It's all Becoming a Little More Clear in Texas

The State of Texas has launched a new website called Texas Transparency. Their philosophy? You pay for your government, and you deserve to know how it spends your money.

And that philosophy is gaining traction. State and federal governments are increasingly making financial transparency a priority, opting to make many records freely accessible, rather than leave the public waiting for information requests.

Transparency is a broad term that, quite literally, means something that can be seen through. When we talk about transparency in terms of government spending, we are referring to government opening its books to the public so that taxpayers can see exactly where their money is going. Transparency ensures that your taxpayer dollars are spent efficiently by making all decisions in the open and on the record. Transparency means that citizens can review and question policymakers' decisions, examine documents, root out inefficiencies and hold officials accountable for the way tax dollars are spent.

Technology — and the Web in particular — has changed the expectations for customer service and government transparency at all levels. In a computer- and Internet-based society, government can no longer justify the money and time required to print reports. Publishing information online means no postage, no waiting for the mail, up-to-date documents and worldwide accessibility.

By demystifying state spending and providing easy access to those numbers they hope to ensure greater accountability to the public.

 Here is all of the great information you can find on the site:

Where the Money Goes – Check Register Search

• Spending by Agency
• Spending by Category
• Spending by Detailed Purchase Code
• Payments to Vendors
• Travel Expenses by Agency
• TxDOT Search Tools
• Stimulus Reporting

Where the Money Comes From

• State Revenue Search Tool

Open Data Center

• Open Data Catalog
• Contracts
• Databases
• Data Visualization
• External Data

Budget and Finance

• Agency Budget vs. Actual Expenditures
• Expenditures by State Agency Strategy
• Expenditures by Funding Source
• Estimated vs. Actual Expenditures

Texas Investments

 Budget, Financial and Economic Reports

 Texas Budget Primer

 Local Government Transparency

• Leadership Circle
• Frequently Asked Questions
• Steps and Tools for Local Governments
• Spotlight

Track Spending

• Texas Cities
• Texas Counties
• School Districts
• Special Districts

Texas It’s Your Money: Be in the Know

Local Government Taxes

• Taxing Entities Maps
• Tax Levies Maps
• Growth in Local Tax
• Find Local Tax Data
• Feedback

Check it out at: http://www.texastransparency.org/  
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