datatillgänglighetslagen

Datatillgänglighetslagen, which translates to the Data Accessibility Act, is a Swedish law aimed at increasing the availability of data held by public authorities. The primary objective of the law is to promote innovation, economic growth, and democratic participation by making it easier for businesses, researchers, and the general public to access and reuse public data.

The law is based on the EU's INSPIRE Directive and the principle that public sector information should be a valuable resource for society. It applies to a wide range of public authorities at national, regional, and local levels, requiring them to identify, catalogue, and make their data accessible through various means, often via digital portals or APIs.

Key aspects of Datatillgänglighetslagen include the obligation for authorities to provide data in machine-readable formats whenever possible, and to do so in a standardized way. The law also addresses issues related to the reuse of data, including licensing and potential fees, generally promoting free access and reuse unless specific exceptions apply.

The aim is to foster a data-driven economy and to enable new services and applications to be built upon publicly available information. By reducing barriers to data access, the law seeks to unlock the potential of data for societal benefit, from improving public services to driving scientific discovery.