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Adams promotes government accountability with new reforms

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Mayor Eric Adams holds a press conference in the City Hall Rotunda on Jan. 30.
Michael Appleton/Mayoral Photography Office

New York City Mayor Eric Adams signed an executive order and launched a new online report that are both intended to allow New Yorkers to access up-to-date metrics on city agency performance to ensure transparent government accountability.

Executive Order 13 was signed April 6 by Mayor Adams and formalizes the release of the new online report, the Dynamic Mayor’s Management Report (DMMR), and additionally creates the new role of Chief Efficiency Officer at city hall. 

The Chief Efficiency Officer is to be appointed by the mayor, and is charged with ensuring that all city agencies are updated and provide sufficient and current metrics to New Yorkers to better track agency performance, increase customer satisfaction and ensure city funds are being used effectively – among other responsibilities.

The DMMR will be updated on a regular basis and offers New Yorkers a user-friendly interface allowing them to easily search for data relevant to them as well as a comparative data analysis across the past several years. 

In addition to formalizing the DMMR and creating the role of Chief Efficiency Officer, the executive order ensures that every city agency will assign a Chief Performance Officer. A role that will the Chief Performance Officer collaborate with the Chief Efficiency Officer to improve agency performance and efficacy.

“As I often say, if you don’t inspect what you expect, it’s all suspect,” said Mayor Adams. “When it comes to city government, we need to put in place real-time systems to inspect what we expect, tracking how well we’re delivering services to New Yorkers and identifying areas we need to improve. The launch of today’s Dynamic Mayor’s Management Report is a critical step forward in leveraging data to make our government work better for all New Yorkers.”

Along with forming the DMMR and creating new oversight roles, the executive order also aims to reduce the “time tax”, or the time it takes people to access government services. 

This time tax also disproportionately impacts those in the greatest need, often those facing homelessness or unemployment.

“It speaks volumes about Mayor Adams’ commitment to improving government efficiency that he created a chief efficiency officer,” said City Hall Chief Efficiency Officer Melanie La Rocca. “Everyday New Yorkers should not have to spend hours navigating a bureaucracy to access basic services. We are off to a running start, and I look forward to continuing to work with the mayor and first deputy mayor to drive efficiency improvements across city government.”

Other elected officials agreed and applauded Mayor Adams’s commitment to his campaign values, as well as prioritizing the needs of those who are struggling the most to access city government assistance. 

“Mayor Adams ran on a platform of giving New Yorkers the tools and information to hold their government accountable,” said Mayor’s Office of Operations Director Daniel Steinberg. “Modernizing and democratizing the Mayor’s Management Report for the digital age marks a crucial step in making the city’s performance data more accessible, timely, and meaningful.”