Foreword

The Standard for Public Code is a set of criteria that support public organizations in developing and maintaining software and policy together.

Anyone developing public-purpose software or policy can use this standard to work towards higher quality public services that are more cost effective, with less risk and more control.

This foreword introduces the term public code and explains why this is important.

Definition of public code

Public code is both computer source code (such as software and algorithms) and public policy executed in a public context, by humans or machines. It encompasses the software built to operate with and as public infrastructure, along with the arrangements for its production. Public code is explicitly distinct from regular software because it operates under fundamentally different circumstances and expectations.

Reasons for public code

There are many reasons for why public code is relevant now.

Software code == legal code

Software is public infrastructure.

In the 21st century, software can be considered vital public infrastructure. It is increasingly not just the expression of existing policy but the originator of new policy, for example where algorithms decide which districts need extra social services or policing.

Software mechanics, algorithms and data collection have become key elements in the execution of public policies. Computer code now executes policies that have been codified in legal code through democratic procedures. Both forms of code set conditions for society to function according to democratically set public values, the latter executed by humans, the former by machines. In other words, software code has increasingly started to equal legal code.

Software should therefore be subject to the principles of democratic governance.

Traditional public software procurement

Current public software production methods have not served public service delivery very well.

In the last decade, public organizations that purchased complete software solutions have sometimes been surprised to discover that they:

can’t change their software to reflect changing policy or take advantage of new technology
don’t have access to their data as it’s locked into proprietary systems
are asked to pay ever increasing license fees

Technological sovereignty and democratic accountability

Public institutions, civil servants and residents deserve better.

We believe the software that runs our society can no longer be a black box, controlled by outside companies that keep the underlying logic on which their software operates hidden in proprietary codebases. Instead, governments and the people they serve need technological sovereignty. This allows them to set and control the functioning of public software, just like they are able to set and control policy that is legally formulated in laws. Citizens and civil society actors need this software to be transparent and accountable.

The design of software as essential civic infrastructure should honor digital citizens’ rights.

Designing truly public software

Public code is at the core of modern public institutions, shapes the work of civil servants and affects the lives of almost all residents.

Public software must therefore be:

transparent
accountable
understandable for its constituents

It must reflect the values of the society it serves, for example by being inclusive and non-discriminatory.

Most proprietary software systems currently used by public organizations do not meet these requirements. Public code does.

Values of public code

We consider public code to have these core values:

Inclusive
Usable
Open
Legible
Accountable
Accessible
Sustainable

How public code works

Public code is open source software meant for fulfilling the essential role of public organizations. Through use, other administrations contribute back to the software, so that its development and maintenance become truly collaborative.

Being open unlocks many other things.

Local responsibility and democratic accountability are ensured when a public organization implements and maintains their own public code. By being open and with a broader contributor base, the software is more secure as it benefits from many eyes spotting potential flaws. Many contributors share the maintenance work to keep it functional and modern, which reduces future technical debt. The shared workload is more sustainable now and in the future. Its openness makes both the code and its data more easily adaptable in the future. The code will be easier to retool, repurpose or retire. This all results in lower risk public infrastructure.

This pooling of resources lets public administrations give extra attention to how to customize the software so it works best in each local context, creating better user experiences for their end users (residents or citizens).

Economics of public code

Public code offers a better economic model for public organizations as well as for commercial companies. It’s an alternative to traditional software procurement which increases local control and economic opportunity.

Designed from the start to be open, adaptable and with data portability, it can be developed by in-house staff or trusted vendors. Because the code is open, the public administration can change vendors if they need to. Open code increases opportunities for public learning and scrutiny, allowing the public administration to procure smaller contracts. Smaller procurements are easier for local small and medium enterprises to bid upon. Public administrations can use their own software purchasing to stimulate innovation and competition in their local economy.

This can be seen as investment leading to future economic growth. More vendors will be necessary due to growing technology demand.

Procuring public code

Public code can be used and developed by permanent in-house development teams, contractors or outsourced suppliers. Vendors to public organizations can include public code in their bids for contracts.

To use existing public code, you need to specify in your budget and project design that your new solution will use that codebase. To encourage an innovative approach to adapting the public code to your context, you could describe the service or outcome in your contract.

The goals for the Standard for Public Code

This Standard supports developers, designers, managers and public policy makers to:

develop high quality software and policy for better public service delivery
develop codebases that can be reused across contexts and collaboratively maintained
reduce technical debt and project failure rate
have more granular control over, and ability to make decisions about, their IT systems
improve vendor relationships with a better economic model

Potential users of codebases tested against the Standard for Public Code can expect them to be highly reusable, easily maintainable and of high quality.

The Standard for Public Code does this by:

setting out a common terminology for public code development
establishing measures to help develop high quality public code
providing guidance on how to fulfill its criteria and operationalize compliance

The Standard for Public Code is meant to be time and technology independent.

Who this is for

The Standard for Public Code is for the people who create and reuse public code:

public policy makers
business and project managers
developers and designers

These people work at:

institutions, organizations and administrations in the public sector
consultancies and vendors of information technology and policy services to public organizations

It is not aimed at public organizations’ end users (residents or citizens), journalists or academics.

Get involved

This standard is a living document. Read our contributor guide to learn how you can make it better.

Contact

For questions and more information about the Foundation for Public Code you can find us at our website, email us at info@publiccode.net, or call us at +31 20 2 444 500.

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