The Chief Data Officer (CDO) role was established by a 2021 Executive Order to set strategic direction for data management across the Executive Branch. The CDO publishes a State Data Strategic Plan every two years, outlining data policies and standards, including a statewide data policy for data collection and use. The CDO Council also developed a statewide Data Governance Framework to manage data use and sharing between agencies, establishing standardized procedures to ensure data quality, security, and ethical use.

The Maryland Open Data Act (2014) mandates open data policies, requiring state data to be machine-readable and accessible through open data portals while protecting personally identifiable information. There are currently over 1,000 data assets curated and available for public use in the Maryland Open Data Portal.

Maryland’s MD THINK program and the Maryland Longitudinal Data System Center (MLDS Center) facilitate data sharing between state agencies. MD THINK is a multi-agency, cloud-based data and analytics program that provides a standardized data sharing model for state agencies to collaborate on, and use, authoritative data in support of health, human, and social services and benefit distribution. Likewise, the MLDS Center integrates student and workforce data from multiple agencies, providing analysis and insights to improve outcomes, while ensuring top-level security and data privacy. To support this work, standardized data sharing agreements have been established and maintained with all agencies in the program to ensure timely and secure access to administrative data, leading to improved outcomes for Marylanders. Both initiatives aim to enhance support and decision-making for Maryland residents.