AUTHORIZED STATEMENTS BY DR. MARIO MARAZZI-SANTIAGO ON APPROVAL OF THE MEASURE CREATING PUERTO RICO'S OPEN DATA LAW

We thank the Puerto Rico Senate for the approval of Senate Bill 236, which to create the Puerto Rico Open Data Act. In its original version, the measure was drafted by researchers from the Institute and was later endorsed by the Institute's Board of Directors last year. The implementation of this Act does not cost the public purse an additional penny and, for the first time, mandates specific proactive data disclosure actions, which are essential elements of a culture of openness as a government custom (open by default). For example, for the first time, the publication of data in open computer-readable formats is mandated, one of the elements that gave Puerto Rico the most difficulty the last time Open Knowledge International evaluated the opening of our databases.

The amendments incorporated by the Senate Governance Committee address core aspects of the measure that ultimately complement and strengthen the measure. For example, for the first time, publicly funded official travel reports will be released. This in itself is a more effective way to control official travel expenses than the administrative control schemes that all governments use.

At the same time, as in any measure, there are always specific issues that could be improved. We are looking forward to the consideration of this measure in the House of Representatives. We are aware of the commitment of [Speaker of the House, Hon. Carlos “Johnny” Méndez Núñez, and the president of the House Governance Committee, Hon. Jorge Navarro Suárez, with the issues of transparency and access to public data, so we are sure that the House will give high priority to this measure.

In short, the Open Data Act proposed by the Institute of Statistics is a cornerstone in achieving the cost-effective, agile and transparent Government that we all want.

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Office of the Commissioner of Municipal Affairs joins the Financial Transparency System to be accountable for its income and expenses

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Free workshops and webinars at the Puerto Rico Institute of Statistics 2023

Workshops and Webinars free of charge at the Puerto Rico Institute of Statistics

For government officials and the general public

Starting today, September 18, 2023, pre-registration begins for the offer of workshops and Webinars free of charge from the Puerto Rico Institute of Statistics. This virtual offer of eight workshops with 12 sessions and four Webinars, will provide solutions for the access, management and analysis of government statistical data and are carried out with rigor and quality in content development by specialists.

The format online offers the opportunity to participate to government officials and the general public, since the format is asynchronous, that is, within the time available to the participant. In the same way, multiple sessions are included, allowing participants the flexibility to enroll on those dates that are most convenient. Interested individuals can complete pre-enrollment at https://estadisticas.pr.gov/academia.

The topics included are:

• R statistical analysis software: one of the most commonly used open-access and user-friendly software for Data analytics and Data Science.
  • R basic: introductory workshop to help publicize and facilitate the adoption of this programming language for people interested in strengthening their resources for the processing, analysis, visualization and presentation of their statistical research.
  • RStudio: introduction to the integrated development environment (IDE, in English) for managing R, in the analysis, visualization and presentation of statistical analyses.
  • R Markdown: a comprehensive tool for generating reproducible reports and documents, which combine text, data analysis and visualizations.
  • Tidycensus: R library that facilitates the access and processing of data from the U.S. Census Bureau, such as the Census, population estimates and the Community Survey.

• Tableau Public: free platform that allows the use of interface commands to explore, create and publish data and visualizations online.
• Resources from the U.S. Census Bureau:
  • Population and housing data: presentation and performance of practical exercises on the tool https://data.census.gov/ to search for data on population and housing in Puerto Rico.
  • Access to microdata from the Community Survey: tool for customizing variable crosses for the analysis of population and housing data in Puerto Rico.
  • QGIS for analyzing data by geographical regions: QGIS is an open source Geographic Information System (GIS). In conjunction with data from the

U.S. Census Bureau, maps can be generated to analyze housing, economic, social and demographic issues.

On the other hand, the Webinars are live sessions, in which participants can connect via the Internet to a platform where they can watch and listen and ask questions to the speaker after completing the session.

The themes of the four Webinars They are:

• Interactive tools for accessing statistics from the U.S. Census Bureau: discussion and practical exercises to obtain data from the Community Survey and the Decennial Census for statistical analysis on Puerto Rico and other jurisdictions.

• Puerto Rico Manufacturing — Purchasing Managers Index: guidance on how to access this index and its subscripts, in addition to knowing how the data published in the monthly report prepared by the Institute are interpreted.
• Rate adjustment calculator: guidance on the usefulness of the rate standardization process and in the development of a calculation template.
• Preventing violence as a public health priority: guidance on the context of violence in Puerto Rico from a health perspective, where homicide statistics in Puerto Rico and worldwide will be presented.

The Puerto Rico Statistics Institute is a governmental entity in the executive branch, with fiscal and administrative autonomy, whose main purpose is to ensure that Puerto Rico has complete, reliable statistics that are quickly and universally accessible. To learn more about the Institute of Statistics, you can access the website: www.estadisticas.pr.gov. On social media through Facebook accounts (@statistics.pr), Twitter (@EstadisticasPR), Instagram (@institutodeestadisticas) and LinkedIn (Puerto Rico Institute of Statistics).

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