La. gets an ‘A’ for online transparency, accountability

For the second straight year, Louisiana’s websites tracking government transparency, accountability and spending tied for fourth-best in the nation, according to a report released today by the United States Public Interest Research Group. In “Following the Money 2012: How the States Rank on Providing Online Access to Government Spending Data,” researchers at U.S. PIRG graded all 50 states on how well they provide online access to information about government spending. States were given grades, from “A” to “F,” based on the characteristics of the online transparency systems they have created to provide information on contracts, subsidies and spending at quasi-public agencies. Louisiana was one of only seven states to get a grade in the “A” range, which means it has “established user-friendly transparency portals that contain comprehensive information on government expenditures [so that] citizens and watchdog groups can use the sites to monitor government spending quickly and easily,” according to the report. You can check out the full 73-page report here.