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The State of Disclosure in Michigan
After
ranking 10th in 2003 and 6th in 2004, Michigan
placed right in between at 8th in 2005 and
received an overall B-, slightly lower than
last year’s B. Disclosure
Content Accessibility and Electronic Filing
remain its biggest strengths.
Michigan
again received a C for its average disclosure
law, but dropped a few places in the law
rankings as other states improved their disclosure
requirements. Candidates must
report details about contributors giving more
than $100, including occupation and employer.
Expenditure disclosure is weaker and does
not include subvendor details or accrued
expenses; reporting of loan details could
also be improved. Last-minute
contributions and independent expenditures
must be reported prior to Election Day. Both
statewide and legislative candidates reaching
a threshold of $20,000 must file reports electronically.
Michigan
maintained its 2nd place ranking in the Disclosure
Content Accessibility category, and continues
to provide excellent access to campaign finance
records through the Secretary of State’s
office and web site. Its
contribution and expenditure databases can
serve as a model for other states, and have
great functionality, a wide range of search
options, and data going back to 1997. Access
to reports filed on paper could be improved
by adding those records to the searchable database.
The
state’s grade for Online Contextual
and Technical Usability dropped from a B- to
a C, due to a poorer performance in the usability
test. Testers had more difficulty locating
the total amount raised by the governor, and
expressed less confidence in the accuracy of
the information they did collect. Strengths
in web site usability include complete candidate
lists, resources to help the public determine
whose records are on the site, and in-depth
information about campaign finance restrictions
and disclosure requirements.
→ Quick
Fix: Summary data. Offer
site visitors overview information comparing
fundraising and spending of all candidates,
either through a new database function or
in a static document.
♦ Editor’s
Pick: Data
history information and explanations
about committee types and campaign
statements, designed specifically for
the general public. View image
 Disclosure Agency: Department of State
Disclosure Web Site: http://www.michigan.gov/sos
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