Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
What is this site?
This site is a crowd-sourced platform containing information about public data maintained by government agencies in Indiana. The idea is to provide members of the public with information they need to request and use that public data.
How does it work?
You can browse the agency listings or use our search function to discover data sets we have already listed in the catalog. You can also help improve this resource by submitting information about data sets that we not yet listed.
Once I find information about a data set that interests me, what do I do next?
There are two possibilities. If the data is available online at a government website, our listing provides the link to the agency’s data page where you can view or download the data. If the data is not online, you can use the metadata we’ve collected to submit a request directly to the agency that maintains the data.
What if I don’t find the data I’m looking for here?
If you don’t find data, that probably means that we have not yet listed it in our catalog. In that case, feel free to suggest an addition.
How do I submit a new dataset for inclusion on this site?
Click here for a form to submit your information. Once it has been reviewed and vetted by our volunteers, it will be added to our catalog and available for others to see.
What kind of agencies are included here?
Our ultimate goal is to provide an exhaustive resource of information on data maintained by public agencies at all levels of Indiana government. That includes the state government, cities, counties, towns, public libraries, township governments, and public schools and universities.
Are there any government agencies not included?
Yes. This site is limited to Indiana entities, so agencies from other states and the federal government are not reflected here.
What if I submit a request for data but the agency doesn’t give it to me?
You have a number of options when an agency denies a request for records or data, ranging from contesting the decision with the agency itself to filing a lawsuit. However, an effective intermediary step is to file a request for an opinion from the Indiana Public Access Counselor, and appointed official charged with interpreting Indiana’s public access laws. You can read about that office and file a request here: www.in.gov/pac.