Schools Start to Comply With Transparency Law

Just more than half of the public school districts in Michigan are complying with a new state law aimed at providing better transparency of how tax dollars are spent.

The Flint Journal reported that 51 percent of schools are complying with the law, while 18 percent have partially complied and 31 percent are violating the law by not posting the required information on their websites.

"It absolutely is a step in the right direction because it makes this data easily accessible to the people who are funding our schools, which is taxpayers," Mike Van Beek, director of education policy, told The Journal. "I think it creates new incentives for schools, knowing people can access their data with the click of a mouse," he said.

Information that schools must post include union contracts, six-figure salaries and spending details.

More information on school spending can be found on the Mackinac Center's website, including collective bargaining agreements, insurance costs, school district checkbook registers and other government transparency initiatives.

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