Bringing Transparency to Government

AUSTIN— U.S. Sen. John Cornyn R-Texas today joined Texas Comptroller Susan Combs at the University of Texas’ Center for American History to highlight their efforts on the state and federal levels to bring greater transparency to government.  Sen. Cornyn announced plans to introduce legislation to boost the public’s access to federal spending records.

“It’s because of the work of Texans like Comptroller Combs and Texas’ Freedom of Information Foundation that Texas has earned a reputation as one of the most open state governments in the nation. In the U.S. Senate I have made it a priority to bring this same Texas Sunshine to the federal government. 

“While the recent enactment of the OPEN Government Act is a significant achievement in open government reforms we still have a long way to go in the federal government—especially with regard to spending” Cornyn said. “For that reason today I announced my plans to introduce a new bill to bring greater transparency to federal spending. The Federal Spending and Taxpayer Accessibility Act of 2008—based largely on the hard work of Comptroller Combs—would provide taxpayers with unprecedented access to federal spending records on everything from staff salaries to travel expenses.  

“I’m hopeful the Senate will consider and pass this legislation quickly so we can take yet another important step toward bringing Texas’ level of accountability and responsibility to Washington.”

Comptroller Combs said: “It is clearly important for taxpayers to see where their money goes and hold state government accountable for its spending. I applaud the recent federal transparency on grants and contracts but the public also deserves to know about the rest of federal spending. Governments heighten citizens’ confidence when systems become accessible and we demystify government finances. I commend Sen. Cornyn for taking significant steps forward in transparency and accountability at the federal level.”

Sen. Cornyn and Comptroller Combs were also joined by Laura Prather Vice President of the Freedom of Information Foundation of Texas.

Background on the Federal Spending and Taxpayer Accessibility Act of 2008 (FSTAA):

• Based on the work of Texas Comptroller Susan Combs and the State of Texas.
• Expands upon the national web site www.usaspending.gov which allows taxpayers to search Federal contracts and grants.
• Directs the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) to create a web-based searchable engine that allows the public to take a close look at how certain federal agencies are spending taxpayer dollars.  
• Could serve as the starting point for a comprehensive database of all Federal expenditures.