Bloomberg Philanthropies has announced that 10 more cities – including two in California – have been awarded What Works Cities Certification for their use of data and evidence to inform decision-making. That brings the total number of U.S. cities certified since 2017 to 50.
The California cities most recently recognized are Long Beach and Salinas; others are Baltimore; Buffalo, N.Y.; Chicago; Denver; Durham, N.C.; Evanston, Ill.; Miami; and Rochester, N.Y.
Cities can receive Silver, Gold or Platinum Certification from the program. These 10 cities received Silver Certification.
Each of these cities is using data and evidence to address various challenges. For example, Salinas used data in a different approach to public safety with a program that aims to prevent youth and gang violence. Data can also help with economic recovery, as seen in Long Beach. The city used data to carefully target local businesses impacted by COVID-19 and distribute support grants.
“Cities that are investing in building their data skills and capacity are seeing the results,” said What Works Cities Certification’s founding director, Jennifer Park, in the announcement.
The certification program was launched in 2017 to assess the data-driven decision-making methods of cities with populations of 30,000 or higher. Cities that participate in the program receive customized assessments that highlight their strengths, as well as areas that can be improved. Partners of What Works Cities offer training and other support in improvement efforts.
The 45 criteria on which certifications are based are grouped into the practices of data governance, evaluations, general management, open data, performance and analytics, repurposing, results-driven contracting and stakeholder engagement.
This article first appeared in Government Technology, Techwire’s sister publication.
