ABOUT SOMERSTAT AND RESISTAT:

The SomerStat program facilitates very regular forums in which key City decision-makers meet to study financial, personnel, and operational data to understand what’s happening within departments in order to help the City run more efficiently.

The ResiStat Program brings SomerStat into the community to extend the SomerStat problem-solving discussion to Somerville residents. ResiStat's pilot year in 2007-2008 was funded by grants from The Boston Foundation and the National Center for Civic Innovation. ResiStat has allowed City staff and Board of Aldermen officials to share data on City operations with residents to solicit their feedback and ideas. The suggestions of residents are compiled in this first ever Resident Report, along with data analyzed by neighborhood and ResiStat group. All of the goals presented in this report are also published in the City’s annual budget, which the Board of Aldermen approved in June. It is our intent to publish a Resident Report annually.

Other programs associated with SomerStat include the Program-Based budget, which complements the SomerStat program by integrating financial information with data on operations and performance in an annual review of operations. While the SomerStat program is an ongoing conversation, the Program Budget is an opportunity to set goals that will be tracked throughout the year and to make changes to the budget to have the City’s budget reflect ideas for change that have been uncovered in SomerStat meetings throughout the year.

In addition, 311 Call Center and Reverse Notification rounds out the management reform effort by establishing a direct line to residents allowing them to provide real-time feedback on how well the City delivers its services. Data from the 311 center are regularly studied in SomerStat meetings and serve as a backbone for the program-based budget, which requires data on departmental output (e.g. number of trees trimmed). While 311 allows residents to contact the City, the complementary phone notification system allows the City to all residents or residents who live in a particular area to get urgent or important information out to residents. The two systems provide rapid sharing of information between residents and the City.

As these components grow, they will continue to complement one another and provide a more and more robust picture of how the City works. While other cities have spearheaded these initiatives, we believe Somerville is unique in its aggressive implementation of all these related efforts. Also, we are able to provide a model of implementation in a medium-sized city and in the Northeast.