As the pair told Fast Company, the resolution is intended to make it easier for NYC residents to have their thoughts counted as part of the official record, something currently limited to those that physically attend public hearings. In addition to allowing those unable to attend such meetings to have their say, the resolution also requires that all legislative proposals be made available in an open data portal and suggests an app as a way to provide an easy alert system for citizens (not unlike the one recently released by the French government).

“New Yorkers should be able to ‘like’ and comment on City Council legislation to make civic engagement as easy as Facebook,” said Kallos, Chair of the Committee of Governmental Operations, in a press release.