Title
Resolution to Improve Data Transparency and Performance Management
Body
Whereas, The City of Ann Arbor’s mission is to provide exceptional services that sustain and enhance a vibrant, safe, and diverse community;
Whereas, Michigan Public Act 252 of 20141 requires municipalities to be transparent and maintain a performance dashboard and report on key financial metrics to qualify City, Village, and Township Revenue Sharing;
Whereas, Performance management is considered a best practice in municipal management2 and is a critical component in assessing and improving operations;
Whereas, According to ICMA, “performance management includes identifying, collecting, analyzing, and reporting on indicators that show how well the organization performs, both internally and in the delivery of services to the public, and how that performance compares with its targets or with peer organizations. Performance data is intended not as an end result, but rather as a means to more informed decision making and a more engaged community.”;
Whereas, The City of Ann Arbor has demonstrated necessary compliance and a commitment to performance tracking, examples include the City of Ann Arbor's Performance Dashboard3, Office of Sustainability and Innovations Metrics4, Monthly Water Quality Dashboard5, Public Services Statistics6, 2022 Annual Snapshot for Vision Zero Progress7, and AAPD Transparency Dashboard8;
Whereas, The City is engaged in a comprehensive redesign of its website;
Whereas, The City’s performance dashboards report on numerous metrics and goals, but currently lack consistency in formatting, design, and location on departmental pages. In addition, the dashboards lack a consistent approach to performance monitoring across the organization and often don’t include benchmarking data, identify progress towards targets in adopted plans, or compare progress with peer organizations or past performance. Progress on key performance indicators aren’t centrally located or easily interpreted, and community performance indicators are absent;
Whereas, Recently adopted plans such as Moving Together Towards Vision Zero and the A2 Zero Climate Neutrality plan have identified performance targets but the scattered and incomplete performance monitoring make it challenging for residents and commissions to track plan progress;
Whereas, City residents need clear, consistent, and easy to access data to track the City of Ann Arbor’s progress on community priorities and for accountability purposes; and
Whereas, City Council needs to be able to track progress on adopted plans and policy goals to make informed budgetary and policy decisions and for accountability purposes,
RESOLVED, City Council directs the City Administrator to:
• Review municipal best practices in performance management and open data
• Evaluate the City’s current approach to data access and performance management
• Develop an exemplary, centralized dashboard that provides residents with easy access to key performance indicators, community indicators, and open data (example: City of Durham, NC)9
• Develop an accessible and standardized approach to performance data reporting across all City departments to enhance the visibility, accessibility, and monitoring of policy goals and key performance metrics. Departmental websites should include standardized public dashboards, as well as access to open data, maps, and more detailed, regularly published reports as relevant (example: City of Boulder, CO)10; and
RESOLVED, City Council directs the City Administrator to engage with the Council Administration Committee toward the full implementation of this resolution and charges the Committee with the responsibility of overseeing the execution of this resolution.
Sponsored by: Councilmembers Briggs, Akmon, Mayor Taylor, and Councilmembers Radina and Song
1. <https://gcc02.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.michigan.gov%2F-%2Fmedia%2FProject%2FWebsites%2Ftreasury%2FMISC_2%2F2014_PA_252__Boilerplate.pdf%3Frev%3D2d7d85ad7a0a46c680fa5966507de0d7&data=05%7C01%7CCTaylor%40a2gov.org%7Cc5c7bac70cb3499805d908dba7f0fd28%7C48afa58563754170b9d1e9c568bb92f3%7C0%7C0%7C638288425721513553%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJWIjoiMC4wLjAwMDAiLCJQIjoiV2luMzIiLCJBTiI6Ik1haWwiLCJXVCI6Mn0%3D%7C3000%7C%7C%7C&sdata=ffvyR5TUPzOAojU5f1wzQBH6%2FH0ATw8zx%2F2wMWEkzQo%3D&reserved=0>
2. <https://gcc02.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Ficma.org%2Ftop-performance-management-resources&data=05%7C01%7CCTaylor%40a2gov.org%7Cc5c7bac70cb3499805d908dba7f0fd28%7C48afa58563754170b9d1e9c568bb92f3%7C0%7C0%7C638288425721513553%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJWIjoiMC4wLjAwMDAiLCJQIjoiV2luMzIiLCJBTiI6Ik1haWwiLCJXVCI6Mn0%3D%7C3000%7C%7C%7C&sdata=QX2jE7Xk7PL3KZrbiA%2FKpW9J1TFLwwjc9s3T7LcEBcQ%3D&reserved=0>
3. <https://analytics.a2gov.org/superset/dashboard/cvtrs/?standalone=2>
4. <https://analytics.a2gov.org/superset/dashboard/osi-performance-metrics/?standalone=2>
5. <https://www.a2gov.org/departments/water-treatment/Pages/default.aspx>
6. <https://www.a2gov.org/departments/public-services/Pages/Statistics---Working-For-You.aspx>
7. <https://gcc02.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fstorymaps.arcgis.com%2Fstories%2F8c2e8fde0fb24e28b9bd4f274e4d205d&data=05%7C01%7CCTaylor%40a2gov.org%7Cc5c7bac70cb3499805d908dba7f0fd28%7C48afa58563754170b9d1e9c568bb92f3%7C0%7C0%7C638288425721513553%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJWIjoiMC4wLjAwMDAiLCJQIjoiV2luMzIiLCJBTiI6Ik1haWwiLCJXVCI6Mn0%3D%7C3000%7C%7C%7C&sdata=w5ydCOe742LqRt5w2YcxBnNBAnb13ktmURKh7Xy8G9I%3D&reserved=0>
8. <https://gcc02.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fportal.arxcommunity.com%2Fdashboards%2Fcommunity%2Fmi-ci-annarbor-pd&data=05%7C01%7CCTaylor%40a2gov.org%7Cc5c7bac70cb3499805d908dba7f0fd28%7C48afa58563754170b9d1e9c568bb92f3%7C0%7C0%7C638288425721513553%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJWIjoiMC4wLjAwMDAiLCJQIjoiV2luMzIiLCJBTiI6Ik1haWwiLCJXVCI6Mn0%3D%7C3000%7C%7C%7C&sdata=deWb5yUE%2BhQyPQDqWwk1EM7dWOyp8cTW%2BfhDknB1gkg%3D&reserved=0>
9. <https://gcc02.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Flive-durhamnc.opendata.arcgis.com%2F&data=05%7C01%7CCTaylor%40a2gov.org%7Cc5c7bac70cb3499805d908dba7f0fd28%7C48afa58563754170b9d1e9c568bb92f3%7C0%7C0%7C638288425721513553%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJWIjoiMC4wLjAwMDAiLCJQIjoiV2luMzIiLCJBTiI6Ik1haWwiLCJXVCI6Mn0%3D%7C3000%7C%7C%7C&sdata=lH5y2WIsXYVLe5e6zXfneTsvI5nxWq0GfyHS4DqzmwQ%3D&reserved=0>
10. <https://gcc02.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fbouldercolorado.gov%2Fservices%2Ftransportation-data-and-maps&data=05%7C01%7CCTaylor%40a2gov.org%7Cc5c7bac70cb3499805d908dba7f0fd28%7C48afa58563754170b9d1e9c568bb92f3%7C0%7C0%7C638288425721513553%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJWIjoiMC4wLjAwMDAiLCJQIjoiV2luMzIiLCJBTiI6Ik1haWwiLCJXVCI6Mn0%3D%7C3000%7C%7C%7C&sdata=S5ZbxpEoQegyhzNKp5G7QB4PiDJdDqqMfTAybipHTgg%3D&reserved=0>