Look Ma, No Red Tape

The state legislature passes a lot of pretty mundane laws and resolutions. In fact, most legislatures pass some stuff that's pretty ineffectual or just plain leaves you shaking your head. It seems like one thing they got done last session actually was pretty worthwhile and at the very least, neat.

The bill, penned by Mark Strama, mandated that state expenditures be listed online by the comptroller's office so that ordinary citizens can look at them at their leisure. "From Dollars to Doughnuts..."

Government has always seemed like something of an exclusive country club to the American masses, but the statement made by that is even stronger today when most of America not knowing how politics works means hundreds of millions of people in the dark about who's making the decisions that affect their lives. There's partisan bickering and representatives debating resolutions that don't effect the law and countless other wastes of time that people get fed up.

With all that going on, it's just nice to see a bill put through the legislature by members of both parties working together. What's more, the bill adds a transparency to government that's usually missing. Like the article says, anyone with a computer can see where their money is being spent pretty easily with just a few keystrokes. It's nice to feel like we know what's going on every once in a while. After all, it is our money.