California Open Data Portal is affiliated with CalData a professional network for data-curious government individuals and partners. CalData is used to advocate for a strong, connected data infrastructure within the government, and provide a digital space where the public can search for all federal datasets at once.
This figure demonstrates that users can also search for state organizations through the organization tab at the top.
This figure shows some of the categories that Cal Open Data Portal has on their website, all from existing federal agencies, that the user can click on to further filter their dataset searches.
This is the homepage of Cal Open Data Portal with a search bar that can filter open data sets using keywords that the user chooses.
In the “about” section of their website, GovOps acknowledges that they must still continue to work with open data sources, making datasets more accessible to Californians.
Government Operations Agency. California Open Data Portal. 2015. https://data.ca.gov/
The main page on the site immediately directs you to a search bar where you can search for a state agency, topic, or keywords. There is also a guidebook and a public open data training video for a user to learn how to find data and produce data visualizations.
This figure shows a smaller window open within the California State Water Resources Control Board page on Cal Open Data Portal, providing straightforward access to an Excel document displaying a dataset within the state 2019 water quality status report that sampled 1,2,3-trichloropropane, a drinking water contaminant.
Also on the homepage is a short overview of the most-viewed and used datasets as well as recently added ones.