Pennsylvania Senate expenses viewable online starting Sept. 1
(The Center Square) – Expenses incurred by the Pennsylvania Senate will be publicly accessible online starting Sept. 1.
President Pro Tempore Jake Corman, R-Bellefonte, made the announcement Wednesday and touted it as “a significant step forward in government transparency.”
“Pennsylvanians deserve to know how their tax dollars are spent, so opening the Senate’s books to the public eye is absolutely the right thing to do,” he said. “The online transparency tool that is in development now will help fulfill the promise of state government that is more open and accountable to the people it serves.”
The database will include information about office leases, per diems, reimbursements for meals and lodging, supplies, mileage, office maintenance and “much more,” Corman’s office said. The chief clerk will update the website monthly.
The development comes after Attorney General Josh Shapiro charged former state Rep. Margo Davidson, D-Upper Darby, with falsifying per diem claims and receiving reimbursement for expenses already covered by her campaign.
Shapiro’s office said Davidson received payment from the House Comptroller’s Office for the claims and tried to pay a witness to lie during the course of the investigation.
In the days following her resignation, House State Government Committee Chairman Seth Grove, R-York, announced a series of hearings to review the state’s Ethics Act, Pension Forfeiture Law, legislative auto leasing/insuring and legislative per diems rules. Davidson served as the Democratic chairwoman on the committee.
“Theft by deception, theft from charity, accepting cash for a voting understanding, using state staff or state resources for campaign purposes, conspiracy, and fraud are just some of the reasons legislators have been charged over the past few years,” he said. “What can we do legislatively to protect taxpayers and constituents?”
Lawmakers have also been the subject of several media investigations that have scrutinized legislative spending, most published by Spotlight PA.
Corman said Wednesday the database merely delivers on a priority he set when first elected to the Senate’s highest post in January.
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