Changes
to Rhode Island’s electronic
filing mandate and a number two rank in
Disclosure Content Accessibility bumped
the state from a C to a B- overall, and
turned its disclosure program into one
of the ten best in the nation.
Rhode
Island law requires candidates to file
quarterly statements in non-election
years, and three or more statements before
each election. Candidates must disclose
details for contributors who give $100
or more, including their employers. Last-minute
contributions are disclosed prior to the
election only by statewide candidates receiving
matching funds; other candidates report
such contributions after the election. Expenditures
over $100 must be disclosed, but subvendor
information is not reported. Independent
expenditures are reported, and last-minute
independent expenditures are disclosed
before the election. Electronic filing
is now required for all statewide and legislative
candidates, resulting in a jump from a
C to an A+ in the Electronic Filing Program
category.
Rhode
Island not only excels at providing the
public with access to campaign finance
records, but has improved in 2004 and
now shares the number two spot in Disclosure
Content Accessibility with Michigan. The
Board of Elections web site features comprehensive
databases of contributions and expenditures
that are well designed and offer a variety
of searching and sorting options. Data
can be downloaded in an Excel-compatible
format, and complete filings can be browsed
through a user-friendly interface. Rhode
Island also provides excellent access to
paper copies of disclosure records.
Online
Contextual and Technical Usability is
the one area in which Rhode Island’s
performance falls below average, and its
D+ grade – although it is up from
last year’s F – shows there
is still room for improvement. There
is still no overview information comparing
amounts raised and spent by all candidates,
a resource that is weighted heavily in
the Grading State Disclosure criteria. Another
important deficiency is an inadequate data
history section to help people understand
which reports can be found online. It
became easier to locate the Board of Elections
web site through a search of the main state
site, which likely improved Rhode Island’s
usability testing score. Also contributing
to the higher grade was the availability
of an easily accessible and comprehensive
list of state level candidates.
