Open NY

http://blog.noneck.org/post/40230009586
An Open Government Tree Grows in NY Governor’s OfficeAn Open Government
Tree Grows in NY Governor’s Office <http://blog.noneck.org/post/40230009586>
*Yesterday, NY Governor Cuomo announced that OPEN
NY<http://www.meetup.com/openNY/> is
going to be a part of his government! *
The Open NY meetup isn’t going to become a state agency, but our ideas and
advocacy are going to become OUR STATE’S initiative to promote
transparency, improvement government performance, and increase avenues of
digital participation.
How did this happen?
In the middle of 2010, representatives from Reinvent
Albany<http://reinventalbany.org> reached
out to Open NY Forum <http://opennyforum.org> looking for pioneering civic
technology and open government leaders. After two months of back and forth,
we presented the prospective governor with a thick policy brief. Ripe with
ideas from cities and other governments across America, we got the
prospective Governor Cuomo to mention an “Open NY” project in his
“reinventing Albany papers.” Together, Reinvent Albany and Open NY, had
hoped something would be implemented within the first 90 days of the new
Cuomo administration.
Those days turned into months. Months turned into a year. A year turned
into two. All along the way, we met with State technology leaders urging
them to adopt our policy ideas, and to continue to have New York lead the
nation in progressive government.
Yesterday, we finally got what we worked so hard toward.
Now, the challenging part begins. We need to ensure this seed grows in to a
strong vibrant trunk.
If you want to ensure that NY has the best open government implementation, join
us and become a member of the Open NY Forum and help us make a better New
York <http://www.meetup.com/openNY/>.
From page 201, in NY Govenor’s State Of the State Briefing. (PDF
Link)<http://www.governor.ny.gov/sites/default/themes/governor/sos2013/2013SOSBook.pdf>
*Create OPEN NY: Using Technology to Promote Transparency, Improve
Government Performance, and Enhance Citizen Engagement*
Open New York, a coordinated, technology-based initiative, will harness
this potential to use technology to increase government efficiency,
performance and collaboration as we enter a new era of public participation
in government. Our state government possesses vast treasure troves of
valuable information and reports: from health, business and public safety
data to information on parks, recreation, labor, and transportation. Too
often, this information is in government file cabinets, or in documents
that aren’t electronically searchable, or scattered throughout state
agencies and their websites.
Open New York will provide easy, single-stop access to statewide and
agency-level data, reports, statistics, compilations and information. Data
will be presented in a common, downloadable, easy-to-access format, and
will be searchable and mappable. The Open New York web portal will allow
researchers, citizens, business and the media direct access to high-value
data, which will be continually added to and expanded, so these groups can
use the data to innovate for the benefit of all New Yorkers. “App
competitions” will enlist the collective genius of our state’s students and
tech community by asking them to develop practical uses for state data.
Budget data, which is already posted online, will be posted in machine
readable and graphical formats, making access easier and more impactful for
citizens and researchers alike. Through Open New York, technology will
bring government and the people together to build a New New York.
Open New York will reap substantial benefits, both through cost savings and
improvements in government accountability and collaboration. Providing
detailed spending and budget information allows government employees and
the public to locate inefficiencies and duplicate expenses. Putting
government data online also reduces the expenses associated with producing
paper documents in response to Freedom of Information Law (“FOIL”)
requests. Benefits come not only from direct use of the data, but also from
the return on investment that comes when private citizens and journalists
use data to generate useful apps and to evaluate government performance.
Quick and efficient data access can also be useful in disaster response and
preparation. The benefits of increased online transparency significantly
outweigh the costs of putting information online.
New Yorkers want to know their government is investing taxpayer money
efficiently in programs and services that are performing for all New
Yorkers. It is government’s responsibility to provide information to the
people it serves through affirmative disclosures. This initiative will
build the trust between state government and New Yorkers. Transparency can
be driven through technical solutions that the State is committed to
deploying with the resources available through the Internet. Above all,
Open New York will put a powerful tool for transparency, accountability,
and innovation in the hands of New Yorkers and people all around the world
through a centralized user-friendly interface.￼
Join the Open NY Forum <http://opennyforum.org> on
Meetup<http://www.meetup.com/openNY/> or
on Twitter <http://twitter.com/opennyforum>.
Category:Open