Implications of the DATA Act: massive reporting and oversight are obstacles to effective compliance with the Digital Accountability and Transparency Act.

• Author: Berger, Barrie Tabin
• Position: Federal Focus

The House of Representatives approved the Digital Accountability and Transparency Act (H.R. 2146) in late April 2012. The legislation, introduced by Representative Darrell Issa (R-California), would "establish an independent body to track federal spending, including grants, contracts, loans and agencies' internal expenses, on a single electronic platform, using consistent reporting standards and data identifiers, and making all the information available to the public," according to Rep. Issa. State and local governments that receive grants and loans from the federal government would be required to report their use of these funds to the independent database, similar to the recipient reporting required under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA). The legislation also creates a new, five-member independent oversight commission to be appointed by the president with the advice and consent of the Senate. The commission would essentially carry on the work of the current Recovery Accountability and Transparency Board, which was created by the ARRA to promote accountability by coordinating and conducting oversight of federal funds to prevent fraud and waste, and to foster transparency on federal spending. The commission would also be charged with developing data standards for recipient and federal agency reporting.

The GFOA and several other associations representing the interests of states and localities sent a letter to House leaders expressing opposition to the bill, citing the massive reporting and oversight the act requires as obstacles to effective compliance, particularly without additional funding, which the act does not provide. The letter also expressed concern with the act's failure to include a phased-in implementation period for compliance. "We agree with the long-term purpose of the act to consolidate and streamline the reporting of federal funds. However, in addition to the overall goals of modernization, efficiency, and accountability, the shift toward data reporting standardization should keep in mind the costs and burdens for fiscally strained state and local governments and other federal grant recipients," wrote the GFOA and the other organizations. A copy of the entire letter can be found on the Federal Government Relations page of the GFOA website at http://www.gfoa. org/downloads/GFOA2012DATAAct.pdf.

The National Governor's Association and the National Conference of State Legislatures also expressed strong...