Americans for Tax Reform

Transparencyin Government Spending
[2008] [2007]

[click here for a comprehensive memo in PDF]

In 2006, thanks to the leadership of Senator Tom Coburn (R-OK), and Barack Obama (D-IL), Congress passed and President Bush signed into law the Federal Funding Accountability and Transparency Act (S.2590) which passed House and Senate in September of 2006.

The bill creates a free, publicly searchable website for all federal contracts and grants. It requires access to data on all payments of more than $25,000, with exceptions for classified information and federal assistance payments made to individuals. Also excluded are federal employees.

The website www.usaspending.gov went live on December 13, 2007. It can also be accessed at www.federalspending.gov . The website includes several additional features that were not required by law. For example, users can review the level of competition for each contract, as well as submit feedback on a wiki page.

The federal effort inspired elected officials at the state level to work to empower taxpayers to become fiscal watchdogs by making expenditures available on the Internet.

Kansas became the first state in 2007 to sign into law comprehensive legislation mandating the creation of a website detailing state expenditure information. The website is now live and can be accessed here.

Minnesota quickly followed and Gov. Tim Pawlenty (R) signed legislation at the beginning of May. Oklahoma Gov. Brad Henry (D) signed legislation on June 5. The website launched in December of 2007 and can be accessed here.

Gov. Rick Perry (R) of Texas signed transparency legislation into law on June 15. Texas State Comptroller Susan Combs (R) already started building the website before the legislation had passed. The website can be accessed here.

Hawaii passed similar legislation in 2007, which became law without the governor's signature.

On July 11, 2007 Gov. Matt Blunt (R) of Missouri created a comprehensive searchable web portal detailing government expenditures via executive order. The website can be accessed here.

Gov. Mark Sanford (R) of South Carolina issued an executive order to this effect on August 30. The website launched in March of 2008 and can be accessed here.

Gov. Bobby Jindal (R) of Louisiana was the first governor to take executive action in 2008, and signed an executive order calling for the online disclosure of government expenditures upon assuming office in January.

Gov. Sarah Palin (R) of Alaska posted the state's check register online in January of 2008. The information, incorporated into the department of administration's website, at this point is limited to expenditures over the amount of $1,000. The site can be accessed here.

In March of 2008, Gov. Jim Gibbons of Nevada issued an executive order calling on the Department of Administration to develop the “Nevada Open Government Initiative” – an easily searchable database of financial transactions, specifically covering budget information, expenditures, contracts and grants.

Several other state constitutional officers have also embarked on a mission to enhance transparency in government spending. For more information, please refer to our comprehensive memo.

For more information contact Sandra Fabry, state government affairs manager, at sfabry@atr.org

ATR is a founding member of www.ShowMeTheSpending.org,
a coalition website dedicated to promoting transparency in government spending.