New York State's focus on data quality has been a hallmark of Open NY. This document is intended to be read together with the NYS Open Data Handbook, (https://data.ny.gov/dataset/NYS-Open-Data-Handbook/id8k-natf), and includes best practices garnered from lessons learned regarding optimal formatting and documentation. This guide represents a commitment to continuous quality improvement to maximize understanding, and the advancement of standardization to promote interoperability, analysis, and utilization of the data.