Data Policy

Open Data Ordinance

On August 25^th, 2022, Metro Council Passed the Open Data Ordinance.

WHEREAS, Metro Government is the catalyst for creating a world-class city that provides its citizens with safe and vibrant neighborhoods, great jobs, a strong system of education and innovation and a high quality of life;

WHEREAS, it should be easy to do business with Metro Government. Online government interactions mean more convenient services for citizens and businesses and online government interactions improve the cost effectiveness and accuracy of government operations;

WHEREAS, an open government also makes certain that every aspect of the built environment also has reliable digital descriptions available to citizens and entrepreneurs for deep engagement mediated by smart devices;

WHEREAS, every citizen has the right to prompt, efficient service from Metro Government;

WHEREAS, the adoption of open standards improves transparency, access to public information and improved coordination and efficiencies among Departments and partner organizations across the public, non-profit and private sectors;

WHEREAS, by publishing structured standardized data in machine readable formats, Metro Government seeks to encourage the local technology community to develop software applications and tools to display, organize, analyze, and share public record data in new and innovative ways;

WHEREAS, Metro Government’s ability to review data and datasets will facilitate a better understanding of the obstacles the city faces with regard to equity;

WHEREAS, Metro Government’s understanding of inequities, through data and datasets, will assist in creating better policies to tackle inequities in the city;

WHEREAS, through this Ordinance, Metro Government desires to maintain its continuous improvement in open data and transparency that it initiated via Mayoral Executive Order No. 1, Series 2013;

WHEREAS, Metro Government’s open data work has repeatedly been recognized as evidenced by its achieving What Works Cities Silver (2018), Gold (2019), and Platinum (2020) certifications. What Works Cities recognizes and celebrates local governments for their exceptional use of data to inform policy and funding decisions, improve services, create operational efficiencies, and engage residents. The Certification program assesses cities on their data-driven decision making practices, such as whether they are using data to set goals and track progress, allocate funding, evaluate the effectiveness of programs, and achieve desired outcomes. These data informed strategies enable Certified Cities to be more resilient, respond in crisis situations, increase economic mobility, protect public health, and increase resident satisfaction; and

WHEREAS, in commitment to the spirit of Open Government, Metro Government will consider public information to be open by default and will proactively publish data and data containing information, consistent with the Kentucky Open Meetings and Open Records Act.

Full order and Annual Open Data Reports: https://louisville-metro-opendata-lojic.hub.arcgis.com/pages/-open-data-ordinance

Open Data Policy

In accordance with the Open Data Ordinance, Metro Technology Services has established the following policies. Louisville Metro Open Data policies apply to all Louisville Metro Departments.

The key factors that will propel the open data movement going forward will be:

• Continued investment in open data initiatives
• Making as much open data available as possible
• Expanding interaction between governments and their many stakeholders
• Increasing support from government leaders, and
• Fostering deep and abiding trust from citizens

Full policy documents: https://lojic.maps.arcgis.com/sharing/rest/content/items/886c9fb46ce64cb08867f9197cd85447/data

Your Tax Dollars at Work Data Policy

1. The Your Tax Dollars at Work website is the Louisville/Jefferson County Metro Government (hereinafter referred to as “Metro Government”) Searchable Accountability Website. The website is designed to allow the public, at no cost, to search for the following information:

• Financial information such as the name of payee, amount, date, receiving or requesting agency, and the funding by fund source; the program, activity or function of the expenditure; the expenditure by category such as supplies, contractual, personnel, capital outlay, etc.; the expenditure by subcategory such as travel allowance, repair parts and the like; any Metro Government audit or report;
• Payroll information such as salaries and wages paid to individual employees of Metro Government’s agencies and members of boards and commissions;
• The amount of revenues received by each revenue source in which Metro Government levies a tax, fee or in any other collection of revenue;
• List of all Metro Government established or approved boards and commissions and their members including position and contact information, the amount paid to board or commission members per meeting, if applicable;
• Quarterly and year end financial reports by department and the Comprehensive Annual Financial Report;
• Copies of agreements, grants, contracts and any other document or agreement by which Metro Government obligates itself for amounts of $250,000 or more until June 30, 2010 and for amounts of $50,000 or more thereafter.

2. Updates are provided to the website as follows:

• revenue by source and expense data are updated no later than 30 days from the end of each month;
• financial reports are updated no later than 45 days from the end of each fiscal quarter;
• agreements, contracts, and grants are updated within 30 days of signing of the document by the Administration;
• fiscal year-end reports are updated no later than 30 days of their publication date;
• internal and external audits are made available within 30 days of their release from the issuing agency or auditor;
• boards or commissions information is updated within 30 days of any change;
• All other information contained in the website shall be updated but no less than 90 days.

3. Definitions

• “Data” means any information contained within this website, including all updates to such information.
• “Secondary Use” means any use of the Data that is used to produce another set of information, records, or modification of the Data.

4. Secondary Use

• The Data provided on this website will not reflect any Data outside of the update schedule listed in 2 above. The Data on this website should be used for informational purposes only. A User uses the Data at the User’s own risk. The Data on this website is made available “as is” without any warranties of any kind, including without limitation, implied warranties of merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose, workmanlike effort, and non-infringement. It is possible that the Data may contain errors, inaccuracies or typographical errors, which may be subsequently corrected. In no event shall Metro Government or its officers, employees, or agents be held liable for any direct, indirect, incidental, consequential, punitive, special, direct or other damages whatsoever arising out of or relating to the Terms of Use or User’s use of the website or use of Data on the website, including all claims and claims by third parties, for loss or damages arising from an error, inaccuracy, or other defect in the Data, or information contained in the Data. If up to date Data is needed, an open records request should be submitted in writing, detailing what records are sought, and the time period for which records are sought. Additional information about open records requests can be found at https://louisvilleky.gov/government/management-budget/services/submit-open-records-request 
• Once Data is taken off of this site, Metro Government has no control over the end use of the Data. No User may claim in any way that the User has the approval of Metro Government for use of the Data, the analysis of any Data, or the Secondary Use of such Data.
• Any User, in its use of the Data, should reflect the date upon which the Data was retrieved from the website, as well as a reference to the URL at which the Data was found, or a reference to the website of www.louisvilleky.gov.
• Metro Government, by making this Data available for informational purposes only, does not grant the User any right or title to any intellectual property rights that Metro Government may have in the Data.

5. General Provisions

• By using Data made available through this site the User agrees to all the conditions stated in the following paragraphs as well as the terms and conditions described herein.
• Any use of the Data shall be governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of the Commonwealth of Kentucky without regard to conflict of laws provisions. In the event of any proceedings regarding the use of the website or Data contained within the website, the parties agree that the venue shall be the state courts of Kentucky or the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Kentucky, Louisville Division. All parties expressly consent to personal jurisdiction and venue in such Court for the limited and sole purpose of proceedings relating to this Agreement or any rights or obligations arising there under. Service of process may be accomplished by following the procedures prescribed by law.
• No modification to these Terms of Use, nor any waiver of any rights, shall be effective except by an instrument in writing signed by User and the City, and the waiver of any breach or default shall not constitute a waiver of any other right hereunder or any subsequent breach or default.
• If any provision of these Terms of Use is held to be invalid by a court of competent jurisdiction, then the remaining provisions will nevertheless remain in full force and effect.
• Metro Government may modify these Terms of Use by posting notice of such modifications on this page. Any modification is effective upon posting, unless otherwise indicated.

Data Security

Metro Cyber Security takes a holistic approach to assuring the confidentiality, integrity, and availability of data. Technical and procedural controls are applied using the defense-in-depth approach, and the principal of least privilege is applied to all information technology processes. Also, in-depth training on cyber security is provided that spans online, in person, simulated cyber attacks, and outreach to external entities. Finally, cyber security policies and procedures are mapped directly to compliance regulations that address protection of sensitive data. These include but are not limited to; PCI DSS, HIPAA and HITECH, CJIS, IRS Publication 1075, KRS 61.931-934, and the Center for Internet Security Top 20 Critical Security Controls.

• Learn more about Louisville Metro Cyber Security 
• See our Data Classification Policy Extract (PDF)