL.

Rate limiting or 429 errors

Vinkius enforces per-token rate limits. Check your subscription tier and request quota in the dashboard. Upgrade if you need higher throughput.

Data.gov + CrewAI FAQ

Common questions about integrating Data.gov MCP Server with CrewAI.

How does CrewAI discover and connect to MCP tools?

CrewAI connects to MCP servers lazily. when the crew starts, each agent resolves its MCP URLs and fetches the tool catalog via the standard tools/list method. This means tools are always fresh and reflect the server's current capabilities. No tool schemas need to be hardcoded.

Can different agents in the same crew use different MCP servers?

Yes. Each agent has its own mcps list, so you can assign specific servers to specific roles. For example, a reconnaissance agent might use a domain intelligence server while an analysis agent uses a vulnerability database server.

What happens when an MCP tool call fails during a crew run?

CrewAI wraps tool failures as context for the agent. The LLM receives the error message and can decide to retry with different parameters, fall back to a different tool, or mark the task as partially complete. This resilience is critical for production workflows.

Can CrewAI agents call multiple MCP tools in parallel?

CrewAI agents execute tool calls sequentially within a single reasoning step. However, you can run multiple agents in parallel using process=Process.parallel, each calling different MCP tools concurrently. This is ideal for workflows where separate data sources need to be queried simultaneously.

Can I run CrewAI crews on a schedule (cron)?

Yes. CrewAI crews are standard Python scripts, so you can invoke them via cron, Airflow, Celery, or any task scheduler. The crew.kickoff() method runs synchronously by default, making it straightforward to integrate into existing pipelines.