Mayor Joseph P. Ganim
Bridgeport, CT
For Immediate Release For More Information:
November 3, 2016 Av Harris (203) 814-7992
av.harris@bridgeportct.gov
-Press Release-
Mayor Ganim, State Comptroller Kevin Lembo Unveil “OpenBridgeport” Online Access to City Financial Data
Move Makes Bridgeport The Most Financially Transparent City in Connecticut, Delivering Real-Time Information on City Budget and Expenditures Online
BRIDGEPORT, CT – Mayor Joe Ganim today joined Connecticut State Comptroller Kevin Lembo today to unveil “OpenBridgeport” – an online portal through which the public is now able to search real-time city financial information. This information includes every line item in the city budget broken down into revenues and expenditures, and specific dollar amounts for how much the city is paying outside vendors for services. This makes Bridgeport the most financially transparent city in Connecticut, something Mayor Ganim – elected one year ago today – promised to bring to city government as a candidate for Mayor. The links to “OpenBridgeport” are: Open Budget - https://bridgeportct.budget.socrata.com and Open Checkbook: https://bridgeportct.spending.socrata.com
“When I ran for mayor last year I said we needed to open up Bridgeport’s government so the taxpayers can see how their money is being spent, and I meant it,” Ganim said. “I am grateful for the partnership with Comptroller Lembo to help us accomplish this monumental achievement for Bridgeport’s taxpayers and make OpenBridgeport publicly available. It took months of painstaking work to migrate over all city financial data but as of today we have thrown open the doors to city government and anyone with internet access can now have real-time city financial data. It’s your money, and now you are going to be able to see exactly how the city is spending it.”
Comptroller Lembo said, “Mayor Ganim’s commitment to OpenBridgeport is giving residents from Connecticut’s largest city greater access to public financial information than ever before. I am hopeful that Mayor Ganim’s leadership on this will inspire towns and cities across the state that don’t already do so to open their financial books in the same way. Now it’s up to the public – as well as policymakers – to dive into this data, take advantage of this open door and become even more engaged in government.”
The personnel in Mayor Ganim’s administration responsible for implementing OpenBridgeport include Mayoral Aide Tom Gaudett, Ed Adams, longtime FBI senior investigator and now advisor to Mayor Ganim for public integrity and government transparency, City Finance Director Kenneth Flatto and City Budget Director Nestor Nkwo, and Lynn Simko of the city Finance Department.
“OpenBridgeport” is modeled after the state’s “OpenConnecticut” website (www.osc.ct.gov/openct) launched by Comptroller Lembo in 2013 that publishes the state’s financial information in an effort to improve public access to important state revenue and spending data. OpenBridgeport allows users to easily explore highly detailed financial information, including how much the city spends on its various services and how much was paid to individual vendors. It also shows how much the city budgeted for services, and how spending is trending throughout the fiscal year and in comparison to other years.
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