New York City has appointed its first chief privacy officer in an attempt to beef up its smart-city data privacy rules and compliance. Laura Negrón, a public service veteran with 40 years’ experience in non-profit and government sectors, has been appointed to the role.
Negrón has already established a new legal framework for data sharing in the city, which establishes the governance structure and security protocols for civic agencies to exchange data. As chief privacy officer, she will see will work with city offices and agencies to provide guidance on the collection, disclosure and retention of data.
Bill de Blasio, mayor of New York City, said: “New York City is taking comprehensive measures to protect the privacy of personal information; appointing a chief privacy officer secures our commitment to New Yorkers and their privacy. With decades of experience and a fierce passion for privacy law, Laura’s a perfect fit to spearhead our privacy efforts and ensure we’re always making smart data-driven decisions aimed at improving the lives of New Yorkers.”
New York’s newly-established legal framework for smart-city data privacy has enabled more creative ways for city agencies to share data safely while implementing important programs, according to the city authority, including its new pre-kindergarten and kindergarten outreach, and workforce common metrics initiatives.
Negrón will to report to Emily Newman, acting director of the mayor’s office of operations. Newman said: “Laura has forged new paths in citywide data privacy strategy, finding ways to safely leverage data to offer more services to more New Yorkers, and leads the implementation of the City’s internal privacy protocols. No one is more prepared to guide the City’s data privacy strategy – New Yorkers are in good hands.”
In its announcement, the mayor’s office cited a number of projects that required cross-agency coordination, including HOME-STAT, a program to address street homelessness, and Get Covered NYC, to help New Yorkers register for and receive health insurance benefits. Nearly 80,000 New Yorkers have enrolled in new health insurance plans in the 12 months to January 2018 thanks to the city’s data outreach, exceeding its goal of 50,000.
Negrón joins from the city government’s HHS Connect initiative, a program that provides IT tools and solutions to help health and human services agencies coordinate inter-agency case management. Previously she was director of the Guardianship Project, a support program at the Vera Institute of Justice for individuals with disabilities and elderly people in New York/
She has also held roles as deputy county attorney at the litigation bureau of the Nassau County attorney’s office, and as dean of institutional advancement at Long Island University.
Negrón said: “I am honored to be named the City’s first Chief Privacy Officer. Thank you to the Mayor for giving me the opportunity to lead the City’s efforts to protect New Yorkers’ private information and to continue to promote equity through data sharing.”
New York leads US-based smart cities, along with Chicago and Los Angeles. Research firm ABI Research evaluated US cities across various metrics, such as deployment of LED streetlights, smart meters, renewable energy, electric mobility, smart parking, mobility-as-a-service, vehicle-to-everything technologies, smart waste, and first responder communications.
“New York is the leading city with the highest deployment of LED streetlights in the US, followed closely by Los Angeles,” said Raquel Artes, industry analyst at ABI Research.
