FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
December 16, 2015
CONTACTS
The OpenGov Foundation – Nicko Margolies: nicko@opengovfoundation.org – 202-642-4467
Rita Allen Foundation – Molly Sharlach: ms@ritaallen.org – 609-683-8010
Press Release
The OpenGov Foundation Receives $200,000 Award from the Rita Allen Foundation
Funding will support streamlining Chicago’s legislative process and expanding citizen engagement opportunities.
WASHINGTON, DC (December 16, 2015) — The OpenGov Foundation today received a new $200,000 grant from the Rita Allen Foundation to support the ongoing development of a platform to bring Chicago’s legislative process into the digital age over the next two years. Through a partnership with the City Clerk’s office, The OpenGov Foundation is co-creating an open-source system to keep legislation in standardized, accessible formats and allow citizens to better share feedback with their elected officials.
“The OpenGov Foundation’s approach holds great potential for making the workings of government clearer and more accessible,” said Elizabeth Good Christopherson, President and Chief Executive Officer of the Rita Allen Foundation. “By investing in this innovative application of digital tools, we seek to expand possibilities for civic engagement.”
“We believe that communities thrive when individuals have a real voice in their government, and their government has the modern tools necessary to serve better while spending less,” said Seamus Kraft, Executive Director and co-founder of The OpenGov Foundation. “But look around — those tools are lacking, citizens are frustrated and governments continue to delay the inevitable. No more. The Chicago City Council, led by Clerk Susana Mendoza, has joined with us to evolve from today’s paper-based bureaucracy into the first Internet Age legislature in the world. With the support of the Rita Allen Foundation, we have an incredible opportunity to transform governance in Chicago, and across America.”
The OpenGov Foundation is currently building the internal drafting component of the platform with the City Clerk’s office and will be expanding to adapt the Madison collaboration and annotation tool to the city along with improvements to the presentation of municipal laws on ChicagoCode.org. The Rita Allen Foundation grant will further this ongoing work and make Chicago a model for the nearly 90,000 other government entities that could benefit from this digital platform.
About The OpenGov Foundation
The OpenGov Foundation is a fiercely nonpartisan nonprofit helping people participate in the government decisions that affect their lives. We believe innovative technology and open data can help deliver democratic governments that listen to citizens, operate efficiently and solve our shared challenges the smart way. We believe democracy means everyone should have the chance to be a hands-on contributor.
About the Rita Allen Foundation
The Rita Allen Foundation invests in transformative ideas in their earliest stages to leverage their growth and promote breakthrough solutions to significant problems. It enables early-career biomedical scholars to do pioneering research, seeds innovative approaches to fostering informed civic engagement, and develops knowledge and networks to build the effectiveness of the philanthropic sector. Throughout its work, the Foundation embraces collaboration, creativity, learning and leadership.
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