Chris Framel, applications group manager for Albuquerque, N.M., said the city began testing the new version of the BI software last week. He said the new search capability will make it easier to make data from various reports -- such as those that detail political campaign contributions and crime statistics -- accessible outside the firewall.

'Citizens will be able to type something in like with a Google search and get information on anything they want to by querying the Cognos reports,' Framel said.

Now, external users have to navigate through a series of prompts to find the information they are seeking, he said. Framel aims to have the new software available for external users by June 30.

For internal users, the city now analyzes aggregate data for the city's 26 agencies. Those users now have to navigate through various pieces of aggregate data to access the cost information for their individual department or budget line item, he said. '[The search tool] can alleviate upwards of five minutes for good users or 30 minutes for a user who doesn't know a cube that well,' according to Framel.