Mid City Times

Results for America, in collaboration with Bloomberg Philanthropies, has recognized Fort Worth as one of 21 new cities to receive the What Works Cities Certification. This designation acknowledges cities that have developed strong data capabilities to enhance decision-making processes.

The certification highlights the importance of effective data utilization by municipalities. With this announcement, a total of 104 cities across North, Central, and South America have achieved this distinction since its inception in 2017, while 700 cities have participated in assessments.

Fort Worth was awarded a Silver certificate for its use of real-time data in water management, resulting in a significant reduction in field investigations and cost savings exceeding $1 million since 2019. Mayor Mattie Parker expressed pride in the city's achievements: “I’m proud of our team for this incredible achievement and its commitment to measuring outcomes and impact in Fort Worth.”

The certification measures a city’s data usage based on 43 criteria. Achieving between 51-67% earns a Silver level, while Gold requires 68-84%, and Platinum demands at least 85%.

Christianne Simmons, Fort Worth's chief transformation officer, stated: “Earning our first-ever What Works Cities certification is a major milestone in Fort Worth’s commitment to data-driven decision-making.”

The What Works Cities Certification program was launched by Bloomberg Philanthropies and Results for America in 2017. It sets an international standard for data excellence in city governance and is available to any city with a population over 30,000.

Rochelle Haynes from Bloomberg Philanthropies emphasized the program's significance: “At a time when people are questioning the role of government... governments must be better at using data to know what is and isn’t working.”

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