Minnesota state budget
From Sunshine Review
Minnesota's official spending transparency database, mandated by Minnesota House File 548, State Government Omnibus bill of May 2007, was scheduled to go online no later than January 2008. However, the website has not yet been launched.
According to an article in the Star Tribune, the Department of Administration has not launched the website because "An old state computer system, which is being updated, is not Internet-friendly. It's not clear if the new computer system will include a spending database because the Legislature didn't appropriate the $1 million to $1.5 million needed for it."[1]
Todd Kruse, a low-tax activist, questions this expense: "So Minnesota needs at least $1 million dollars but the State of Texas did essentially the same thing for only $310,000? Something is clearly wrong here and further justifies the need for spending transparency in government."
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News
Although Minnesota does not yet have its searchable database in place, the state does provide some useful information. For example, the Minnesota Office of Grants Management has made this website, where individuals can find out grants that are available.
Additionally, the Minnesota State Arts Board lists the recipients of its awards.[2] 2008 Media Grants, for example, were distributed to twelve individuals and cost a total of $59,000. They included grants for projects such as:$6,000 — for a sixteen-stage video installation that shows the opening scene of sixteen imagined narratives, all informed by the people and events of his northeast Minneapolis neighborhood
- Nathaniel H. Freeman, Minneapolis
$5,000 — for a documentary film, titled, “No Ugly Trees,” that explores women's body and self-esteem issues
- Heather R. Johnson, Minneapolis
$5,000 — for creative time to finish hand coloring “Boris,” an animation about overcoming difficult circumstances to live a happy life[3]
- Daniel J. Lundquist, Bloomington
Sign up for the www.showmethespending.org weekly transparency e-updates. As transparency news about Minnesota becomes available, it will be sent out by email and posted here.
Legislation
HF 376 and SF 416 were incorporated into Minnesota House File 548, State Government Omnibus bill, which was signed by Governor Tim Pawlenty on May 25, 2007. Starting in 2008, residents will be able to search for information on state grants and contracts valued at over $25,000. Grants and contracts to local government units will NOT be included in this database. Information on the website will be stored for 10 years.
Prior to the passage of Minnesota House File 548, State Government Omnibus bill, a report by the Minnesota Office of the Legislative Auditor found that the policies and practices used to award and administer grants to nonprofit organizations were "inconsistent and inadequate to ensure accountability."[4] According to the report, Minnesota paid $4.7 billion to nonprofits in 2005, most of which went to hospitals, health plans and large institutional providers. Of that amount, state or county agencies awarded $1 billion to nearly 1,900 nonprofits.
Government tools
The following table is helpful in evaluating the level of transparency provided by a state spending and transparency database:
| State Database | Searchability | Grants | Contracts | Line Item Expenditures | Dept/Agency Budgets | Public Employee Salary | Exemption Level |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| None | n/a | n/a | n/a | n/a | n/a | n/a | n/a |
Limitations and Suggestions for Improvements
Getting the grant website up and running (it is long overdue) would be a start.
Support for the creation of the database
In response to a letter from the National Taxpayers Union,[5] Chief Commissioner Dana Badgerow wrote a letter[6] that attributed the delay in posting the database to a lack of funding. While the legislature passed the bill itself, it failed to appropriate a source of funding for the project.
The Minnesota Free Market Institute supports transparency in local government spending, writing "When local governments receive state money both as "Local Government Aid" and in special state financed bonding projects as well as through local property taxes, it's important that citizens get the complete picture of how all their tax monies are being spent at all levels of government, not just the top."
Independent transparency sites
None.
Public employee salary information
None.
External links
- Center of the American Experiment
- Freedom Foundation of Minnesota
- Minnesota state budget, home page
- overview of state government spending, 2007
- language of Minnesota House File 548, State Government Omnibus bill
- Minnesota Government spending
References
- ↑ http://www.startribune.com/opinion/editorials/18989324.html?location_refer=Opinion
- ↑ Minnesota State Arts Board website
- ↑ 2008 Grant Recipients, Artists Initiative
- ↑ http://www.auditor.leg.state.mn.us/PED/2007/grants.htm
- ↑ Letter to Commissioner Dana Badgerow, Minnesota Department of Administration, May 28, 2008
- ↑ Letter to Kristina Rasmussen, National Taxpayers Union, June 5, 2008
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