South Dakota state budget
From Sunshine Review
Open.sd.gov is the name of South Dakota's publicly available spending transparency database. It was announced on March 12th, 2008, approximately 6 months after transparency legislation from State Representative Hal Wick had been vetoed.[1]
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News
South Dakota's Initiated Measure 10, the Open and Clean Government Act, would have required the creation of an online database for state contracts over $500. This, and other aspects of the Measure, lead the National Taxpayers Union to believe the Measure's passage would have a positive impact on taxpayers.[2] However, unfortunately this measure fell by a margin of over 100,000 votes.[3] Although South Dakota recently launched www.open.sd.gov, Measure 10 would have protected taxpayer funds even more directly by outlawing their abuse by government officials.
Sign up for the Show Me The Spending weekly transparency e-updates. As transparency news about South Dakota becomes available, it will be sent out by email and also posted on this page.
Legislation
As of October, 2008, neither legislation nor a executive order support South Dakota's transparency website. Rather, the site exists under the direction of Governor Mike Rounds, and under the oversight of the Bureau of Finance and Management Comissioner Jason Dilges.
Government tools
Open.sd.gov provides a database of state financial information, organized by broad topics such as budget, expenditures, revenues, vendor contracts, and payroll. Much of the information is updated twice per week. And, since data populating the database is tied directly to South Dakota's accounting system, payroll information is updated in real-time (that is, as soon as information enters the general accounting system software, it will appear on this database).
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Open.sd.gov |  | | |  | | | None |
Limitations and Suggestions for Improvements
- Provide line-item expenditure information.
Support for creation of the database
In January, 2008, State Representative Hal Wick introduced South Dakota House Bill 1233 to create a searchable transparency database. Although the bill passed both the House and Senate, it was vetoed in March by Governor Mike Rounds.[4] On September 12th, 2008, the Governor's Office announced the launch of this website.[5]
The National Taxpayers Union issued a press release questioning Governor Mike Rounds's decision to veto South Dakota House Bill 1233 in March, 2008.[6]
Independent transparency sites
None.
Public employee salary information
The Argus Leader in South Dakota is providing this Interactive State Salaries database. It is searchable and current as of June 2007.
External links
- Great Plains Public Policy Institute
- www.open.sd.gov, official website
- Bureau of Finance and Management
- South Dakota Government spending
- South Dakota state and local spending
References
- ↑ "Gov. Rounds Announces Government Records Website," Office of the Governor Press Release, September 12, 2008
- ↑ National Taxpayers Union, "General Election Ballot Guide 2008: The Taxpayer's Perspective"
- ↑ South Dakota General Election Results, 4 November 2008
- ↑ Veto Letter HB 1233, Mike Rounds, March 13, 2008
- ↑ "Gov. Rounds Announces Government Records Website," Office of the Governor Press Release, September 12, 2008
- ↑ National Taxpayers Union, "Taxpayer Group Asks, "What's to Hide?" after Rounds's Veto of Budget Transparency Bill," March 18, 2008
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