Committee OKs bill creating database to track federal spending
Similar measure adopted in the House last month would only cover federal grants.
Legislation that would create a searchable Web site of all the federal grants, contracts and other funding awarded public and private organizations was approved Thursday by the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee.
The bill (S. 2590), which was easily adopted on a voice vote, is the latest effort by Sen. Tom Coburn, R-Okla., to curb unnecessary spending among all levels of government.
During the committee markup, Coburn said the Web site would "give taxpayers a greater understanding of how their money is spent, which I think will bring about more accountability." He noted that "we're going to give away $1 billion this year on contracts, grants and loans, and people should know where that money is going."
The Office of Management and Budget would be charged with running the Web site that would track the grants and procurements doled out to institutions starting with fiscal 2007. The legislation requires all corporations, associations, nonprofits, universities and individuals that receive federal money to provide OMB with information on how their grants and contracts are spent.
The database, which Coburn said would be the "Google for government spending," would include information on the names of grantees and sub-grantees receiving money, what industry they are involved in, their location and the location of the work, the nature of the work, when and how much they were awarded, and an itemized breakdown of any transaction above $25,000.
A similar bill sponsored by House Majority Whip Roy Blunt, R-Mo., and Government Reform Chairman Tom Davis, R-Va., in the House was easily adopted last month, but that measure would track only federal grants.
During a meeting last month of the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Federal Financial Management Subcommittee, Gary Bass, executive director of OMB Watch, said the difference might be a sticking point down the road during conference negotiations. OMB Watch is a nonprofit group that works to "promote open government, accountability and citizen participation," according to its Web site.
A pilot program on the reporting of subcontracts would start in July 2007, and the legislation sets the official Web site roll out at January 2008, one year later than the date set in the original text.
The bill requires those responsible for passing grant money to sub-grantees to report the data to OMB for the Web site. The bipartisan bill, whose cosponsors include Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., and Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill., now heads to the floor for consideration.