Transparency legislation would require all government entities to publish how tax dollars are spent on a publicly searchable internet database. States like Missouri have already adopted this policy and have introduced online portals that show government expenditures online.  In fact this idea is picking up so much momentum that Michigan Attorney General Mike Cox made an announcement that the Attorney General's office will become transparent.

Despite the Attorney General's decision to make his office transparent, Michigan citizens continue to suffer from skyrocketing state budgets and demands for tax increases.  If citizens knew how their tax dollars were spent, they would certainly be much more reluctant to support tax increases and more government spending.

For example, the $200,000 that Central Michigan University spends on one-sided speakers and the $400,000 that the university spends on diversity offices would undoubtedly be challenged and more controversial if everyday citizens were aware of the money required to fund these programs.  If Michigan residents were informed that state payrolls and employee salaries continue to increase while the average income for citizens decreases, transparency would certainly be more of a hot button issue.

Essentially, due to a government that grows everyday, ordinary taxpayers are extremely disconnected from Lansing elites and have no method of advocating for smaller government.  Because taxpayers don't know how public money is spent, there is no easy way to mobilize citizens against bigger government and frivolous spending.

The notion of informing citizens about how government operates and spends money should not be a controversial idea.  At the federal level, this issue brought together liberal Democrats like Senator Barack Obama (D-IL) and conservative Senator Tom Coburn (R-OK) to co-sponsor and successfully enact a bill that creates transparency at the federal level.  Now, taxpayers have the ability to visit usaspending.gov and monitor how public money is spent.  After researching the site for a few minutes, citizens quickly become aware of how prevalent fiscal waste occurs in Washington.

Although the federal government is transparent, it is equally important that the State of Michigan enacts transparency legislation.  Next time the legislature debates a tax increase, citizens should have enough information to tell Lansing that tax hikes are not the solution and legislators simply need to spend money more responsibly.  By empowering citizens with this information, legislators will be held accountable if they support outrageous spending bills.

Enacting transparency legislation in Lansing will not be an easy feat due to the special interests in Lansing that oppose bringing accountability to government.  Several legislators support the issue but citizen activists need to tell their elected officials that transparency is imperative if Lansing wants to be taken seriously.  Activists need to write to their legislators and remind Lansing that it is public money they are wasting.  At the very least, Lansing should tell us how they waste it.