State Rep.-Elect Ruth Briggs King (R-Georgetown) announced Friday that she has joined with her caucus leadership in formally requesting that the financial records of the Legislative and Judicial branches be posted online for public review and inspection, similar to the way the new “State of Delaware Online Checkbook” has been made available to the public on the Internet.
Rep.-Elect Briggs King (R-Georgetown), along with State Reps. Richard Cathcart (R-Middlewtown) and Dan Short (R-Seaford), recently sent a letter to the Senate Pro Tem Anthony DeLuca and Speaker of the House Robert Gilligan asking them to consider providing online access to the General Assembly’s expenditures in order for the public to review at its convenience.
Similar correspondence was also sent to Delaware Supreme Court Chief Justice Myron Steele, asking that the Judiciary consider providing online access to its expenditures as soon as possible. Chief Justice Steele responded promptly to the correspondence, stating that the lawmakers’ request “will be immediately considered.” As more details on the court’s policy as it pertains to providing online access become available they will be shared with the public.
According to the letter, “While the state’s online checkbook (checkbook.delaware.gov) is an excellent way to keep the public informed about the expenditures being made by the state, it is limited in its function. The financial data of only Executive Branch agencies, other elected official agencies (such as the Insurance Department and Office of the Treasurer), Higher Education and Delaware school districts are provided online.
“The expense records of the Legislative and Judicial branches are specifically excluded from the state’s online checkbook, as it is suspected that the Executive branch does not have the authority, without a change in the Delaware Code, to post the financial data of the other two branches of government.”
“We made this request for online access to our financial records because it is in keeping with the legislature’s commitment to providing an open and accessible state government,” Briggs King said.
She also said that one of the first things that she plans to do after being sworn into office in January is to propose a bill that is similar to one already pending in the House.
Under House Bill 90, a searchable budget database website would be created detailing “where, for what purpose and what results are achieved for all taxpayer investments in state government.” Rep.-Elect Briggs King’s new bill would require the Legislative and Judicial branches to create similar database websites containing information on their expenses, respectively.
