Some stimulus projects defy common sense

By Richard Eckstrom
State Comptroller

I recently read an Associated Press report about a sleepy border checkpoint between Montana and Canada which will receive $15 million in “stimulus” funds. The checkpoint will receive the money despite the fact that only about three travelers a day cross the border there.

The project actually ranks low on a priority list compiled by the Office of Homeland Security, but two powerful Democratic senators pushed the project to the top of the list. According to the story, the project involves building a checkpoint station “the size and cost of a Hollywood mansion.”

Similarly, a North Dakota checkpoint which serves an average of 73 travelers a day will also receive $15 million in stimulus funds.

What’s most noteworthy is that other projects rated much higher on the Office of Homeland Security’s priority list -- including a Texas checkpoint that serves 55,000 travelers a day -- were bypassed for stimulus funds.

So what was the basis for selecting the Montana checkpoint -- which, again, sees almost no traffic -- over more pressing needs? No one is quite sure, other than the fact that two senators asked the director of Homeland Security to bump the project up ahead of others. Federal officials charged with overseeing border projects won’t make public their selection criteria.

According to the report, federal officials “said they wouldn't release the master list (of proposed projects) because it was just a starting point and subject to misunderstanding.” It’s an excuse I have heard before. As I travel the state to encourage local governments to post details of their spending on the Internet, it’s not uncommon for a mayor or a county councilman’s first response to be that ordinary citizens won’t understand the information. (To me, that shows a lack of faith in the public, and certainly shouldn’t be used as an excuse not to conduct public business as openly as possible.)

It may be the case that most people think spending millions on border checkpoints which see very few travelers is a wise investment. Others might argue it’s a waste of money.

But what’s clear to me is that those projects should have been decided on their own merits, rather than under the pretense of “economic recovery.” They look more like “pork” -- that time-honored tradition of politicians showering benefits on favored constituencies -- than they resemble sound policy to create jobs and end the recession.

State stimulus spending now online

(From the Myrtle Beach Sun News, Sept. 17)

State Comptroller Richard Eckstrom announced today that all expenditures of stimulus funds by state agencies are available at http://www.cg.sc.gov/.

More than a half-billion stimulus dollars of an estimated $3 billion have come through state government so far.

“The debt from this spending extends far into the future of our children and grandchildren, so we owe it to those future generations to ensure the funds are spent without impropriety and with accountability and transparency,” Eckstrom said.

Visitors to the site can click on the “Stimulus Spending Transparency” button on the left side of the home page. The site will be updated monthly.

The stimulus transparency page has three files -- one sorted by the state agencies spending the funds, another sorted by the purpose of the expenditure and another sorted by vendor or recipient.

The information regarding stimulus spending will also soon be posted on the state’s official stimulus Web site, http://www.stimulus.sc.gov/.

“People deserve easy access to how this money is spent. Not only that, but when spending is done in the open, public officials are usually more accountable. They know their spending decisions will be examined by the public,” he said. “If transparency is important under ordinary circumstances, it’s even more critical with massive infusions of cash like this, which can invite opportunities for waste, mismanagement and even fraud.”

Some local governments reveal checkbooks online

(Hilton Head Island Packet, Monday, Sept. 7)

By MARTI COVINGTON mcovington@beaufortgazette.com

The city of Beaufort already has made records of its financial transactions available online, and Beaufort County says it will follow suit.

Officials with other local municipalities, however, don't have firm plans to get their own records up on the Web.

S.C. Comptroller General Richard Eckstrom encouraged the state's local governments to post their checkbooks online shortly after the state's spending-transparency Web site launched in March 2008.

Since then, 12 governments have put their monthly spending and revenue records on the Internet, according to the comptroller's office. They include the city of Charleston and Dorchester County.

Hilton Head Island town manager Steve Riley said he is aware of the steps other governments are taking to put the financial information online but has not yet talked with his staff and council members about posting town records. The idea might surface in time, he said.

"We've got some other things we're trying to put out and balance at the moment, and that's not at the top of my priority list right now," Riley said.

Port Royal town manager Van Willis said the town is updating its Web site and hopes to have monthly financial records posted as a new feature. But no timeline has been set for when that will happen.

"We have financials that we do every month that anyone can take a look at," Willis said. "That's available at no charge, and that's something we'll probably post. We're kind of in flux, so there a number of things we're looking to add."

The city of Beaufort recently launched an online financial "dashboard," a one-page document that provides year-to-date reports on the city's revenues, expenses and fund balance.

Beaufort County deputy administrator Bryan Hill said last month the county's line-item budget would soon be up on the Web, with plans to include more financial data over time.

Officials with the town of Bluffton were unavailable for comment Friday.

Surfside Beach finances accessible online

(Myrtle Beach Sun News, Sept. 2)

By Aliana Ramos - aramos@thesunnews.com


Between Aug. 11 and Aug. 31, the town of Surfside Beach wrote 159 checks and spent $597,225.16.

If you're curious about what the town spent the money on, you can now examine its check register online. The register will be updated monthly, said Kim Hursey, the town's treasurer.

Surfside Beach is the 12th municipality in the state to post its financial information online, according to a statement released Tuesday by the S.C. Comptroller General's Office.

"Any time elected officials make the commitment to show people how public money is being spent, everyone wins," said Comptroller General Richard Eckstrom. "By voluntarily putting this spending information within convenient public reach, Surfside Beach leaders are sending the message that they understand it's not their money they're spending, it's the people's money, and people deserve easy access to that information."

The Town Council voted on Aug. 11 to approve posting the register online to provide transparency and allow taxpayers to see how their money is being spent. The program is modeled after the city of Myrtle Beach.

Myrtle Beach began putting its check register online July 2 and updates it at least once a week, according to the city's Web site. The S.C. comptroller general's office has posted spending for every state agency on its Web site since March 2008.

Eckstrom started encouraging area municipalities to put their check registers on the Web earlier this year.