As you know, the federal government maintains many websites where citizens and researchers alike can obtain public information all in the name of government transparency. You’ve already become experts at navigating OMB’s website for budget data and GPO’s website for hearing transcripts and presidential statements. Now, you are going to embark on a new journey tracking federal expenditures across the country.

OMB is required by the Federal Funding Accountability and Transparency Act (FFATA or Transparency Act - P.L.109-282, as amended by section 6202(a) of P.L. 110-252) to maintain a website tracking all federal spending. Direct your web browser to www.usaspending.gov and double click on the state of Texas on the map. This will take you to a “State Summary” page for Texas for fiscal year 2016. Under the “State Summary: Texas” banner, toggle to “Fiscal Year 2015.”

1. Become familiar with the tool by practicing the application of the filters. At the default view, you should seem approximately, the following figures (under the picture of the state):

Not including “Other Financial Assistance,” which category of funding provides the most funds to Texas in fiscal year 2015?

2. Using the same approach as question 1, select three additional states and report on contracts, grants, loans, and other financial assistance for each of them.

3. How do the figures in your three selected states vary? Are the similar? Not similar? What explains these similarities and differences?