Sunlight: Federal spending data is "broken"

The majority of data published online on federal spending is inaccurate and unreliable, according to analysis from the Sunlight Foundation.

More than $1.3 trillion, or 70 percent, of the data on spending reported by federal agencies in 2009 is broken and inaccurate, according to a website launched Tuesday by Sunlight. The nonprofit transparency advocate accused the Obama administration of failing to comply with the law by not providing the public with accurate, timely and detailed information on government spending.

"The rise of Gov2.0 brought much excitement for new technologies within government, including a call to arms for more and better public data. But as Clearspending proves, first we need to fix how the data we already have is collected and reported," said Ellen Miller, executive director and co-founder of Sunlight.

"The proper reporting of government spending is not only critical for curbing fraud and abuse, but it allows state and municipal officials, and also the public, to see where the money is going and how it is benefiting their communities."

The law in question is the 2006 Federal Funding Accountability and Transparency Act, which was sponsored by then-Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.) and Sen. Tom Coburn (R-Okla.). The law mandated the creation of a website, USASpending.gov, that would disclose all contractors and organizations receiving more than $25,000 in federal funds.

Since USASpending's launch in December 2007, the site has drawn frequent criticism over the timeliness and accuracy of the data posted. Federal Chief Information Officer Vivek Kundra unveiled an technology-specific version of the site dubbed the "IT Dashboard" last year that has received similar criticism. Coburn in particular has prodded the administration repeatedly to improve its reporting mechanisms.

"As the Clearspending report shows, federal agencies need to focus on the quality of data they collect. If the data is unreliable, then the quality of tools and websites built upon it is irrelevant," Sunlight said in a statement. "At the moment, USASpending.gov cannot be considered a meaningful source of information about federal spending."

According to Sunlight, the Corporation for National and Community Service, the National Endowment for the Arts and the National Science Foundation are among the best reporting agencies, while those that struggle often have large budgets or distribute numerous grants, such as the Department of Health and Human Services and Veterans Affairs Department.