State launches contracts Web site

• By JORDAN BLUM
• Advocate Capitol News Bureau
• Published: Nov 21, 2009 - Page: 1A

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How billions of state dollars are spent on current contracts can now be found online.

The new information on state government services contracts is an addition to LaTrac, the Louisiana Transparency and Accountability Portal, that launched in November 2008.

The online addition launch came the same week that members of the state’s Commission on Streamlining Government argued the state has far too many contracts and does not make them transparent.

“We’re not hiding contracts,” state Commissioner of Administration Angèle Davis said. “We have always pushed for transparency.”

The new online contracts feature allows users to search contracts by categories or to view all contracts and sort them according to government agency, contractor name, contract type or contract amount. Details of the contract can then be viewed by clicking on the row of a given contract.

“Increased transparency, as you know, leads to increased accountability, which leads to a better use of taxpayers’ dollars,” said Davis, Gov. Bobby Jindal’s chief budget officer. “We know we have to reduce government spending. Every dollar for every expenditure should be evaluated.

“There’s over 4.3 million citizen auditors out there,” Davis said Friday, referring to the state’s population.

The Web site will be updated each month, she said. Last month, LaTrac had about 15,000 online hits.

California, Georgia and Texas are the only other states to offer contract data online, according to the division.

Streamlining commission member and state Treasurer John Kennedy sparked a new study of contracts by questioning some of the money the state Department of Education is spending on consultants.

He accused the department of paying people to give speeches.

Streamlining commission member Leonal Hardman then, earlier this week, accused state officials of hiding how much money they spend on contracts with private firms.

While spending on state government contracts is listed at $4.7 billion per year, Davis said $1.6 billion of it actually is cooperative endeavors and interagency transfers. Much of the rest is spent on state employees’ medical and retirement benefits, she said.