NZ Releases Draft Open Access and Licensing Framework

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Posted by Mary Gianoli on 29 Aug 2009

Wellington: 27 August 2009

The New Zealand State Services Commission (SSC) has released the report: Draft New Zealand Government Open Access and Licensing framework (NZGOAL) for feedback and discussion.

The draft report provides guidance for State Services agencies on open access to non copyright information and open licensing of copyright works. In both cases with a view to allowing their re-use by others (does not apply to personal or other sensitive information). It is another phase in the New Zealand State Services project on Open Government Information and Data Re-use.

The In Development Blog hosted by SSC starts the discussion by describing the report preparation process, the thinking and the draft content and invites feedback.

What is being said on the In Development Blog? This sample of excerpts of comments from the Blog reflects the positive and insightful considerations at this early stage in the consultation. (access all comments online)

“Congrats SSC. This is gutsy stuff”
“…These are lofty ideals, but point a real way forward, not only for New Zealand but the world. Open access to public sector information is the crucial first step that will truly enable ‘government for, with and by the people’- no longer a distant democratic dream, but a very real possibility. Open access will ensure scrutiny and transparency of government processes, public engagement in policy making, greater participation in political debate leading to better policy, conversation and dialogue in the democratic exchange of different perspectives and, ultimately, unforeseen private and public sector collaboration and innovation around the opened data. But even democracy 2.0 is not the ultimate ‘GOAL’…”
“Personally, I’m dusting off my list of “what can we licence easily?” items and setting up meetings to kick this into action at the National Library next week.”
“It is a very timely release, and good to see the responses internationally as well as in NZ.”

Announcement by the In Development Blog

“The draft NZGOAL sets out a series of policy principles which embrace, among other things, the notions of open access, open licensing, creativity, authenticity, non-discrimination and open formats. It describes the drivers behind this work, the departmental consultation process that has taken place, the Creative Commons New Zealand law licences and sets out a review and release process which agencies can use to determine the basis on which information and copyright works may be released.

This work, which has been prepared in conjunction with the ICT Group of the Department of Internal Affairs (DIA), was endorsed by public service departments earlier this year when they responded to the Suggested All-of-Government Approach to Licensing of Public Sector Copyright Works: Discussion Paper . This paper and the Summary and Analysis of Departmental Feedback are also being released today to provide further background.

Today’s release is a critical step towards further opening up government’s information and data. It is considered to be a key plank in bringing about creative, social and economic benefits for the people of New Zealand, fostering greater transparency of government performance and making government information and data work for you.

We are publishing the framework as a draft so that it can be road-tested and improved. We want to know what agencies and users have to say about this approach. Have we pitched it right? Are we meeting the needs and interests of those who wish to re-use government information and data? Is anything unclear? In what additional ways could we help?

Those who read all three documents (the draft NZGOAL, the Discussion Paper and the Summary and Analysis of Departmental Feedback) will see that we have changed our approach slightly from that envisaged in the Discussion Paper and the Summary and Analysis of Departmental Feedback. The main changes are as follows:

Rather than adopting what we had referred to as an NZGILF and NZGILF Toolkit, we are now proposing a core framework (the draft NZGOAL) which will be supplemented by guidance notes addressing either specific topics on which further information may be required or issues which arise in practice.
A number of topics identified in the Summary and Analysis of Departmental Feedback as being appropriate candidates for the core framework document (the draft NZGOAL) are now more likely to be addressed in separate guidance notes.
While, in the Summary and Analysis of Departmental Feedback, we had contemplated a potential place for the Creative Commons Zero tool, we have decided not to advocate its use in NZGOAL. Suggesting to agencies that they consider waiving Crown copyright or other copyright in their copyright works (which would be the effect of advocating Creative Commons Zero) would raise a miscellany of policy and legal issues that are beyond the scope of NZGOAL. Moreover, we do not consider the use of Creative Commons Zero to be necessary.

SSC and DIA are also mindful that the current copyright standard in the New Zealand Government Web Standards will need to be updated. We have that in our sights.

Please join this discussion. The last day for receiving comment will be Friday 9 October 2009. You can add a comment to this post, the sections of the draft NZGOAL, and/or email your comments directly to nzgoal@ssc.govt.nz if you wish.

So far as copyright works are concerned, NZGOAL proposes that agencies apply the most liberal of the New Zealand Creative Commons law licences to those of their copyright works that are appropriate for release, unless there is a restriction which would prevent this. The most liberal Creative Commons licence is the Attribution (BY) licence. So far as non-copyright information is concerned, NZGOAL recommends the use of clear “no-known rights” statements, to provide certainty for people wishing to re-use that information.”

The Australian State Government of Victoria has also reported on the New Zealand initiative.

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