‘The Money Trail’ Posts State Payrolls

TheMoneyTrail.org announces the posting of payroll data for all Rhode Island state workers. In an effort to increase the financial transparency of public-sector payrolls, RISC Foundation’s site includes detailed information on how state workers are compensated, broken down by department.

Harriet Lloyd, Director of the Money Trail project, points out that according to the Employee Benefit Research Institute (EBRI), the average American state/local government employee collects 46 percent more in total compensation (salary plus benefits) than the average private-sector employee. “In a state with the sixth-highest state and local tax burden in the country and more than 50,000 public employees, citizens need to understand the impact of the Ocean State’s high public-sector employee costs,” she says. “Today,” with the largest mid-year deficit in nearly 20 years, $372 million, it’s hard to view these wages as sustainable.”

TheMoneyTrail.org is an independent, free-standing, public-information resource that enables citizens to track their tax dollars electronically. It posts state, municipal, and school district budgets, payrolls, collective bargaining agreements, comprehensive plans, and other documents to which taxpayers are entitled.

Monday, November 17th, 2008, by The Eye of Providence and is filed under "Big Labor, Economics, Rhode Island ". Both comments and pings are currently closed.