Awesome Public Datasets
If you’re looking for sources of public data tucked into web sites, then check out Awesome Public Datasets, Free GIS Datasets, and Open Data Inception’s map of open data portals.
California Supreme Court Rules that GIS Data are Public Record
After a lengthy battle in the court system, California’s Supreme Court has finally ruled in favor of allowing public access to the government’s GIS data in Orange County. Back in 2007, the Sierra Club sued the county for the right to use its GIS data for environmental mapping projects. Orange County resisted, however, claiming that the digital maps did not fall under the Public Records Act.
Ordnance Survey Data to be Made Freely Available
The UK’s Ordnance Survey will “will open up its data relating to electoral and local authority boundaries, postcode areas and mid scale mapping information.”
Cost of Withholding GIS Data? Half a Million Dollars
The County of Santa Clara in California, which has battled fiercely against public information record requests for its GIS data, has recently paid a $500,000 … Read more