Government lets public follow the money

WASHINGTON, Dec. 2 (UPI) -- The Obama administration is increasing the opportunity for the public to follow the money on government contracts, a federal budget agency said.

The Office of Management and Budget is now publishing the names of contractors and subcontractors for all recipients of federal funds on projects larger than $25,000, The Washington Post reported Thursday.

That means if a New York company is awarded a grant, but then hires a California company to do the work, the public can now track which locality actually benefited from the contract.

The information may shatter some illusions that occurred in the past when only the recipient of the grant was made public. That resulted in the often false impression that the money was ending up in local payrolls, when subcontractors from far away may have been doing the actual work, the Post said.

"You really have to follow the chain to the end, or you just don't know where the dollars are going. Before this, sometimes a city is listed as the primary recipient of a grant or contract. We wouldn't know prior to this that the brother-in-law of the mayor is receiving those subcontracts," said Craig Jennings, director of OMB Watch, a group that advocates for transparency in government spending.

Jennings said the public might have to brace itself for good news along with the bad.

"All we hear about is stupid, wasteful government spending. But this will likely show us how the money is actually coming to your city, even your neighborhood," he said.