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Podcasts Take Two
Data on who gives gifts to politicians is now more accessible
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Apr 25, 2013
Listen • 5:00
Data on who gives gifts to politicians is now more accessible
California has some of the toughest ethics rules in the nation. Politicians can only accept $440 in gifts from a specific person or company each year, and officials need to document everything they receive. The idea is that transparency prevents the corrupting influence of money in government, but what good is that information if its buried deep in the internet's version of a file cabinet?
Abuzuike O. Ukabam allegedly stole around $110,000 by over-paying on military invoices he processed.
A pile of cash.
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Tracy O./Flickr Creative Commons
)

California has some of the toughest ethics rules in the nation. Politicians can only accept $440 in gifts from a specific person or company each year, and officials need to document everything they receive. The idea is that transparency prevents the corrupting influence of money in government, but what good is that information if its buried deep in the internet's version of a file cabinet?

California has some of the toughest ethics rules in the nation. Politicians can only accept $440 in gifts from a specific person or company each year, and officials need to document everything they receive. The idea is that transparency prevents the corrupting influence of money in government, but what good is that information if its buried deep in the internet's version of a file cabinet?

The California Report's Scott Detrow looked into a new program to make this financial data more accessible.