Accela Announces CivicData.com Beta Availability For Developers And Government Agencies

CivicData.com Offers Free Platform For Agencies to Publish and Manage Datasets; Developers Can Build and Deploy Innovative Applications to Serve Multiple Jurisdictions

SAN RAMON, CA – October 15, 2013 – Accela, Inc., the leading provider of civic engagement solutions for government agencies, announces the beta availability of CivicData.com for Accela customers, partners, and developers. CivicData.com is a free cloud-based open data platform that will make it easier for government agencies to publish and manage datasets. The service will give Accela customers and prospects the ability to provide rich government data to developers and citizens looking to transform data into civic solutions.

Central to CivicData.com is the creation and deployment of innovative apps by developers. The platform will offer a single location to view rich multi-jurisdictional data in real-time and in standard formats, removing the burden from agency IT staff. The civic apps created by this growing ecosystem can be used by multiple agencies, thereby helping civic developers to build and scale their businesses. The platform will unlock the value of open data while helping agencies move from transparency to trust as they offer citizens, businesses and professionals access to civic information that was historically hard to find.

“Accela’s CivicData.com has the unrivaled potential to impact governing, civic engagement and government business by leveraging our worldwide customer base,” said Maury Blackman, Accela CEO and President. “Developers and citizens are demanding a gathering place to leverage the power of open data. With CivicData.com, we’re offering government agencies a simple, cost-effective solution to bring transparency to civic processes, and developers a platform to build and grow their civic businesses. Our mission is to fuel government innovation by democratizing open data.”

Accela will launch the Beta availability of CivicData.com during a special session at the upcoming Code for America Summit in San Francisco on October 17. Accela partners with Code for America to set specifications associated with LIVES restaurant inspection data and the HouseFacts  for residential housing inspection data. These specifications are critical to unlocking the civic application marketplace for developers.  

“The new standard for truly open data is when it can easily travel to places where people are making decisions,” said Jack Madans, Code for America’s Government Partnerships Manager. “But it’s often difficult for technology departments to implement a new specification. We’re excited to have Accela, one of the companies that local governments already depend on for data services, step up and make that possible.”

“I think there is tremendous value for civic technologists in CivicData.com,” said Eddie Tejada, a Code for America Brigade Leader in Oakland and co-founder of Civic Insight. “Today many government agencies have their own data portals. Open data will improve accessibility across departments and jurisdictions, while also allowing technologists to build and expand upon this useful information.”

With CivicData.com Accela intends to:

• Radically simplify how open data is published and managed
• Provide standard, cross-jurisdictional data in one place
• Enable developers to build and deploy civic apps across multiple jurisdictions
• Address the needs of agencies large and small
• Make these capabilities free to Accela customers, Code For America Brigades and civic developers 

To find out more information, attend the OpenData.com special session hosted by Accela’s Kris Trujillo and Allen Chen at the Code for America Summit on Thursday, October 17th or by registering at www.CivicData.com.