New Orleans Public Data Access Survey

Purpose

Thank your for agreeing to complete this important survey.

The purpose of this survey is to identify specific barriers that stand in the way of the City of New Orleans being able to quickly and effectively meet the public's need for public information -- especially administrative data sets (such as permits, crime reports, and property assessments), but also contracts and communications.

This is not a legal investigation, but rather an attempt to identify the practical and political reasons that deter local public agencies from sharing data. Responses will be aggregated and analyzed to identify patterns so we can work collaboratively with stakeholders both within and outside of city government to improve the system for access to public records.

Privacy Policy

Protecting your privacy is absolutely vital to the collection of this data. Your responses will remain completely confidential.

Instructions

Please respond as accurately and truthfully as possible. For each type of city information you’ve tried to acquire, please fill out a separate survey, if possible.

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* 1. Please enter your name (this will not be disclosed to anyone):

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* 2. What organization or entity are you affiliated with?

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* 3. What is your email address?

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* 4. What type of public information were you interested in?

Permits

Property ownership, assessed value, or sales history

Criminal justice

City services (examples: 311 calls, or Sewerage & Water Board activities)

Code enforcement violations, tax violations, liens

Capital projects (examples: school or fire station construction, or street improvements)

Correspondence (examples: email, or appointment calendars)

Financial or fiscal

Contracts

Katrina recovery funding or expenditures

Other (please specify)

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* 5. Why were you trying to obtain public information? (What question did you want answered? What did you plan to do with the data? What was your research question? What were you trying to demonstrate?)

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* 6. What initial steps did you take to obtain this information? (check all that apply)

Asked a public official for the information

Submitted a written public records request

Negotiated a data-sharing agreement with a city agency

Re-created data from city’s Web site

Re-created data from a newspaper, or other source

Other (please specify)

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* 7. If initially unsuccessful in your request for information, what additional steps, if any, did you take to obtain this information? (check all that apply)

Repeated the request for public records

Filed a complaint with a public official

Reported the issue to an elected representative

Reported the issue to a watchdog organization, or other non-governmental organization

Reported the issue to the media

Took legal action

Other (please specify)

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* 8. How long did it take for your public information request to be fulfilled?

Three days or less

One month or less

Six months or less

One year or less

More than one year

My request was never fulfilled

Comment (optional)

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* 9. In total, what's your best estimate of the number of hours you or your colleagues have worked to obtain this information?

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* 10. Did the city attorney respond in any way to your request for public information?

Yes

If yes, please describe interaction

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* 11. If you were told why your public request for public information was delayed or denied, what was the explanation? (e.g., staff didn’t have time or resources to answer the request; fear of criticism; fear of improper use; privacy concerns; the data is inaccurate; stewardship problems, e.g., “You’ll have to ask another department for that data.”)

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* 12. Were you told that you had to pay for the data?

Yes

If yes, how much?

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* 13. If you tried to get the information from a city Web site, how easy was it to do so?

Very hard

Hard

Easy

Very easy

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* 14. How would you rate your experience trying to obtain this information?

Very bad

Bad

Acceptable

Good

Very good

New Orleans Public Data Access Survey

Question Title

* 1. Please enter your name (this will not be disclosed to anyone):

Question Title

* 2. What organization or entity are you affiliated with?

Question Title

* 3. What is your email address?

Question Title

* 4. What type of public information were you interested in?

Question Title

* 5. Why were you trying to obtain public information? (What question did you want answered? What did you plan to do with the data? What was your research question? What were you trying to demonstrate?)

Question Title

* 6. What initial steps did you take to obtain this information? (check all that apply)

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* 7. If initially unsuccessful in your request for information, what additional steps, if any, did you take to obtain this information? (check all that apply)

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* 8. How long did it take for your public information request to be fulfilled?

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* 9. In total, what's your best estimate of the number of hours you or your colleagues have worked to obtain this information?

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* 10. Did the city attorney respond in any way to your request for public information?

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* 12. Were you told that you had to pay for the data?

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* 13. If you tried to get the information from a city Web site, how easy was it to do so?

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* 14. How would you rate your experience trying to obtain this information?

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* 15. What have been, or what could be, the consequences of the inability to access this information?

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* 16. Are there any additional comments you’d like to make about your experience trying to obtain information from the city?