52-6A-1: PURPOSE:

This article states that the City will implement an open data portal to provide greater access to certain transactional and project information to better foster transparency and in an effort to reduce the number of GRAMA requests. (2019 Compilation)

52-6A-2: SCOPE:

   A.   Open Government: Government functions best when it is open, engages its constituents and makes available certain information about its day to day operations and about highly visible projects and priorities.

   B.   Information Of Interest: The City has an enormous amount of information stored in numerous data stores that may be of interest or value to the public.

   C.   Access: The City will implement an open data portal that provides access to certain structured data contained in City data stores. (2019 Compilation)

52-6A-3: TERMS AND DEFINITIONS:

DATA: Final versions of statistical or factual information: a) in alphanumeric form reflected in a list, table, graph, chart or other nonnarrative form, that can be digitally transmitted or processed; and b) regularly created or maintained by or on behalf of Salt Lake City. Such term shall not include information provided to an agency by other governmental entities, nor shall it include image files, such as designs, drawings, maps, photos or scanned copies of original documents; provided, that it shall include statistical or factual information about such image files and shall include geographic information system data. Nothing in this article shall be deemed to prohibit an agency from voluntarily disclosing information not otherwise defined as "data" in this section, nor shall it be deemed to prohibit an agency from making such voluntarily disclosed information accessible through the single web portal.

DATA SETS: A collection of related sets of information that is composed of separate elements but can be manipulated as a unit by a computer.

OPEN DATA: The idea that certain data should be freely available to everyone to use and republish as they wish, without restrictions from copyright, patents or other mechanisms of control.

OPEN DATA PORTAL: The internet site provided by and maintained by or on behalf of the Salt Lake City government, located at data.slcgov.com, or its successor website. The site provides a single point of access to the City's transactional data, project data and geospatial information.

OPEN STANDARD: A technical standard developed and maintained by a voluntary consensus standards body that is available to the public without royalty or fee. (2019 Compilation)

52-6A-4: OPEN DATA PLATFORM:

   A.   Intent: It is the intent of this article to provide:

      1.   Greater access to certain transactional and project information contained in City data stores; and

      2.   Access to certain City transactional and project information to foster and assist citizen developers in the creation of applications that would be of benefit to the public; and

      3.   Access to certain transactional and project information in an effort to reduce the number of Government Records Access and Management Act (GRAMA) requests.

   B.   Function: The function of the open data portal is to provide access to information in an understandable, readily available, industry standard downloadable format.

   C.   Open, Free Information: The data portal shall be open to all users and free to the public. Users of the information may not be charged fees or subscription charges. (2019 Compilation)

52-6A-5: ADMINISTRATION:

The City will operate the open data portal in accordance with this article and its associated procedures. (2019 Compilation)

ARTICLE B. OPEN DATA PORTAL PROCEDURE

SECTION:

52-6B-1: Purpose

52-6B-2: Scope

52-6B-3: Oversight Committee

52-6B-4: Responsibilities

52-6B-5: Process

52-6B-6: Documentation

52-6B-1: PURPOSE:

This article provides guidance regarding the process the City employs to determine which information is of importance to the public, how it will be presented and how often it will be updated. (2019 Compilation)

52-6B-2: SCOPE:

   A.   Specified: Government works best when it engages its constituents effectively and makes information readily available in an easily consumed format. The purpose of the Open Government Portal is threefold. First, the portal should maximize information availability by publishing data in an understandable, logical format for anyone to access. Second, the portal should publish relevant and timely information so that constituents are not overwhelmed with data. This has the potential to reduce the number of Government Records Access and Management Act (GRAMA) requests received by the City. Third, the portal should be a central clearing house for data that enables the citizen developer to create applications independently. Citizen developers are constituents who have the technical acumen to develop an app that pulls pieces of information from these data sources and presents that data in a format that meets a need in the community. This fosters creativity, alleviates a burden on IT departments, and provides tools that the City may not have considered.

   B.   Purpose: The purpose of this document is to provide guidance regarding the processes that the City will employ to determine what information is of importance to the public, how it will be presented, and how often it will be updated. (2019 Compilation)