Hartford, CT – Governor Ned Lamont is marking International Open Data Day, which is celebrated this year on March 5, 2023, by recognizing the transparency and openness of Connecticut’s state government and highlighting recent enhancements that increase data available for the public’s use on the state’s Open Data portal, data.ct.gov.

“During our administration, we have been able to build upon tremendous improvements removing silos in state government to make data and information more clear, available, and useful, most notably through Connecticut’s Open Data portal, data.ct.gov, and geodata portal, geodata.ct.gov,” Governor Lamont said. “The state’s open data efforts are extraordinarily beneficial to our residents, businesses, and governments, as we have the ability to make the data instantly available and customizable to the user. With this, we have been able to accurately report spending and learn about the impact of pandemic recovery efforts, assist with human resources planning, economic development, public health, sustainability, and address historical inequities. Our efforts have already received national recognition and I look forward to seeing the growing continuation of these open data efforts.”

Some of most recent open data initiatives executed in Connecticut include:

• Launching the Connecticut Geodata Portal, a repository for maps and geospatial data from Connecticut state agencies that make geographic information system (GIS) data open and accessible;
• Launching broadband availability and adoption maps on the Connecticut Broadband Mapping Hub to support efforts to increase access to broadband internet for every residence;
• Improving the usability of the Connecticut Open Data portal by ensuring data are up-to-date and clearly documented through the availability of the portal’s site analytics and by providing data stories with narrative and visualizations to add context to the data;
• Publishing an American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) dashboard and dataset to let the public know how federal ARPA resources are being used in Connecticut and how they are having impact;
• Developing the Executive Branch Workforce dashboard to provide live statistics and graphs on Connecticut’s state government workforce and filled vacancies;
• Developing the GreenerGov CT dashboard to track the state’s progress towards meeting its sustainability goals;
• Working with the Office of the Secretary of the State to launch the Connecticut Business Registrations data story, which provides insight into business registrations in the state;
• Launching the Roberta Willis Scholarship Program dashboard to track indicators on the Roberta Willis Scholarship Program in Connecticut, including need-based grant and the need-merit scholarship;
• Launching the School Immunization Survey Data dashboard by the Connecticut Department of Public Health to provide access to data on vaccinations in the state’s schools;
• Continuing to work with the Connecticut Department of Public Health and other agencies on the COVID-19 Data dashboard to make data about the impact of COVID-19 available on the portal, including daily reports, school-level information, and vaccine distribution;
• Publishing the 2020 U.S. Census Block Adjustments dashboard, which includes data on 2020 U.S. census population adjustments for incarcerated populations, for determining legislative districts;
• Publishing the Disproportionately Impacted Areas dashboard, identified for June 2021 Special Session Public Act 21-1, which are used to determine eligibility for participation in cannabis industry; and
• Partnering on the development of the Juvenile Justice Policy and Oversight Committee’s Juvenile Justice Equity dashboard, which will be launched in spring 2023 and will monitor and examine juvenile justice system involvement across the state for youth of different races, ethnicities, and genders.

International Open Data Day is an annual celebration of open data all over the world. Groups from around the world create local events on the day where they will use open data in their communities. It is an opportunity to show the benefits of open data and encourage the adoption of open data policies in government, business, and civil society.