This playbook is available on GitHub
GitHub Project
The Data Sharing Playbook is a resource for those navigating the data sharing process in Connecticut state government. The playbook presents strategies for enabling data sharing, making data requests, responding to requests, and transferring and linking data.
Sharing and integrating data from multiple state agencies can improve program administration, policy analysis, and performance management. Leveraging data from multiple systems can enable a whole-person perspective on data and enhance the ability to to use data to inform decision-making.
The sharing of data across Connecticut state agencies occurs through various data sharing agreements and other frameworks, including the state’s longitudinal data sharing system, P20 WIN.
The Office of Policy and Management (OPM) and its Chief Data Officer are taking steps to make data sharing a more efficient, uniform, and secure process. The 2021 Legal Issues in Interagency Data Sharing Report summarizes recent progress, including building on the success of P20 WIN to expand its data sharing partners and drafting flexible and durable data sharing agreements between agencies and with outside entities.
The data sharing playbook is designed to support Connecticut state agencies in sharing data safely, securely, and ethically. This playbook will continue to be updated by the Data and Policy Analytics unit within OPM. More information about data sharing within P20 WIN and outside of it is summarized below.
P20 WIN is Connecticut’s statewide longitudinal data system and is the mechanism by which data from multiple agencies are matched to address critical policy questions. P20 WIN informs sound policies and practice through the secure sharing of longitudinal data across the participating agencies to ensure that individuals successfully navigate supportive services and educational pathways into the workforce.
P20 WIN has a membership of ten state agencies, institutions of higher education, and nonprofits, including:
All participating agencies sign the Enterprise Memorandum of Understanding (E-MOU), which establishes guidelines for data sharing, governance, and security within the P20 WIN data governance framework. Operating support to P20 WIN is provided by the Office of Policy and Management.
Requests for data from two or more agencies participating in P20 WIN should follow the P20 WIN data request process, summarized on the P20 WIN website. Data requests are prioritized if they align with either a participating agency’s individual research agenda or the P20 WIN Learning Agenda.
Data from state agencies is also shared outside the voluntary P20 WIN governance structure. A summary of data sharing efforts in executive branch agencies is included in the Legal Issues in Interagency Data Sharing Report.
The process for sharing data varies by agency. The strategies outlined in the Preparing a Successful Data Request section provide guidance for navigating the varying data request processes across Connecticut state government.
To learn how to request data from one or more state agencies, refer to these strategies:
If you represent an agency who receives data requests, the sections below describe best practices for enabling data sharing:
To learn about transferring data or linking data from different sources, refer to these strategies:
The data sharing playbook was developed to support Connecticut state agencies in sharing data safely, securely, and ethically. The playbook presents strategies both for those requesting data from state agencies and for the agencies receiving data requests. The strategies presented in this playbook are based on best practices from other states, specific examples and methods from Connecticut state agencies, and the recommendations found in OPM’s report Legal Issues in Interagency Data Sharing. The strategies are focused on interagency data sharing, although many practices will also benefit sharing data with the public.
Note that the playbook does not represent official IT or technology policy for Connecticut.
The playbook was first developed in 2019 by a team from the Connecticut Office of Policy and Management (OPM), the Office of Early Childhood (OEC), and Skylight Digital, a digital consultancy for government, and is being maintained and updated by OPM to reflect changes in the data sharing landscape in Connecticut. The research involved:
