How Accessible Is Your State’s Spending Data?
The Rotunda of the Idaho State Capitol in Boise. Shutterstock
A new study ranks states based on the online access they provide to the information.
When it comes to providing online access to government spending data, California, Alaska and Idaho are the worst-ranking states in the nation, according to a new report a nonprofit consumer advocacy group released Wednesday.
The top-performing states identified in the report—issued by the U.S. Public Interest Research Group Education Fund—included Ohio, Michigan, Indiana, Oregon and Connecticut. Each of those states received A-plus grades. California, Alaska and Idaho, in contrast, each received a grade of F.
“Our research found that top-ranked states have been making steady improvements to their transparency websites over the years, giving citizens in most states unprecedented access to information on where their tax money goes,” Elizabeth Ridlington, a policy analyst with Frontier Group and co-author of the report, said in a statement on Wednesday.
Included in the report are a set of transparency standards for spending websites.
Data should be easily searchable, sortable and downloadable, according to the standards. And, the report adds, sites should be comprehensive, providing the public with a way to find information about contracts, subsidies and tax breaks, as well as other spending. Another requisite: “one-stop” interfaces, which allow people to search a wide range of government expenditures on a single website.
The authors noted: “All states, including Leading States, have opportunities to improve their transparency.” A number of states have made recent strides toward this goal, they also said.
Among them: Michigan, which upgraded its site to enable bulk data downloads, along with other new functions; West Virginia, where a new website was launched with data showing the projected and actual benefits of the state’s major subsidy programs; and Utah and Arizona, two states that added data for localities, cities and school districts to their transparency portals.
Along with improving accountability, well-designed spending transparency websites can save states money, according to the report. For instance, in Texas, such a site has helped the state comptroller monitor contracts more closely, leading to cost savings. And Arkansas agencies use the state’s online transparency portal to track employee travel spending.
“Public accountability,” the report says, “helps ensure that state funds are spent as wisely as possible.”
A full copy of the report can be found here.
Bill Lucia is a Reporter for Government Executive’s Route Fifty.
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