Transparency reforms will bring fundamental change!

One of my top priorities since taking office has been to make government more open and transparent. The ability to see how government uses our money is fundamental to democracy.  Budget transparency discourages corruption, increases public confidence in government, and promotes responsible spending. 

Working with MassPIRG, Common Cause and like-minded colleagues, I helped win a reform, adopted in the House budget, which requires that all state spending and contracts be posted to a searchable online database. Included are the State’s 41 quasi-public agencies like MassPort and the MBTA. This will open the State’s books for full public review for the first time. It will allow you to see exactly how much the state is spending on items large and small - from backhoes to pencils, by department or statewide! Here is an example of what we should expect.

Another important reform requires that all refundable tax credits be made public for the first time. Refundable credits are not tax reductions, but direct subsidies offered to businesses to create jobs. If we don’t know who is receiving these subsidies, we can’t evaluate their effectiveness.
 

 The Senate included these reforms in their recently passed budget with only a few minor changes. Final passage of these groundbreaking reforms seems assured.