Fiscal Transparency
Our focus on fiscal transparency stems from our belief that the people have the right to know how the government is spending their money. While the United States federal government has taken some steps to improve its spending transparency, much remains to be done. Transparency International-USA (TI-USA) is a strong advocate for specific improvements to how the federal government publishes spending information.
Currently, federal spending information is published on the USASpending.gov website. However, the spending information published on this website has been found to be incomplete and inaccurate. In order to remedy this problem and ensure greater fiscal transparency, TI-USA joined with other organizations to advocate on behalf of the DATA Act, which was passed by Congress in 2014.
We believe that the DATA Act, if properly implemented, will fix many of the current problems with the way federal spending data is reported. It mandates common numerical identifiers for programs, awards, agencies, contractors, and grantees, thus allowing the interested persons to more easily monitor how the government is spending money and who is receiving it. It facilitates the publication of checkbook-level payments, thereby making it possible for anyone with access to the internet to follow each dollar spent by the federal government, from appropriation by Congress through payment. For more information on the DATA Act, check out our blog post on the subject.
Proper implementation of the DATA Act will be critical to its success. TI-USA is continuing its advocacy on behalf of the DATA Act, to ensure that its goal of promoting fiscal transparency becomes a reality. Check back to this page for updates on our work in this area and for progress reports on the DATA Act’s implementation.