ECKSTROM ANNOUNCES CREATION OF STIMULUS WEBSITE

South Carolina Comptroller General Richard Eckstrom, who has done a great job tracking the state’s federal stimulus spending, announced Thursday that residents can now use the Internet tubes to keep up with where the funds are going.

The official website of Eckstrom’s office, www.cg.sc.gov, now features a stimulus section.

Residents can view stimulus expenditures by agency, purpose and vendor.

“The debt from this spending extends far into the future of our children and grandchildren, so we owe it to those future generations to ensure the funds are spent without impropriety and with accountability and transparency,” said Eckstrom. “People deserve easy access to how this money is spent. Not only that, but when spending is done in the open, public officials are usually more accountable. They know their spending decisions will be examined by the public.”

Eckstrom has been a strong proponent of government transparency and accountability. He has led the charge to help the state and local municipalities put spending information online.

“If transparency is important under ordinary circumstances, it’s even more critical with massive infusions of cash like this, which can invite opportunities for waste, mismanagement and even fraud,” Eckstrom said.

According to the numbers listed on the comptroller general’s website, the Department of Health and Human Services has received the bulk of the stimulus haul — nearly $350 million.

Eckstrom said more than a half-billion stimulus dollars of an estimated $3 billion have come through state government so far.

Details for stimulus spending will also soon be posted on the state’s official stimulus Web site, www.Stimulus.SC.gov, during an upcoming overhaul of the site.