No Checkbook Left Behind
More Michigan public school districts are posting their checkbook registers online as a way for taxpayers to see exactly how their money is spent, but most districts get a failing grade when it comes to transparency.
"After two years, we know who cares most about telling the taxpayers where their money goes," Ken Braun, director of the Center's "Show Michigan the Money" project, is quoted in today's Grand Rapids Press. "All of the 'A' students in the transparency class have been identified, and the rest are apparently celebrating Sunshine Week 2010 by skipping class," Braun continued.
The Port Huron Times Herald reports 75 districts have responded to the Center's request to post spending online. Several of the largest districts in the state, however, including Detroit, Grand Rapids, Flint, Lansing and Ann Arbor, have not.
More information is available here.
Permission to reprint this blog post in whole or in part is hereby granted, provided that the author (or authors) and the Mackinac Center for Public Policy are properly cited. Permission to reprint any comments below is granted only for those comments written by Mackinac Center policy staff.
