The right to information on government positions is a widely appreciated phenomenon. However, few in the general public are aware of USAspending.gov, a website serving as an access-point of information on the US government's expenses.
Initially introduced as the Coburn-Obama Transparency Act, Federal Funding Accountability and Transparency Act of 2006 came into being a powerful act soliciting complete transparency from the US government. This act required setting up a website, www.usaspending.gov, to help US citizens access information on government expenditure.
As a response to a frequently asked question, What's the purpose of the new legislation? the website says,
To provide the public with information about how their tax dollars are spent. Citizens have a right and need to understand where tax dollars are spent. Collecting data about the various types of contracts, grants, loans, and other types of spending in our government will provide a broader picture of and much needed transparency to the Federal spending processes. The ability to look at contracts, grants, loans, and other types of spending across many agencies, in greater detail, is a key ingredient to building public trust in government and credibility in the professionals who use these agreements.
Though completely functional with regular updates, I wonder if the US citizens ever bother to check the website. Launched on December 13, 2007, the website does not seem to have received the expected response. The website has not been an important topic of discussion since its launch. Four days after its launch,
WashingtonTechnology.com had carried a news item declaring a lukewarm response to the site. The media does not seem to have carried out any more reports on the website.
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