The overall plan is outlined in House Bill 413, a piece of legislation introduced last month that is awaiting its first committee hearing in the House Technology and Innovation Committee.
H.B. 413, joint sponsored by Rep. Bob Peterson, R-Sabrina, is a slight revision to a bill the two introduced in the last Ohio General Assembly, which never got committee approval.
Young said the law would require a new public-facing database showing “every single detail, specifically,” of what a political subdivision raises and spends, from federal government pass-through funds, grants and awards, or revenue raised through taxes and fees; to spending on public employee salaries, leases, supplies, projects and more.
“These are taxpayer dollars. The government does not own this money. They report to the taxpayer; the taxpayer wants transparency; and they’re going to get it,” Young said.
He called it “ridiculous” that many Ohioans can only access their local government’s detailed reports through a public records request.
“This is a step in the direction to say: The citizens will have a view of this that they have never had before. It will be mandatory. And they have every right to see every detail of what the revenue side looks like and where everyone is spending every penny,” he said.
Aside from taxing jurisdictions, H.B. 413 would also mandate reports from the state’s public retirement systems.
In the background, Young said he’s been searching for a technological partner that could help the state pull off such a large-scale database.
The bill has an initial ask of $5 million from the state, which Young said would go toward startup costs. The general maintenance of the database would then be overseen by the Ohio Treasurer’s Office.
Ideologically, the bill builds off of an existing public database called the Ohio Checkbook. That portal specifically tracks expenditures, not revenues, by the state and its public pension systems. It also has a portal for cities, villages, townships, counties, and school districts to report to, though it’s entirely voluntary.
Young told this outlet that he didn’t expect the mandate aspect of H.B. 413 to put too much of a strain on local governments, on the basis that they should already be tracking detailed revenue and expenditure details.
“You’re already submitting reports upon request to the (state) treasurer’s office, or the county treasurer’s office, or the auditor’s office,” he said. “They’re already doing this.”
Young said he’d be open to amending H.B. 413 in the committee process to ensure there’s no confusion on who is expected to report or what is expected within those reports. He also expects the idea to garner bipartisan support in the legislature.
“I don’t think we’re going to have a problem at all. It’s necessary (and) it’s timely,” Young said.
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