Texas Transparency

Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts

This site was developed to enhance transparency in Texas’s state budgeting and expenditures, offering open data across multiple categories. Recognized as the #1 State Government Transparency Website by the Texas Public Interest Research Group in its annual Following the Money publication, the site provided the public with easy access to financial data in a user-friendly format.

I re-architected the Where the Money Goes feature to include a new Where’s the Money Come From? report, transforming numerous budget and expenditure reports from text-heavy formats into scannable, graphical layouts. Additionally, I collaborated with the IT team to build the Open Data portal, complete with monthly update procedures, and developed comprehensive sections with access to tools and databases from various state agencies.

Key Contributions

• Re-architected the Where the Money Goes section of the site, adding the Where’s the Money Come From? report for broader financial transparency.
• Redesigned the reports portal with a visually intuitive, graphical layout to improve usability and readability.
• Partnered with IT to create the Open Data portal, establishing procedures for ongoing monthly updates.
• Built a section providing access to a variety of database tools from the Comptroller’s office and other state agencies.
• Developed a content area spotlighting local government transparency initiatives across Texas.
• Authored additional content explaining the state budgeting process to increase public understanding.
• Assisted with HTML/CSS development to ensure a seamless, responsive user experience.

Project Team

• Tami Heaton: Project management, content strategy, copywriting, information architecture, HTML/CSS development
• Julie Lewis: HTML/CSS development
• Edd Patton: Design

Link

https://web.archive.org/web/20121005121658/http://www.texastransparency.org/

Selected Pages