The University of Chicago and Investortools Launch Data Distribution Partnership to Improve Understanding of Public Finance
The Center for Municipal Finance (CMF) at the University of Chicago Harris School of Public Policy announced a new data distribution partnership with Investortools, the premiere source for historical data from state and local government financial statements, which will provide new avenues for researchers eager to better understand where governments get their money, how they spend it, and how their financial health changes over time.
“This exciting partnership is designed to streamline the process of distributing data from providers in public finance to academic research institutions and should ultimately result in greater insight into a wide range of topics related to how public money is raised, administered, and spent,” said Justin Marlowe, associate director of CMF and research professor. “Academics will benefit from a much clearer and more reliable data picture from which to analyze how government jurisdictions operate and perform.”
Investortools pulls data from audited financial statements, ensuring greater reliability and consistency than from self-reported government financial numbers, which academics often rely upon. The partnership will provide data from state, city, and country governments, as well as school districts, hospitals, institutions of higher education, and transportation entities. It will provide extensive historical data and automatically adjusts for a change in measurement.
“We are thrilled to formally partner with the University of Chicago and the scholars at the Center for Municipal Finance,” said Tim Hadley, Senior Vice President at Investortools. “Along with its world class researchers who study public finance, the university has in place robust infrastructure and protocol for data sharing, which will allow the center to collaborate, as appropriate, with other institutions and potentially with other data providers – all with an eye toward producing greater understanding of public finance.”
The new agreement opens up multiple opportunities for new academic research and analysis, including the ability to measure key factors that determine the fiscal health of a particular government over time while controlling for noise in the data. While many governments have rainy day funds and reserve balances, for instance, each may have a different method for how they do accounting for those funds. Investortools' dataset provides a single data point over time that tracks a reserve fund over 30 years in a simple, straightforward way. This will enhance accuracy and streamline what otherwise could prove to be an onerous research initiative.
“This joint agreement extends the Center for Municipal Finance’s position as a leading institution, helping to advance understanding of the major issues of the day in public sector finance,” said Christopher Berry, director of CMF and the William J. and Alicia Townsend Friedman professor. “Investortools is widely respected as a best-in-class provider, which is testament to their leadership’s commitment to delivering accurate, reliable data and, in particular, to the longstanding efforts of Richard Ciccarone, President Emeritus of Merritt Research Services, who was instrumental in building these tools.”
Researchers and others should reach out to Justin Marlowe if they are interested in learning more about the data and how to request access.
About Investortools, Inc.
Founded in 1983, Investortools specializes in software solutions for credit analysis and portfolio management in the institutional marketplace. Serving over 250 companies and financial institutions, Investortools and its affiliates have offices in the U.S., Europe and Asia.