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How to bring unprecedented transparency to Virginia's state and local government
By Geoffrey Segal
Ever since the corporate and accounting scandals that rocked our economy earlier this decade, the public has placed a premium on transparency. The U.S. Congress overwhelmingly passed new reporting regulations on corporate America to improve financial disclosure, accountability and transparency. It was only a matter of time before those same calls were turned on government itself. Indeed, new efforts at both the federal and state level hold much promise to add more sunshine on how government operates and spends our tax dollars.
Technology and the Internet have established a new premium on openness and information. We can find out just about anything we want with a few clicks of the mouse. This unprecedented ease of access is largely responsible for the push for greater government transparency. In the phenomenon sometimes referred to as "Google government," governments are creating searchable databases of grants, contracts and other funding information.
Surprising to most, it was the federal government that first got into act with the passage of the Federal Funding Accountability and Transparency Act (S. 2590) in 2006. Since then, at least 20 states have considered legislation on similar transparency efforts, many of which passed and were signed into law. In addition, a few governors have signed executive orders establishing the databases.
It's well established that there is a need for greater transparency. Web-based information would make government more transparent by allowing taxpayers access to spending information and clarity on where their tax dollars are being spent. Unfortunately neither Virginia's Governor nor the General Assembly have made progress on a "Google government" database.
"Google government" is just one piece of the transparency puzzle. Fortunately, the Commonwealth has set a much stronger foundation in other areas, including understanding how various programs actually function.
In a recent Reason Foundation report, "Innovators in Action," Del. Chris Saxman, R-Staunton, discusses the need for transparency to effectively communicate with constituents and shed light on government operations. Saxman notes that the General Assembly has made some significant progress in recent years. For example, the Cost Cutting Caucus, which Saxman chairs, successfully carried two pieces of legislation that have created a more transparent budget document (2003 HB 1838) and established the Council for Virginia's Future (2002—HB 252).
Saxman notes that the Council was established to "set the goals and direction for the Commonwealth and the new budget document set up the funding towards those goals with objectives and measurable goals." Transparency by itself is not enough though. Simply knowing where money is spent doesn't make the Commonwealth a better place to live or do business.
The transparency and government performance pieces need to be more intimately tied together. Knowing something isn't efficient or doesn't work is only half the equation. Policy makers need to be empowered and prepared to make significant policy changes based on what transparency bears. This includes, of course, a willingness to weed out under- or non-performing programs or activities.
Past efforts at reform have seen their success tempered because of an inability to put the results into action. Here we can emulate what the federal government and what several other states have done. For example, Texas and Florida have effectively used sunset commissions to eliminate unneeded or ineffective government programs. Indiana and the federal government have used a robust performance assessment tool for years to accomplish the same goals. The bottom line is that we can learn from these examples and create our own approach, so long as we do it.
Transparency can be a powerful tool and should be embraced and expanded. We should always be on the look out for new ways to shine a brighter light on how our government operates and spends our tax dollars. However, to achieve the full promise of shining light on government programs and activities, we must couple transparency with the power and a willingness to address what we find.
Geoffrey Segal is director of government reform at Reason Foundation. An archive of his work is here and Reason's government reform research and commentary is here.
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