When governments mandate collaboration, shared data systems can serve both as tools for coordination and instruments of control. This study examines U.S. homelessness service networks, where Continuums of Care (CoCs) coordinate service providers through the federally mandated Homeless Management Information System (HMIS). With client consent, providers enter data into HMIS and access cross-provider service histories to support coordinated care. At the same time, HMIS embeds standards and governance rules that shape who can collect, access, interpret, and act on data, and thus who holds decision authority. Using qualitative interviews with six experts, we show that standardization can facilitate collaboration and shared learning. However, unequal resources, analytic capacity, and authority limit equitable participation and often shift some participants toward compliance-focused roles. We contribute to public-interest design research on civic data infrastructures by illustrating how mandated data sharing can simultaneously enable coordination and accountability while reproducing power asymmetries in data interpretation and decision-making.

翻译：当政府强制要求协作时，共享数据系统既可成为协调工具，亦可充当控制手段。本研究考察了美国无家可归者服务网络，其中"照护连续体"（CoCs）通过联邦强制推行的"无家可归者管理信息系统"（HMIS）协调各服务提供商。在征得服务对象同意后，提供者将数据录入HMIS，并可查阅跨机构服务历史记录以支持协调照护。与此同时，HMIS内嵌的标准与治理规则决定了谁能够收集、访问、解读数据并据此采取行动，进而决定了决策权的归属。通过对六位专家的定性访谈，我们发现标准化能够促进协作与知识共享。然而，不平等的资源、分析能力和权力限制了公平参与，并常常使部分参与者转向以合规为导向的角色。本研究通过阐明强制数据共享如何在实现协调与问责的同时，在数据解读与决策过程中复制权力不对称，为公民数据基础设施的公共利益设计研究作出了贡献。