Ohio Treasurer Josh Mandel is seeking to “set a new national standard for transparency” with a website that allows users to study how funds are being spent in the state.
OhioCheckbook.com enables users to examine over $400 billion dollars in state spending over seven fiscal years in state spending.
Information is presented in interactive charts and graphs in addition to lists. The site has an internal search engine, allowing users to search for specific expenses. Data on the site is easy to share on social media.
There is also contact information provided if a user has a question about a listed expense.
“This is the first time in Ohio history that all state expenditures have been posted online for citizens to search, download, compare and analyze,” according to the site.
In an interview with The Daily Signal, Mandel said that he and his office worked for 18 months to launch the site in an effort to increase transparency in the state.
“I believe that taxpayers throughout Ohio and the nation have a right to know how their money is being spent,” Mandel said.
Mandel said that the site “empowers everyday citizens,” such as taxpayers, investigative journalists and government watchdogs.
“They may feel powerless, but this makes them powerful,” Mandel said.
Prior to the launch of the site, citizens were limited to public records requests, which were time-consuming and often denied. The information wasn’t presented in a searchable, accessible way.
Mandel said it was important that the site’s format “is easy to search, navigate and use” so that citizens may leverage technology “to hold public officials accountable.”
Mandel said that the site is “already changing the behavior of bureaucrats and politicians.”
“I think they’ll think twice before they go to a conference in Hawaii when they could have gone to Cincinnati, or stay at the Ritz-Carlton when they could have stayed at the Holiday Inn,” Mandel said.
Last year, the U.S. Public Interest Research Group ranked Ohio 46th in the nation for transparency in state government spending. This year, Ohio was ranked No. 1.
“We’re just getting started,” Mandel said. “Just because we’re ranked number one doesn’t mean we’re going to slow down.”
Mandel wants to add the spending of Ohio’s local governments and school districts to the site.
He said that feedback on the site has been “overwhelmingly positive.”
Ultimately, he wants other states and the federal government to follow suit and make their spending decisions publicly available online.
He hopes the site helps create “an army of citizen watchdogs who hold government accountable.”
