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Syracuse to launch open data policy soon

Luke H. Gordon
/
Flickr
Syracuse City Hall

Syracuse City Hall is fine tuning an open data policy, after a two-week public comment period.

The policy is expected to launch later this month, and offers residents an easy way to access to public information involving the work of city government. Mayor Stephanie Miner says so far, the city has gotten good feedback about the proposed policy.

"We think that this is just a terrific opportunity for people to use our data available to make better, stronger public policy. To use the data available to get the information they’re looking for for their projects, and to also use the data to ensure what your taxes pay for,” the mayor said.

Miner expects the data to be useful to everyone from homeowners, who might want to see how many potholes are filled in their neighborhood, to more sophisticated users, who might be looking at the relationship of enforcement of code policies to police calls.

“It’s transparency in government. It’s showing how your government works. It’s also giving you an insight in measuring your government, so you can compare apples to apples. It’s just a new measuring tool and device,” Miner said.

More governments across the country are opening up data to the public. New York State and New York City have open data policies currently.

Ellen produces news reports and features related to events that occur in the greater Syracuse area and throughout Onondaga County. Her reports are heard regularly in regional updates in Morning Edition and All Things Considered.