Get GovRAMP Authorized (StateRAMP)
GovRAMP, formerly StateRAMP, is the authorization program many state and local organizations use to standardize cloud security assessments. If you want to sell cloud services into state, local, tribal, or education (SLTT) markets, buyers increasingly expect a recognized security status, not a one‑off questionnaire.
Neutral Partners helps you scope the right impact level, build a defensible NIST 800‑53 aligned control program, and package evidence the way assessors and the program management office expect. The goal is simple: get listed, keep status current, and keep procurement moving.
At a Glance
- Best for: cloud service providers and SaaS vendors selling to state and local government and education customers
- Outcome: a GovRAMP security status and listing on the Authorized Product List (APL)
- Assessment model: third‑party assessment and PMO validation, followed by continuous monitoring
- What slows teams down: unclear scope, weak evidence traceability, and continuous monitoring that is not operationalized
If you are unsure what level you need, start with scope and data impact.
Schedule a Discovery SessionWhat Is GovRAMP
GovRAMP is a standardized approach to security assessment, authorization, and continuous monitoring for cloud services used by public sector organizations outside the U.S. federal space. Many people still use the prior name, StateRAMP, and you will see both terms in procurement language.
GovRAMP is modeled on the same fundamentals as FedRAMP: use a shared control baseline, validate through independent assessment, then prove ongoing effectiveness through continuous monitoring. In practice, your work succeeds or fails on two factors:
- a cleanly defined scope and boundary
- evidence that is organized, traceable, and repeatable
How GovRAMP Security Statuses Work
GovRAMP uses program statuses to show where a cloud offering sits in the validation process. Public sector buyers often use these statuses to shorten vendor review and reduce duplicated assessments.
Common statuses you will encounter include:
- Core: an entry status that signals formal progression toward readiness
- Ready: validated documentation and security posture review
- Provisionally Authorized: a validated status that can be granted under defined program rules
- Authorized: full authorization status based on assessment and PMO validation
Status names and steps can evolve. The practical takeaway stays consistent: each step requires documented controls, evidence that those controls operate, and a continuous monitoring plan you can execute without heroics.
Who Needs GovRAMP
If you provide cloud services to public sector customers and your service touches government data, GovRAMP is often the fastest way to show security maturity across multiple buyers.
Common candidates include:
- SaaS vendors serving agencies: case management, HR, finance, permitting, citizen portals, and analytics
- Education technology providers: platforms handling student information, staff data, or sensitive operational data
- Managed hosting and cloud platforms: IaaS and PaaS providers supporting public sector workloads
- Shared service providers: identity, logging, monitoring, and security tooling that sits inside customer environments
- Systems integrators: teams delivering cloud solutions that must meet public sector security requirements
What GovRAMP Covers
GovRAMP aligns closely to NIST SP 800‑53 security and privacy controls. Buyers expect the same core security behaviors they expect from a mature enterprise program.
Typical control areas include:
- Governance and risk management: policies, risk assessments, and accountability structures
- Asset management and boundary control: inventory, data flow mapping, and clear responsibility model
- Identity and access management: MFA, privileged access controls, and access reviews
- Secure configuration and change management: hardened baselines, approval workflows, and evidence of control
- Logging, monitoring, and response: logging coverage, alert handling, and incident response routines
- Vulnerability management: scanning, patching, and exception handling with proof
- Business continuity: backups, recovery testing, and contingency plans
Evidence Assessors Expect
A GovRAMP assessment is evidence work. The assessor and PMO need to follow your narrative and validate it with artifacts.
Common evidence categories include:
- Program artifacts: policies, procedures, standards, and defined roles
- Boundary artifacts: architecture diagrams, network diagrams, data flow diagrams, and component inventory
- Operational artifacts: access review records, change tickets, patch reports, scan results, training completion, incident tickets
- Technical artifacts: configuration exports, screenshots, encryption settings, key management evidence, logging dashboards
- Third‑party artifacts: vendor inventory, contracts, and inherited control mappings
Keep one principle in mind: evidence must show execution, not intent. A policy is not proof. Proof is the record that the policy is followed.
GovRAMP Roadmap
A clean roadmap keeps projects moving and prevents scope creep.
Confirm scope and target status
- define the cloud offering and environments in scope
- determine the data impact and control baseline expectations
- choose the target GovRAMP status based on buyer requirements and timeline
- identify inherited controls from cloud infrastructure providers
Run a gap assessment against the control baseline
- map existing controls to NIST 800‑53 aligned expectations
- identify gaps in governance, technical controls, and evidence
- produce a remediation plan with owners and due dates
Implement controls and build evidence
- implement missing technical controls and operational routines
- update policies and procedures to match actual operations
- build repeatable runbooks for monitoring, patching, and incident response
- collect evidence as the work happens
Prepare the assessment package
- assemble documentation in the structure assessors expect
- verify evidence traceability from control statements to artifacts
- validate that evidence is current and repeatable
Support third‑party assessment and PMO validation
- manage evidence requests and question tracking
- clarify control narratives and update documentation as needed
- address findings quickly and prove remediation
Operationalize continuous monitoring
- define cadence for scans, reviews, and reporting
- assign owners and backups for recurring tasks
- create evidence collection routines that survive staff changes
If procurement is waiting on GovRAMP status, do not guess.
We will map your target status, scope, and evidence plan, then build a timeline you can execute.
Schedule a Discovery SessionCommon GovRAMP Gaps
- Unclear boundary: components in scope are not documented consistently across diagrams, inventories, and narratives
- Weak inherited control mapping: cloud responsibilities are assumed but not documented
- Evidence that is not repeatable: screenshots and exports without a defined method to reproduce them
- Missing operational proof: policies exist, but log reviews, access reviews, and patch routines are not evidenced
- Continuous monitoring gaps: no cadence, no owners, and no repeatable reporting process
How Neutral Partners Helps
We help you build a program that assessors can validate and buyers can trust. Our work is hands‑on and artifact driven.
What we deliver
- Scoping and boundary definition: data flows, inventories, responsibility model, and target status planning
- Control implementation support: technical and operational control buildout aligned to assessment expectations
- Evidence mapping: clear traceability from each control to the artifact that proves it
- Readiness testing: internal audit style testing to find issues before the assessor does
- Assessment support: evidence request management, follow‑up triage, and remediation validation
- Continuous monitoring program: cadence, reporting routines, and sustainable evidence collection
Proof matters. Since 2017, we have maintained a 100% audit success rate across more than 700 successful audits and assessments. We keep that record by treating readiness as implementation work, not documentation theater.
GovRAMP FAQs
Is GovRAMP the same as StateRAMP?
GovRAMP is the current brand. Many procurement documents and buyers still use the StateRAMP name. The practical requirement is the same: independent validation against a NIST 800‑53 aligned baseline and ongoing monitoring.
How is GovRAMP different from FedRAMP?
FedRAMP is for U.S. federal agencies. GovRAMP focuses on public sector organizations outside the federal space. Control baselines and documentation expectations are similar in spirit, but processes, reviewers, and buyer requirements differ.
Can we reuse a FedRAMP or SOC 2 package?
Often, you can reuse parts of the program: policies, risk processes, vulnerability management routines, and some technical evidence. You will still need to map evidence to the GovRAMP program structure and confirm it meets current status expectations.
What is the fastest way to reduce GovRAMP assessment cost?
Reduce scope. A clean boundary, documented shared responsibility, and tight service definition lower evidence volume and assessment effort.
What does continuous monitoring require?
It requires a repeatable cadence for scanning, patching, logging review, access review, change approvals, and incident readiness. The key is evidence you can reproduce month after month.
Key Resources
- GovRAMP program home
- GovRAMP Authorized Product List (APL)
- GovRAMP FAQs
- NIST SP 800‑53 Rev. 5 control catalog
Useful Resources
- [Internal] GovRAMP readiness checklist
- [Internal] NIST 800‑53 control mapping workbook
- [Internal] Continuous monitoring evidence calendar
Make GovRAMP a Growth Lever
Public sector buyers want proof that your cloud offering is secure and stays secure. We will help you get to the right GovRAMP status, then keep evidence audit‑ready as your product and team change.
Start with a short working session. We will map your scope, your target status, and the next three moves.