|
The State of Disclosure in Oregon
Oregon
ranked in the top five, earned a B+ again
in 2008, and was the third most improved
state overall since earning a D- in Grading
State Disclosure 2003. Oregon improved
from a B+ to an A+ in the accessibility category,
but dropped from a C to a D in the usability
category since the 2007 assessment.
Oregon
earned an A and ranked second in the Campaign
Disclosure Law category in 2008. Oregon was
one of the most improved states in the law
category since 2003 as the result of major
reforms enacted in 2005. Candidates must disclose
the name, occupation, and employer of their
donors who give $100 or more, and last-minute
contributions are reported prior to Election
Day. Expenditure disclosure is also strong,
as all expenses over $100 must be reported,
including subvendor details and accrued expenditures.
Independent expenditure disclosure is strong,
as are the state’s campaign auditing
provisions. Oregon earned an A+ and top ranking
in the electronic filing category again in
2008 as all statewide and legislative candidates
must file their disclosure reports electronically.
Oregon
jumped eleven places in the accessibility
rankings since 2007 and earned an A+ in this
area in 2008 by expanding the options in the
searchable database of campaign finances on
the Secretary of State’s web site. The
public has immediate, online access to all
electronic disclosure reports, which are filed
continuously throughout the year rather than
on scheduled reporting dates. The searchable
databases were enhanced in 2008 with the addition
of fields for searching contributions by a
donor’s zip code or employer. Now Oregon’s
databases are among the most comprehensive
in the nation, and users can sort
data online or download search results for
offline analysis. Oregon charges $.25 per page
for paper copies of disclosure reports and
makes campaign data available to the public
on a disk for $5.
Oregon
slipped from a C in 2007 to a D in the Online
Contextual and Technical Usability category
as the result of a weaker performance on
the 2008 usability test. Testers reported
higher levels of confusion with the site and
rated their overall experience less favorably
than testers did in 2007. The site also lacks
some important contextual information, including
an explanation of the universe of data available
online and comparisons of the totals raised
and spent by candidates in the state’s
most recent elections. After the close of the
2008 assessment period, a thorough “Help” section
was added to the site and includes a section
on “Following the Money”.
→ Quick
Fix: Add
information describing the scope
of data available on the Secretary
of State’s
web site.
♦ Editor’s
Pick: The searchable
database of campaign contributions
and expenditures features numerous
search fields, and allows users
to sort results online or download
data for offline analysis. View
image View
image
 Disclosure Agency: Secretary of State
Disclosure
Web Site: http://www.sos.state.or.us
|
