Data & Technology

Written by Walker Kahn, Gianmarco Katz, and Griffin Beronio 

What’s the Problem?

Effective policymaking and governance require relevant, high-quality data and technology. However, being a truly "smart" city means more than simply purchasing new gadgets and expert advice. To truly maximize the benefits of information technology (IT) and data analytics, they must be effectively integrated into local governments’ culture and infrastructure.

This roadmap reviews strategies for municipal governments and communities working to collect, utilize, and democratize data and technology. Best practices include using asset mapping to collect high-quality local information; standardizing practices across departments for data security, data sharing, and implementation; using Open Data policies to democratize access and ensure community control over data; and working to close the digital divide.

What are People Currently Doing?

Long-Term Planning and City Innovation Offices

To manage technology systems, standardize security policies, actualize data sharing, and improve inclusivity and accessibility, cities like Madison and Chicago created long-term plans that integrate insights from municipal IT staff, business partners, and the local community. For municipalities interested in following suit, Massachusetts has provided a set of best IT practices, covering everything from procurement to email systems to process lifecycles.

While small cities may use a single data and technology officer to implement and manage data and IT systems, larger cities may create Civic Innovation offices (CIOs) to serve as central offices coordinating with officers in all departments. Boston’s Department of Innovation and Technology Strategy provides tech support across the city government, creates long-term technology investment plans focused on constituent impact and inclusivity, and supports digital access to government services for all residents. This guide highlights key insights and recommendations for municipal innovation officers, including tips for integrating new systems into old structures, fostering regional and inter-governmental collaboration, and prioritizing data-driven decision-making.

Some CIOs create prototype solutions to address novel challenges and improve government efficiency. Boston’s Mayor's Office for New Urban Mechanics is a municipal research and design team that works with internal agencies, community members, and private sector businesses to create pilot projects that can be scaled to address resident needs. The office’s successes include the Street Bump app, which automates and crowdsources pothole detection and road condition information.

However, it is important to remember that many “smart solutions” are affected by the quality of underlying data and algorithms, and often internalize the biases of their creators and users. This report from the ACLU of Northern California highlights the hidden risks and costs embedded in new “smart city” technologies and offers a tool kit for evaluating and managing these impacts.

Asset Mapping

While city leaders generally have a sense of the major resources and economic drivers, they often lack a full picture of all community assets and needs. Cities can use asset mapping projects to identify and collect data on resources like industry clusters, human capital, infrastructure, and cultural assets. Asset mapping strategies ask local leaders to partner with community members to crowdsource data that can be used in economic development, or to identify inequalities that must be addressed to maximally utilize human capital. Metrics should be defined democratically so results can be evaluated in the context of the needs of the entire community. For the same reason, it is important to collect both quantitative and qualitative data and incorporate the beliefs, needs, and interests of all stakeholders in the community. Maine’s Androscoggin County used asset mapping to identify existing assets to structure investments in continuum of care strategies for legal system-involved youth. Additionally, the Northwest Regional Educational Laboratory has created a workbook to train new participants in asset mapping and data collection strategies.

When informing economic development, asset mapping begins by evaluating the regional economy as a whole to locate areas of potential competitive advantage. Next, it measures the key network and cultural resources available locally (such as industry clusters, natural capital, educational resources, human capital, workforce, and local supply chains), identifies the improvements needed to capitalize on competitive advantages and establishes a baseline against which to measure the effectiveness of the economic development policies they implement. For more information on community-led economic development asset mapping projects, DePaul University provides additional tools and worksheets.

Data Security & Privacy

When implementing IT solutions, cities must simultaneously prioritize data democratization, security, and privacy. To do so, they need to establish robust standards for handling sensitive data and regularly train staff in these practices. These network security policies from the City of Madison provide guidelines for safeguarding data, data privacy, internet/email usage, infrastructure, backups, file storage, VDI, VPN, wireless communication, workstations, physical security, user IDs/passwords, and network security. This report from the Information Technology & Innovation Foundation provides a starting point for cities seeking to improve data security by monitoring the commercial use of data, addressing cybersecurity risks, and creating data-sharing policies. However, no security system is foolproof, and cities must be prepared for the worst: this guide the Department of Homeland Security and this toolkit from Diligent both provide a data breach response plans that includes strategies for identifying potential risks, protecting data and staff through training and awareness, detecting anomalies and unusual events, and recovering from breaches with a focus on legal compliance, data recovery, and collaboration between local governments.

Part of responsible data management is de-identification—removing, blurring, or obscuring information that could be used to link data to individuals. The Department of Education provides an introduction to deidentification and related concepts, while the National Institute of Standards and Technology provides techniques for deidentifying government data. Meanwhile, transit agencies around the country are adopting fare systems that allow riders to pay with their phones or credit cards, and while these technologies are convenient and efficient, they present security risks and threaten users’ privacy. This guide from TransitCenter outlines methods for protecting user data, including de-identifying payment transactions, clearly communicating privacy policies, and ensuring that riders are not penalized for using anonymous cash payments.

Taking it to the Next Level

In a truly democratic society, everyone would have access to the data and technology necessary to participate as a full citizen. The most efficient way to do this is by making broadband internet access a municipal utility, like water and electricity. Just as communities without access to the power grid are disadvantaged, communities without access to broadband internet are disadvantaged. Even though private internet providers refuse to offer affordable connectivity in many areas of the country, they still fight publicly funded broadband at every level and have made municipal broadband difficult or impossible to establish in 18 states. Read more about state preemption and how to fight for home rule in ProGov21's Home Rule policy roadmap.

Where governments are prevented from acting or slow to take up the charge, community Wi-Fi networks effectively improve connectivity. The Wireless Community Network Project launched community-based wireless networks in three different Illinois communities: these networks were built around a central access point with network repeaters distributed and maintained by community members to amplify the signal to make high-quality internet available to everyone. For building this kind of community wireless network, the Neighborhood Network Construction Kit offers a step-by-step do-it-yourself guide. However, these projects are only effective if people have access to computing. Public libraries therefore play a crucial role in making computers and internet connectivity available to all members of the community.

Lastly, we can ensure democratic control of our data and our governments by implementing Open Data legislation to make digital governmental data available to the public. Mandatory transparency is vital to improving communication, trust, accountability, and transparency. Cities like Madison and San Francisco have passed Open Data ordinances that can serve as a template for other communities. These laws require that data be shared with the public in readily accessible formats, and maximize the sharing of information by the city. Portland is a longtime leader in Open Data, with the city’s Open Data portal giving the public access to spatial and quantitative data on policing, zoning, transportation, development projects, and more.

Helpers, Allies, and Other Useful Organizations

• The Mayors Innovation Project’s Data & Technology Portal features best practices and new strategies in Civic Innovation, Smart Cities, and Data-Driven Economic Development.
• Harvard Kennedy School's Data-Smart City Solutions is a central resource for best practices and promising case studies related to civic engagement technology, open data, and predictive analytics.
• The City of Barcelona was an early adapter of smart city technologies, and the city’s Municipal Data Office is an international leader in citizen-first data rights and data sovereignty