The New Jersey Open Data Initiative creates a single data site for state data, as long as agencies comply, that the data is accurate and residents are informed about its existence.
Need to know the property taxes in the town where you're looking to buy? How about when the next local zoning board meeting is scheduled, or how your local hospital stacks up against the competition?
Your search is about to get easier, thanks to a new law signed by Gov. Chris Christie consolidating information and statistics kept by the state government into one easily accessed web site.
The New Jersey Open Data Initiative, which enjoyed overwhelming backing in both houses, creates a single data site representing all state agencies, including authorities, boards and commissions, NJSpotlight reports.
Of course, the success of this initiative rests on ensuring that agencies comply, that the data is accurate and that Garden State residents - the end users - are fully informed about the site's existence.
Picture it: With a single click, you'll be able to access information - or at least link to information - that might otherwise have taken hours or even days to track down.
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"This is a clearinghouse, where all data is going to be in one place," said Sen. Nilsa Cruz-Perez (D-Camden), one of the sponsors of the law. "It's just common sense. Let me have just one place to find information, with one person managing one site."
The welcome legislation is based on models already in place in several of New Jersey's cities. It is particularly crucial in an era when the White House wages an unremitting campaign to prove the media are producing "fake news," and legitimate reporters and broadcasters struggle daily to disprove the administration's "alternative facts" (otherwise known as lies).
Having a resource for raw data will certainly help - not just journalists and citizen-activists, but also any residents who have questions about pension information, salaries for state employees and allocations in the current state budget, among other pertinent topics.
The bill's supporters say the move will be a boon for transparency, pushing agencies to be honest in their reporting and data-collecting procedures.
Under the law, all the data will be available for free, unless a fee is required by state law. Users will not have to log in by name; neither will they be required to provide any information about themselves or why they are seeking the information.
The state is expected to appoint a chief data officer, to work within the Department of Treasury, to oversee the site and manage the data, making sure it is updated and not vulnerable to hackers.
All systems should be go within three months, when the new law goes into effect.
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