Each year, the City of Boston publishes payroll data for employees. This dataset contains employee names, job details, and earnings information including base salary, overtime, and total compensation for employees of the City.

See the "Payroll Categories" document below for an explanation of what types of earnings are included in each category.

The Checkbook Explorer web application provides current financial information about the City of Boston's expenditures, allowing users to explore how City funds are spent.

Data is updated regularly, though the timing may vary based on internal review and approval processes. This data is published, and certain information is withheld from publishing, in accordance with the 2014 Executive Order of Mayor Martin J. Walsh, "_An Order Relative to Open Data and Protected Data Sharing_." Personal information is excluded to protect individual privacy. The Checkbook Explorer does not contain payroll information, which is available in the Employee Earnings Report (https://data.boston.gov/dataset/employee-earnings-report), or data from independent city agencies. Data from July 2011 (FY 2012) to present is available.

Graph and download economic data for All Employees: Information: Newspaper, Periodical, Book, and Directory Publishers in Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA (NECTA Division) (SMU25716545051110001SA) from Jan 1990 to Dec 2022 about periodicals, book, Boston, information, MA, employment, and USA.

Graph and download economic data for Average Weekly Earnings of All Employees: Total Private in Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA (NECTA Division) (SMU25716540500000011) from Jan 2007 to Dec 2024 about Boston, MA, earnings, private, employment, and USA.

Graph and download economic data for All Employees: Professional and Business Services: Scientific Research and Development Services in Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA (NECTA Division) (SMU25716546054170001) from Jan 1990 to Dec 2024 about R&D, science, Boston, MA, services, employment, and USA.

Graph and download economic data for All Employees: Government: U.S. Postal Service in Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA (NECTA Division) (SMU25716549091912001) from Jan 1990 to Dec 2024 about postal, Boston, MA, services, employment, and USA.

The City of Boston reports on our discretionary spending as part of our commitment to transparency and to growing pathways to equitable procurement for diverse suppliers. This dataset contains all discretionary spending data from Fiscal Year 2019 - Fiscal Year 2025, Quarter 3.

Discretionary spending refers to the total value of payments made by the City to a supplier through a contract ($10,000 or over) or a purchase order (under $10,000). This includes procurements where there is competition and discretion over choosing a supplier. Discretionary spending does not include mandatory or fixed obligations, such as payments of employee benefits.

You can view an interactive dashboard of our discretionary spending at https://www.boston.gov/equitable-procurement.

To learn more about the City’s procurement and supplier diversity efforts, visit:

• https://www.boston.gov/procurement
• https://www.boston.gov/supplier-diversity

** Notes on the Data **

The Discretionary Spending dataset differs from our Checkbook Explorer (https://data.boston.gov/dataset/checkbook-explorer) dataset in two key ways.

• First, we report on some types of spending in the Checkbook Explorer dataset, such as utility, telecommunications, and benefits payments, that we don’t report in the Discretionary Spending dataset.
• Second, the Checkbook Explorer dataset is updated monthly; the Discretionary Spending dataset is updated quarterly. We are working to synchronize these datasets in the future.

If you have questions about this data or would like to provide feedback, please use this form: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/10_VGn3OEaa-JA5VJynZ9JKw-I3t0BAzw3ckv8rxVMLc/viewform?edit_requested=true

© The City of Boston recognizes the value and benefit gained by sharing GIS data. Although the City has made reasonable efforts to provide accurate data, the City makes no representations or guarantees about the accuracy, completeness, or currency of the information provided. The City of Boston provides this data as is and with all faults, and makes no warranty of any kind. Each user is responsible for determining the suitability of the data for their intended use or purpose. Neither the City nor its affiliates, employees, or agents shall be liable for any loss or injury caused in whole or in part by use of any data obtained from this website. The GIS data is updated and modified on a regular basis and users are encouraged to report any errors to the City.

Graph and download economic data for All Employees: Government: Federal Government in Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA (NECTA Division) (SMU25716549091000001) from Jan 1990 to Dec 2024 about Boston, MA, federal, government, employment, and USA.

TO VIEW A GLOSSARY OF TERMS FOR THE DIRECTORY - CLICK HERE

WHAT IS THIS TRACKER FOR?

The City of Boston is committed to increasing transparency in the processes around the Zoning Board of Appeal (ZBA). The Inspectional Services Department (ISD) at the City is tasked with ensuring compliance with the zoning code. If an application for a permit is refused because of a zoning violation, applicants are able to appeal the decision to the ZBA and ask for an exception, sometimes known as a “variance.” If the ZBA grants relief, then the appellant is able to continue with the process of obtaining a permit.

In order to provide greater transparency in the ZBA process, the City of Boston Zoning Board of Appeal tracker is now available on Analyze Boston. Each record in this tracker represents an appeal of a denied permit application; the original permit application is known as the “parent application.” To find out more information about the original permit application, visit our Permit Finder tool. To view a map of this data, visit our ZBA Tracker Map Tool.

To learn more about the ZBA process and how to file an appeal, visit our website.

WHAT DOES EACH STATUS MEAN?

Appeal Submitted - indicates that an appeal of a zoning refusal was successfully submitted into ISD’s tracking system, either in-person at ISD (1010 Massachusetts Ave.) or through the online application portal.

More Information:

• For detailed information on how to file an appeal, see this page on the ISD website.

Next steps:

• The appeal will undergo an initial review by City staff to ensure that all necessary information and documentation has been included.
• The appellant must pay a fee.

Community Process - indicates that City staff have completed their review and signed off for the appeal process to move onto getting community feedback.

Contact Information:

• Use the link below to find the Neighborhood Liaison from the Office of Neighborhood Services for the application’s location.

Next steps:

• The appellant will work with the Mayor’s Office of Neighborhood Services to engage with people who own adjacent properties, members of the local community, and other relevant stakeholders.

• Depending on the type of project, the Boston Planning and Development Agency may also conduct a review.

Hearing Scheduled - indicates that the appeal has been scheduled for a committee or subcommittee meeting of the ZBA. For this to take place, the Mayor’s Office of Neighborhood Services has notified ISD that the appellant has adequately engaged with the community that would be affected, should the zoning relief be granted.

Attendance Information:

• View a schedule of hearings at the ZBA webpage. Select an Upcoming Hearing to find the list of topics and how to attend.

Next steps:

• The appellant will attend the hearing in person (or through the virtual meeting). The appellant will provide the ZBA with reasons why an exception or variance to the zoning code should be granted and answer any questions from the ZBA.

• At the hearing, members of the public will be able to testify in support or against the appeal.

• The ZBA will discuss the appeal and vote to approve or deny.

Alternatively:

• The appellant can request a deferral; if allowed by the ZBA, during the hearing the appeal will receive a new hearing date.

• The appellant can withdraw the application; if allowed by the ZBA, it can be withdrawn without prejudice.

Hearing Rescheduled - indicates that the appeal’s scheduled committee meeting has been changed. This can happen for several reasons. For example, the appellant can request a deferral if they need more time to complete or update plans, or the board can defer an appeal if a quorum isn’t present (perhaps due to a recusal). A request for deferral is approved by the board, which also selects a new hearing date.

Next steps:

• Same as Hearing Scheduled above.

Hearing Concluded - indicates that the hearing has taken place. The appeal could have been approved, denied, deferred, or withdrawn, with or without additional requirements.

Additional Information:

• Meeting minutes from each committee meeting are available to download from the ZBA webpage.

Next steps:

• The ZBA Executive Secretary finalizes the Board’s decision in writing or the appellant’s attorney submits a finalized decision for ISD Legal Team review.

ZBA Decision Finalized - indicates the date on the ZBA’s written decision letter. The decision is listed under the ‘result’ field.

Next steps:

• Neighboring property owners are notified of the decision shortly after this date

• Beginning on the Final Decision Date, neighboring property owners and other involved parties who disagree with the ZBA’s decision have twenty days to file an appeal in Suffolk County Superior Court or Boston Housing Court. (For detailed information on the Zoning Commission and appeal process, please refer to Chapter 665 of the Acts of 1956, available here)

Appeal Closed - indicates the appeal’s outcome has been finalized and the twenty day Appeal period has ended.

Next steps:

• Depending on the ZBA decision, the appellant may or may not be able to continue the process for seeking the permit for which zoning relief was requested.

• If the ZBA approved or sustained with proviso, the appellant must take additional steps before continuing the permitting process.

WHAT DOES EACH RESULT MEAN?

Approved - means the zoning relief requested has been granted.

Approved with Proviso - means the zoning relief requested has been granted, with some conditions that must be fulfilled before the permitting process can continue. These conditions will be detailed in the written decision of the ZBA. Examples of such conditions could include: having the Boston Planning and Development Agency review updated plans; submitting more detailed plans; or obtaining additional engineer reports.

Denied - means the zoning relief requested was not granted. The appellant must wait a year before submitting a new appeal on a project for the same site.

Denied without Prejudice - means the zoning relief requested was not granted. However, the appellant only has to wait thirty days before submitting an appeal on a new project at the same site.

Withdrawn - means the appellant has chosen to remove the appeal from the ZBA’s consideration. The appellant does not have to wait a year to appeal the same zoning violations.

Note: If there is no result listed, it means that the ZBA has not issued its final written decision on the appeal. This may be the case even for appeals that have been heard by the ZBA.

HOW DO I USE THIS TRACKER?

This tracker is designed for members of the public and City of Boston employees to be able to quickly search for a specific appeal that has been submitted to the ZBA, or to search for appeals based on criteria such as location or primary contact, in order to identify the status of the appeal.

Below, under the "Data and Resources" header, you will see the "Zoning Board of Appeal Tracker" dataset:

• To look at the directory - click the "Preview" button and you will be taken to a spreadsheet-like view of the directory data.

• To expand the number of applications available to scroll through, click the "Show _ Entries" drop down at the top left of the data table and select your desired number. Alternatively, you can scroll to the bottom right of the dataset and select your desired page number.

• To search the tracker - use the search box to the top right of the data table to search for any keyword in the dataset. For example, if you are looking for a certain contact, type the name into the search box and see what comes back.

• To filter the data, click the blue "Add Filter" link at the top left of the data table, select the field you would like to filter on, and select the corresponding value of that field that you would like to display. For example - if you wanted to show applications for properties in Charlestown, you would click "Add Filter", select the "city" field, and select "Charlestown". You can add multiple filters.

• To sort the data based on a specific field, click the arrows next to the field name to sort in either ascending or descending order.

• To hide columns that aren't relevant to you, click the blue "Hide/Unhide Columns" button at the top right of the data table, and click on the desired column names. Hidden column names will be highlighted in white. To unhide a column, simply click it again.

• The Data Dictionary - which explains what each field means and what the values of each field mean - is available as a table below the directory, and is also

Graph and download economic data for All Employees: Total Nonfarm in Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA (NECTA Division) (SMS25716540000000026) from Apr 1990 to Dec 2024 about Boston, payrolls, MA, nonfarm, employment, and USA.

Graph and download economic data for All Employees: Financial Activities in Boston-Cambridge-Nashua, MA-NH (NECTA) (BOST625FIREN) from Jan 1990 to Dec 2024 about Boston, NH, MA, financial, employment, and USA.

Graph and download economic data for All Employees: Service-Providing in Boston-Cambridge-Nashua, MA-NH (NECTA) (SMU25716500700000001) from Jan 1990 to Dec 2024 about Boston, NH, MA, services, employment, and USA.

Graph and download economic data for Average Hourly Earnings of All Employees: Total Private in Boston-Cambridge-Nashua, MA-NH (NECTA) (SMU25716500500000003) from Jan 2011 to Dec 2024 about Boston, NH, MA, earnings, hours, private, employment, and USA.

Graph and download economic data for All Employees: Education and Health Services: Hospitals in Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA (NECTA Division) (SMU25716546562200001) from Jan 1990 to Dec 2024 about hospitals, Boston, health, MA, employment, and USA.

Graph and download economic data for All Employees: Other Services in Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA (NECTA Division) (SMU25716548000000001) from Jan 1990 to Dec 2024 about Boston, MA, services, employment, and USA.

Graph and download economic data for All Employees: Professional and Business Services: Legal Services in Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA (NECTA Division) (SMU25716546054110001) from Jan 1990 to Dec 2024 about legal, Boston, MA, services, employment, and USA.

Graph and download economic data for All Employees: Professional and Business Services: Accounting, Tax Preparation, Bookkeeping, and Payroll Services in Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA (NECTA Division) (SMU25716546054120001SA) from Jan 1990 to Dec 2024 about Boston, accounting, payrolls, MA, tax, services, employment, and USA.

Graph and download economic data for All Employees: Financial Activities in Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA (NECTA Division) (SMU25716545500000001SA) from Jan 1990 to Dec 2024 about Boston, MA, financial, employment, and USA.

Graph and download economic data for All Employees: Retail Trade in Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA (NECTA Division) (SMU25716544200000001) from Jan 1990 to Dec 2024 about Boston, MA, retail trade, sales, retail, employment, and USA.