Out of the Darkness: Requiring Greater Transparency from Publicly Supported Entities

Quasi-governmental entities funded mostly or entirely by public monies lack meaningful financial transparency. To remedy, policymakers should amend the TPIA’s definition of governmental body to clarify that these entities are subject to open government standards.

Key points:

• Quasi-governmental entities funded mostly or entirely by public monies lack transparency and are not subject to certain open government standards.
• In the absence of meaningful transparency requirements, the opportunity exists for these entities to engage in publicly funded wrongdoing without taxpayer knowledge.
• To illuminate this environment, policymakers should amend the TPIA’s definition of “governmental body” to apply to certain publicly supported entities.