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OpenGov

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This article is about the company. For the unrelated foundation, see OpenGov Foundation.

OpenGov Inc.
Company typePrivate
IndustryEnterprise software
Founded2012; 12 years ago (2012)
Founders
Headquarters
San Francisco, California, U.S.
Key people
Zac Bookman (CEO)[1]
Products
  • ERP cloud
  • budgeting & planning
  • financials
  • citizen services
Number of employees
c. 700 (2024)[2]
Websiteopengov.com

OpenGov Inc. is a government technology company that offers cloud software for public sector accounting, planning, budgeting, citizen services, and procurement. OpenGov serves over 1,000 cities, counties, and state agencies across 49 states. In February 2024, minority owner Cox Enterprises agreed to acquire the company.

History

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OpenGov, which is headquartered in San Francisco,[1] was founded in 2012 by Nate Levine, Dakin Sloss, Joe Lonsdale, and Zachary Bookman in response to the 2008 financial crisis.[3] The company's founders and several advisors met while working with California Common Sense, a non-profit non-partisan organization, which advocates for open data and open government principles. The group founded OpenGov with the long-term goal of bringing a modern cloud enterprise resource planning (ERP) to local and state governments.

In April 2016, OpenGov acquired Ontodia, a leading developer of Open data CKAN, allowing OpenGov to expand its Reporting & Transparency suite.[4]

In February 2017, OpenGov said that it saw an increase in interest from clients and job applicants related to desire for increased government accountability after the election of President Donald Trump.[5]

The Wall Street Journal reported that OpenGov, a government technology start-up whose CEO attended a tech summit at the White House in June 2017, is part owned by Thrive Capital — a venture firm run by Jared Kushner's brother, Joshua.[6] OpenGov’s CEO, Zac Bookman was the only chief executive of a small firm among the 18 tech leaders to get a seat at the table with the president.[6] According to the Wall Street Journal, a staff member suggested OpenGov participate after learning about the company in previous congressional roles.[6]

In October 2017, OpenGov acquired government-serving tech company, Peak Democracy of Berkeley, California,[7][8] to expand its public engagement, communication, and feedback tools.

In September 2019, OpenGov acquired ViewPoint Cloud, a platform used by city and state governments to manage community development operations, such as permitting, licensing, inspections, and code enforcement.[9]

In March 2020, OpenGov and GTY Technology Holdings settled lawsuits related to a past effort at a merger.[10]

In April 2020, OpenGov launched the first fully-integrated cloud enterprise resource planning (ERP) system designed specifically for local government.[11]

In October 2020, OpenGov acquired ClearRec, a Texas-based company, to incorporate its step-by-step bank reconciliation process technology into the OpenGov ERP Cloud.[12]

In June 2021, OpenGov acquired ProcureNow to enable its customers to run budgeting, procurement and financial operations through the same vendor.[13]

In July 2022, OpenGov acquired Cartegraph, a public cloud software developer, with funding from Cox Enterprises.[14]

In February 2024, minority owner Cox Enterprises agreed to acquire OpenGov, valuing the company at $1.8 billion.[1][2]

Customers

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As of February 2024, OpenGov serves 1,900 government entities,[2] including state agencies, city governments, school districts, and other special districts. They offer subscriptions to these entities based on the number of products used and the number of employees who need access.[2]

The city of Palo Alto was OpenGov's first customer,[15] following a collaboration between the city and employees from nonprofit California Common Sense to launch a comprehensive open data platform.[16]

Following a chain of cyberattacks and scandals, the city of Scranton, Pennsylvania, partnered up with OpenGov to use its cloud based ERP to restore public trust, improve safety, and accelerate the city's operations. The city's Business Administrator, Karl Deeley, stated that Scranton's operations had not undergone any major changes since the 1980s, so its partnership with OpenGov will enable the city to decrease reliance on its old infrastructure.[17]

In May 2021, Curry County, Oregon, stopped using OpenGov due to "glitches" in the software.[18]

In September 2021, the municipality of Durango, Colorado, announced its partnership with OpenGov to increase transparency with its citizens by allowing them to view the city's finances, as well as the spending of other government entities, real time. The effort to increase transparency came after Durango's former finance director, Julie Brown, was caught embezzling over $700,000 across 11 years. Durango also lost millions of dollars through clerical errors in 2019, which OpenGov's software could reduce and prevent down the road.[19]

As of February 2024, OpenGov is being used by the city of Los Angeles to prepare for the 2028 Summer Olympics.[1]

Funding

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OpenGov has raised $128 million from venture capital and angel investors.[citation needed] A $3 million Series A round in 2012 included venture funds 8VC, Founder Collective, Valiant Capital, and "a number of high-profile angel investors."[20] In 2013, the company raised $4 million in further investment from 8VC and new investor Thrive Capital.[20]

On May 15, 2014, OpenGov announced a new $15 million Series B round of funding including investments from Andreessen Horowitz, 8VC, and Thrive Capital.[21]

An additional $25 million Series B round in October 2015 included additional investments from Andreessen Horowitz, 8VC, Thrive Capital, and Sway Ventures, as well as new investors Glynn Capital, Scott Cook, and Ashton Kutcher and Guy Oseary’s Sound Ventures.[22] Marc Andreessen was also added to the board during the October 2015 round.[22]

In May 2017, the company raised $30 million in a Series C founding round[23] and in September 2019, the startup picked up an additional $51 million in a Series D round led by Weatherford Capital and 8VC (Lonsdale's investment firm), with participation from existing investor Andreessen Horowitz.[24]

In mid-August 2021, Weatherford Capital, a private investment firm in Florida, closed nearly $355 million in its first round of investments for the government technology space, with OpenGov being one of the multiple civic technology companies that received a portion of the investments.[25]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b c d Thomas, Lauren (February 26, 2024). "Cox Enterprises Strikes $1.8 Billion Deal for Government-Software Provider". The Wall Street Journal. Archived from the original on February 27, 2024.
  2. ^ a b c d Trubey, J. Scott (February 27, 2024). "Cox Enterprises buys majority stake in government software firm OpenGov". The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Archived from the original on February 28, 2024.
  3. ^ Delisle, Mckenzie (October 30, 2019). "Plattsburgh, N.Y., Inks Deal with OpenGov Budgeting Software". GovTech. Retrieved October 25, 2021.
  4. ^ Lunden, Ingrid (April 13, 2016). "OpenGov acquires Ontodia to add open-sourced data to its civic intelligence platform". TechCrunch. Retrieved December 15, 2016.
  5. ^ Kendall, Marisa (February 19, 2017). "Bay Area civic affairs startups see Trump-era boom". Marin Independent Journal. Retrieved August 12, 2024.
  6. ^ a b c Eaglesham, Jean; Schwartz, Lisa (July 14, 2017). "Startup That Got a Seat at White House Roundtable Is Part-Owned by Kushner Family". The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved August 12, 2024.
  7. ^ Miller, Ben (October 20, 2017). "Exclusive: OpenGov Acquires Peak Democracy, Aims for Citizen Feedback Across Product Lines". GovTech. Retrieved November 17, 2017.
  8. ^ Shueh, Jason (October 25, 2017). "OpenGov expands the meaning of transparency with latest acquisition". StateScoop. Retrieved June 19, 2018.
  9. ^ Lunden, Ingrid (September 5, 2019). "OpenGov acquires ViewPoint Cloud, to add licensing and permitting functionality to its platform". TechCrunch. Retrieved March 26, 2020.
  10. ^ Miller, Ben (March 13, 2020). "GTY Pays OpenGov $5.8M to Settle Lawsuits Regarding Merger". GovTech. Retrieved August 12, 2024.
  11. ^ "OpenGov Completes Cloud ERP Suite with Accounting Software". GovTech. April 28, 2020.
  12. ^ "OpenGov Acquires ClearRec for Government Accounting Software". GovTech. October 14, 2020. Retrieved March 29, 2021.
  13. ^ Miller, Ben (June 23, 2021). "OpenGov Jumps Into Procurement With Startup Acquisition". GovTech. Retrieved September 13, 2021.
  14. ^ Drew Kann (July 29, 2022). "Cloud software acquisition completed with Cox Enterprises investment". The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Retrieved July 31, 2022.
  15. ^ Hepler, Lauren (October 5, 2012). "Delphi builds data tool for Palo Alto". Silicon Valley Business Journal. Retrieved January 8, 2014.
  16. ^ "City of Palo Alto Continues Open Government Push with Launch of "Open Budget"". HighBeam Research. September 21, 2012. Archived from the original on June 10, 2014. Retrieved January 8, 2014.
  17. ^ Edinger, Julia (May 28, 2021). "After Hack and Scandal, Scranton, Pa., Focuses on Cloud ERP". GovTech. Retrieved October 25, 2021.
  18. ^ Keranan, Knox (May 8, 2021). "County abandons OpenGov software". Curry Pilot. Retrieved August 12, 2024.
  19. ^ Johnson, Nicholas A. (September 17, 2021). "Durango to launch transparent OpenGov budget resource next week". Durango Herald. Retrieved October 25, 2021.
  20. ^ a b Deutscher, Maria (July 3, 2013). "OpenGov Receives $4M for Transparency Software". SiliconANGLE. Retrieved January 8, 2014.
  21. ^ Cheredar, Tom (May 16, 2014). "OpenGov has another $15M to show how governments spend your money". VentureBeat. Retrieved August 12, 2024.
  22. ^ a b Buhr, Sarah (October 15, 2015). "OpenGov Picks Up $25 Million More And Adds Marc Andreessen To The Board". TechCrunch. Retrieved December 15, 2016.
  23. ^ Miller, Ben (May 16, 2017). "OpenGov Raises $30M in Series C Round, Plans More Product Launches". GovTech. Retrieved August 12, 2024.
  24. ^ Lunden, Ingrid (September 3, 2019). "OpenGov raises $51M to boost its cloud-based IT services for government and civic organizations". TechCrunch. Retrieved August 12, 2024.
  25. ^ Rueter, Thad (August 19, 2021). "Weatherford Raises $355M for Gov Tech and Other Investments". GovTech. Retrieved October 25, 2021.
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