Open Data Program, Publishing Strategy, Data Service Standard

Hallway of paper files
About
Open data takes the approach of proactively publishing data on the Internet for citizens to access and analyze. The City of Henderson launched its first open data platform in 2015. Since then, the City has continuously sought to improve its open data offerings. To this end, Resolution No. 4355 approved and adopted an open data policy on August 6, 2019. By defining the departmental participation expectations and governance principles of the City’s Open Data Program and its platform, the City not only establishes formal governance processes to make public data-sharing institutional and sustainable but it also establishes implementation timelines, provides oversight over the long-term availability of information across internal and external performance metrics across all city departments, demonstrates public commitment to lasting change, and provides the best opportunity to maximize the return on public investment by gathering and analyzing  information.
Program Purpose
  • To improve citizen participation and experience with the City’s operations, decision-making processes, and community resources;
  • To improve the City’s understanding of key citizen priorities, efficiency through evidence-based decision-making, and responsiveness through greater transparency;
  • To build upon the City’s Public Records Policy by minimizing limitations on the disclosure of public information while appropriately safeguarding public safety, and lawful privacy, confidentiality, intellectual property, and security interests;
  • To encourage economic opportunity and innovative uses of the City’s publishable data by departments, the public, companies, and other partners that benefit from the knowledge created by Open Data;
  • To ensure that procedures for data sharing with other local governments and agencies are efficient and facilitate the optimal deployment and quality of services to citizens.
Open Data Publishing Strategy
Our open data policy supports the creation of a routinely updated and published inventory of City-wide data. Not all datasets listed here will be published. Datasets published through the plan are those not associated with potentially sensitive, non-confidential information that can be provided in use-appropriate formats. The prioritization of the release of these datasets takes into account new and existing signals of interest from the public (such as the frequency of public records requests), the City's policy and programmatic priorities, existing opportunities for data use in the public interest, and cost. The publication of these plans represents the City's commitment to release all publishable City data proactively.
City of Henderson Data Service Standard
The purpose of the City of Henderson Data Service Standard is to establish a comprehensive framework for the management, dissemination, and utilization of data resources in alignment with the city's commitment to transparency, accessibility, reliability, and ethical practices. This standard, in conjunction with the Socrata Data Governance and City of Henderson Open Data Policies, sets forth guidelines and best practices for the design, delivery, and quality of data and analytics delivered as a service. This standard aligns with the city's commitment to transparency, user-centric design, and ethical data that supports the overall data and analysis services. It serves as a foundation for responsible data management and supports the city's mission to provide services and resources that enhance the quality of life for those who live, learn, work, and play in our city.
Read the Data Service Standard and Open Data documents here: https://www.cityofhenderson.com/our-city/open-data