Latest cities to earn What Works Cities Certification

There are 12 new cities in the US and Latin America that have achieved recognition in the latest round of Bloomberg Philanthropies What Works Cities Certification for ‘exceptional’ use of data in local government.

Strengthened in 2022 to include new equity requirements, What Works Cities Certification sets the standard of excellence for data-informed, well-managed local government.

Effectively harness data

The standard reflects the practices, policies, and resources municipal governments must have in place to effectively harness data for better decision-making. With the latest announcement, 74 cities have achieved the What Works Cities Certification distinction and more than 160 cities have submitted applications since 2017.

“We are excited to welcome these 12 newly certified cities which have a collective focus on how data can be used to build stronger communities,” said Rochelle Haynes, managing director of What Works Cities Certification.

“These cities understand that local government data use is a precondition to solving problems, assessing what is working, and improving how their city halls do business – and they are investing their resources accordingly.”

“[The] programme represents a fast-growing community of policymakers raising the bar on what is possible for local government when it leverages data to address major challenges and opportunities facing the city”

Representing a growing movement of cities and leaders across the Americas investing in data and evidence, the 12 new certified What Works Cities are: Alexandria, Virginia; New York City; Port St Lucie, Florida; Rochester, Minnesota; and Rock Hill, South Carolina from the US; and Bogotá, Colombia; Luján de Cuyo, Argentina; Medellín, Colombia; Monterrey, Mexico; Recife, Brazil; Rionegro, Colombia; and Tres de Febrero, Argentina from Latin America. Phoenix and Tempe moved up to platinum – the highest recognition possible – alongside New York City, which certified at this level for the first time.

“The Bloomberg Philanthropies’ What Works Cities Certification programme represents a fast-growing community of policymakers raising the bar on what is possible for local government when it leverages data to address major challenges and opportunities facing the city,” said James Anderson, who leads the government innovation programme at Bloomberg Philanthropies.

“More than 160 cities across the Americas are seeking the What Works Cities Certification seal of approval because city halls – like any other effective modern organisation – must be leveraging data to make better decisions. The programme provides local governments with that North Star – and we are glad to see its reach continue to grow.”

“These cities understand that local government data use is a precondition to solving problems, assessing what is working, and improving how their city halls do business”

The What Works Cities Certification standard measures a city’s use of data based on 43 criteria. A city that achieves 51-67 per cent of the 43 criteria is recognised at the silver level of certification, 68-84 per cent is required to achieve gold, and 85 per cent or more is required to reach platinum. Highlights of how newly certified cities are using data and evidence include:

• Phoenix, Arizona (platinum) instituted data governance across departments and continuous community engagement to inform key policies, including the City’s climate action plan, contributing to the average Phoenix resident using approximately 29 per cent less water today than the average resident in 1990
• Tempe, Arizona (platinum) designed a data management strategy that introduced a new, inclusive demographic standard that is core to the City’s Vision Zero policy. Vision Zero is an evidence-based traffic safety plan – which includes a statistical analysis of a higher propensity for collisions – to reduce the number of fatalities and serious injuries due to crashes to zero
• New York City, New York (platinum) bolstered requirements for capital project requests to include projected emissions data, which are now being met by 100 per cent of city agencies as part of its new municipal climate budget. The City also launched advanced artificial intelligence policy initiatives to regulate biases and discrimination, including for hiring and promotion decisions