(ECNS) - A legislative bill is proposing that official data from Beijing government bodies be accompanied by explanations to make it easier for the public to comprehend, the Beijing Morning Post reported.
Governments at municipal, district and county levels in Beijing, as suggested by the bill, should not only publish data, but also explain its meanings, research methods, calculation approaches, and sampling methods.
The bill reached the Standing Committee of the Beijing Municipal People's Congress for its first review on Thursday.
Official data can be hard for members of the public to comprehend. In addition, discrepancies exist between data from different government bodies, making it more confusing about "whom to trust," the newspaper reported.
When data from a government statistics body is in conflict with a regular government department, assuming they are on the same level, the data from the statistics body should be given more prevalence, according to the bill.
To eradicate repetitive and conflicting data, it is also suggested that statistics bodies should publish a standard data-set through coordination with other departments, said Wang Qi from Beijing's standing committee.
All those who quote government data are required to identify their sources, says the bill. Those who fail to do so can face a fine of up to 50,000 yuan ($8,065).
