Michigan budget shortfalls: could transparency help?

Michigan’s constitution requires that the state government operate with a balanced budget.

But Michigan legislators returned from a two week break without a plan on how to address the state’s more than $300 million budget shortfall for the current year. Governor Jennifer Granholm (D) is seemingly waiting for Congress to revive a measure that would give Michigan $560 million in additional federal money to help provide health care for the poor. Republicans are not counting on the money, instead planning more budget cuts.

The Michigan Senate already has voted to erase a projected shortfall of $1.3 billion in the state’s general fund through spending cuts and savings in the fiscal year that starts Oct. 1, but Democrats who control the House oppose many of those measures.

It’s a tough job, but legislators are compensated for their troubles, and compensated well. Michigan lawmakers earn the second highest salary of state legislators, $79,650, next only to California.

However, despite all of the cost-cutting benefits of going online, Michigan has yet to post its check register. Unlike other transparency projects, posting Michigan’s check register online would apparently come at no cost because of the way that the state deals with accounting.

Involving citizens in the process by taking steps to become more proactively transparent won’t solve all of Michigan’s problems, but it would be a great first step in budget discipline. For example, the information that Michigan legislators are the second-highest paid in the nation is invaluable. People have a right to that information. There’s nothing that increases prudence like public scrutiny.