Public Records 2018
Census and American Community Survey
Explanation of the Census and ACS
Quick search: You can use this to do a quick search for county-wide data.
You may want to subscribe for regular census updates.
The 2010 census provides a demographic portrait of New York City’s population. This includes data on age, sex, race and Hispanic origin, household size and type, living arrangements and relationships of household members, and housing units by occupancy status (occupied, vacant) and tenure (owner, renter). These data are presented for a variety of geographic areas, including the city, five boroughs, community districts, neighborhood tabulation areas (NTA), and census tracts.
Use this interactive map to get demographic information by neighborhood or census tract. You can also view that change over time.
New York City Data Sources
NYCStat is the City’s one-stop-shop for all essential data, reports, and statistics related to city services. From this page you can access a wide array of performance-related information including citywide and agency-specific performance, 311-related information, and interactive mapping features for selected performance data and quality of life conditions.
NYC Department of City Planning
New York City’s 59 community districts, established by local law in 1975, illustrate the remarkable diversity of the city’s land uses and population. They range in size from less than 900 acres to almost 15,000 acres, and in population from fewer than 35,000 residents to more than 200,000. These and other facts about the districts are presented in the profiles that follow. Each district profile contains summary data on population size; birth, death and infant mortality rates; land area and land uses; and levels of income support
Uses Census information and other federal and local data to take a detailed look at the origins, spatial settlement, and other characteristics of the foreign-born population in New York City and in the larger metropolitan region.
- Business: legally operating businesses, licensed retailers, DCA inspections
- Education: SAT scores, math results, school attendance and enrollment, graduation outcomes, class size
- Housing: DOB Complaints Received, Building Permits, Top Ten Elevator Offenders, NYCHA Facilities and Service Centers, Damage By Sandy By Age Of Building
- Health: New York City Restaurant Inspection Results, New York City Leading Causes of Death, NYC School meals income levels, HIV Testing Locations, Rodent Inspection, Mental Health Service Finder Data, Most Popular Baby Names by Sex and Mother’s Ethnic Group
- Public safety: NYPD Motor Vehicle Collisions, Historical New York City Crime Data, NYPD 7 Major Felony Incident Map, Motor Vehicle Collisions, Inmate Stabbing. Slashing Incidents, FDNY Line Of Duty Deaths, Emergency Response Incidents, NYC Park Crime Data
- Social services: 311 Service Requests from 2010 to Present, Lower Manhattan Complaint caused by Construction, Directory Of Homeless Drop-In Centers, ACS Community Partners, Cash Assistance Recipients in NYC, Abuse/Neglect by Community District (CD)
- Transportation: For Hire Vehicles (FHV) – Active Drivers, 2014 Yellow Taxi Trip Data, 2015 Green Taxi Trip Data
- City government: 2013 Campaign Contributions, Mayor’s Management Report
The Mayor’s Management Report (MMR), which is mandated by the City Charter, serves as a public report card on City services affecting New Yorkers. The MMR is released twice a year. The Preliminary MMR provides an early update of how the City is performing four months into the fiscal year, from July 1st through October 31st.
Citywide Performance Reporting (CPR) tool
Agency performance reporting is part of the Citywide Performance Reporting (CPR) tool. It presents critical performance measures from 44 City agencies in an easy-to-use online format. Most of the data in CPR is updated monthly, on the first of every month. Users can search for measures of various services, analyze long-term trends and review agencies’ key performance measures.
This is a good site to use if you are doing a story that involves a city agency such as: CUNY, Administration for Child Services, Civilian Review and Complaint Board, Department of Education, Department of Correction, Department of Homeless Services, FDNY or the NYPD. You can review annual performance reports for the agencies and often get very helpful statistics for your story.
This site is for historical records on NYC and includes collections from the Municipal Archives, Vital Records, Tax Records. There are many interesting photo galleries of historic NYC and related documents.
The Online Gallery provides free and open research access to over 800,000 items digitized from the Municipal Archives’ collections, including photographs, maps, motion-pictures and audio recordings.
Example: Giuliani archives
Government Publications Portal
This can be a useful — if haphazardly organized — resource for reports for and about city agencies.
Education
School Progress Report
Progress Reports help parents, teachers, principals, and school communities understand schools’ strengths and weaknesses. Progress Reports grade each school with an A, B, C, D, or F and are based student progress (60%), student performance (25%), and school environment (15%).
If you are doing a story about a school, you can find the latest progress reports here.
You can also learn about a particular school or community by reading the results of the school survey.
“The NYC School Survey helps school leaders understand what key members of the school community say about the learning environment at each school. The information captured by the survey is designed to support a dialogue among all members of the school community about how to make the school a better place to learn. ”
NY State Department of Education
Use this site for state-wide data and news on education.
It also issues report cards for schools.
Health
Department of Health and Mental Hygiene
Environment & Health Data Portal
Publications: NYC Vital Signs
These are quick data-rich facts sheets on a range of topics.
Epi Data Briefs are short (2-3 pages) publications that highlight data findings from varying Health Department programs and projects. Examples: Traffic Fatalities in New York City, Tuberculosis among New Yorkers Born in China, Cocaine Use in New York City: Morbidity and Mortality and Ambient Noise Disruption in New York City
Unintentional Drug Poisoning (Overdose) Deaths Involving Opioids in New York City, 2011-2014
Transportation
NYC Department of Transportation Library
Here you can find a range of reports on transportation topics like Traffic and Crash Data
- Vision Zero Year-Two Report (PDF)
Crash Data:
Injuries by Year shapefile geoJSON
Injuries by Month shapefile geoJSON
Fatalities by Year shapefile geoJSON
Fatalities by Month shapefile geoJSON
Economy, Employment & Business
NYC Office of Management and the Budget
NY Department of Labor Statistics
U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
Example data set: demographics of the labor force
Department of Consumer Affairs
DCA licenses nearly 80,000 businesses in 55 different industries. You can use the Search for a DCA Licensee service to see if an individual or business holds a DCA license.
Examples of reports: A Study of Gender Pricing in New York City
Property Records
The Offices of the City Register maintain the official public records for New York City Real and Personal Property transfers, interest, and ownership for the Bronx, Brooklyn, Manhattan, and Queens. Records dated after 1966 can be recorded and corrected through the Automated City Register Information System (ACRIS) online or at ACRIS terminals in City Register Offices. Records dated before 1966 can only be accessed in the City Register’s Office in the borough where the property is located.
The Department’s Buildings Information System (BIS) provides the public with real-time access to Department data and information, including: Complaints, Inspections, Application processing, Accounting information, Periodic safety reports , Equipment tracking, Trade licensing and contractor tracking
Department of Sanitation: Reports, Statistics
Criminal Justice System
Fire Department
Civil courts
Findlaw Directory on NY Courts
Civil Small Claims
See Through New York
On this non-profit site you will find payroll, budgets and pension information for New York employees.
NY State portals
Federal
Bankruptcy
United States Bankruptcy Court
Politics
County portal
National Association of Counties
Business and Corporation Records
National Crime
US Bureau of Justice Statistics and Publications
Health
NY State Department of Health Statistics
SAMHSA Substance Abuse Statistics
Economy
US Commerce Department – Bureau of Economic Analysis
Census – Business and Industry
Education
Employment and Labor
Occupational Safety & Health Administration
Environment
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
U.S. Energy Information Administration
Food and Agriculture
National Agriculture Statistics Service
Office of Management and the Budget Federal Spending
U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development
Immigration
ICE Online Detainee Locator System
U.S. Department of Homeland Security
Census on Foreign Born Population
Transportation
RITA-National Bureau of Transportation Statistics
Non-profits
National Center for Charitable Statistics
International
