The amount of useful data that most governments have access to is impressive by any standard. But what’s more impressive is the potential that data has to improve the way that governments operate. That’s why one of the biggest trends in the GovTech sector today is the push for open data.
The movement towards open data in the public sector is significant for a couple of primary reasons. On the one hand, transparency lets citizens know what data the government has and how they are potentially using it so they can hold the right people accountable. On the other, open data helps governments by fostering greater interdepartmental collaboration and driving innovation through sharing data with third parties.
Public sector utilization of data transparency and analytics is evolving at a rapid pace on the state, local and federal levels to catalyze innovation and create a more citizen-centric way of operating. Here’s how the landscape of data transparency has evolved over recent years, how the public sector is putting open data and analytics to use, and why we should all be optimistic about the benefits of data transparency for both governments and citizens.
1. The Emergence of Open Data
One of the most significant moments in the modern push for data transparency came in 2013, when the White House issued its first Open Data Policy. This policy opened up many different types of government data to those outside of the particular agencies or departments who owned the data. An initiative known as Project Open Data launched around the same time and provided a toolkit that governments could use to make their existing data more transparent. Initiatives and policies like these served the dual purpose of facilitating collaboration and meeting increased accountability demands in areas such as financial disclosures.
Today, newer projects like the Data Accountability and Transparency Act (DATA) have built upon the foundation provided by the Open Data Policy and other early initiatives. Grant Thornton published their second annual State of the Union of Open Data report this year, which showed that the majority of government and IT leaders believe the state of open data to be strong. Almost 82 percent of respondents stated that their field had seen improved data standardization in recent years. 79 percent expect transparency to continue to advance in the coming years.
2. Improving Services with Analytics
Today, governments are leveraging data transparency, combined with analytics, to improve services and citizen interactions in a variety of ways. The city of Los Angeles, for example, recently created a dashboard that analyzes traffic and usage of the city’s various websites and portals. Before partnering with us build the dashboard, city officials had little visibility into how the city’s digital services were being used, or at what volume. Now, they have the insights they need to optimize digital services on an individual basis.
Los Angeles’ experience is indicative of how data analytics can enhance services simply by opening data to private sector innovators. Much of the satellite and weather apps and mapping software we take for granted today, for instance, was developed only after the federal government made its satellite and weather data open to third parties. Today, even longstanding government agencies like the IRS are collaborating with the private sector by making their data transparent. By utilizing analytics dashboards and reporting, the IRS can see which forms are downloaded most from their website and optimize the digital experience accordingly.
3. The Benefits of Open Data
Open and transparent government data has been, and will continue to be, a win-win for both the public sector and constituents. Citizens can now easily access desired information via a public records request portal, for example, with the click of a mouse from their own homes. Elected officials can be held more accountable than ever, as their constituents can now access financial disclosures and legal records that weren’t conveniently available to the public before the push for data transparency.
Governments can also analyze previously siloed data to improve services, streamline processes, and optimize internal resources. For instance, just this year the bipartisan Grant Reporting Efficiency and Agreements Transparency (GREAT) Act was introduced, with the primary goal of streamlining federal grant reporting by leveraging insights from open data to optimize existing processes. Open data can even help public sector entities collect revenue faster, allowing citizens to manage and pay fees online or via their mobile devices.
If the past is any indication, continued advancements in open data will bring us more public sector collaboration, transparency, and innovation in the years to come. Better data sharing practices will be leveraged to create new services that are difficult to even imagine today. And, just as importantly, greater transparency will give citizens more of the information they need to hold their governments accountable.
