Today Senator Kim Reynolds (R-Osceola) and Senator Shawn Hamerlinck (R-Davenport) announced their support of improving government transparency through the implementation of a new website that would shed light on how taxpayer dollars are spent in Iowa.
Senators Hamerlinck and Reynolds, along with some of their House counterparts, are sponsoring the Iowa Transparency bill. It would require the Iowa Department of Management to develop and operate a website where citizens could see how their tax dollars are being spent. The bill would also require the DOM to work with the Department of Revenue to develop and operate a searchable database and map of all the tax rates in the state for each jurisdiction. The database would also have a tax rate calculator able to compute potential and future taxes.
On average Iowans pay more than $4,700 per person in taxes a year and creating a user-friendly site where they can know where their hard-earned dollars are going is a step in the right direction of creating a more open and honest government. This is on the heels of yesterday’s inauguration of President Obama. As a U.S. Senator, Obama pushed hard for a more transparent government. (Great tie-in right?)
This bill is a great way to hold government accountable. We entrust the government with our tax dollars and the public should know exactly how it is spent. It is a truly bipartisan move. Regardless of party, people want to know where their taxes are going.
The implementation of an Iowa Transparency web site would probably cost less than $40,000. (Missouri implemented theirs for $35,000). The software is available from the federal government and already implemented in several states, including Missouri, and we’re hearing that it is a success there. A little bit of money for a whole lot of accountability and transparency.
Senators Hamerlinck and Reynolds, along with some of their House counterparts, are sponsoring the Iowa Transparency bill. It would require the Iowa Department of Management to develop and operate a website where citizens could see how their tax dollars are being spent. The bill would also require the DOM to work with the Department of Revenue to develop and operate a searchable database and map of all the tax rates in the state for each jurisdiction. The database would also have a tax rate calculator able to compute potential and future taxes.
On average Iowans pay more than $4,700 per person in taxes a year and creating a user-friendly site where they can know where their hard-earned dollars are going is a step in the right direction of creating a more open and honest government. This is on the heels of yesterday’s inauguration of President Obama. As a U.S. Senator, Obama pushed hard for a more transparent government. (Great tie-in right?)
This bill is a great way to hold government accountable. We entrust the government with our tax dollars and the public should know exactly how it is spent. It is a truly bipartisan move. Regardless of party, people want to know where their taxes are going.
The implementation of an Iowa Transparency web site would probably cost less than $40,000. (Missouri implemented theirs for $35,000). The software is available from the federal government and already implemented in several states, including Missouri, and we’re hearing that it is a success there. A little bit of money for a whole lot of accountability and transparency.
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1 comment:
Great idea! How's it going to be funded, and who within the department will do this? Will they be able to hire additional staff?
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