Title: Recovery.gov

Source/Sponsoring Agency: Recovery.gov

URL: http://www.recovery.gov/

Date Checked: 2/19/2009      Status: Active

Date Annotated: 2/19/2009

Topics: Economics; Government Contracts; Politics; Politics;

Other keywords: Government transparency; Accountability; Obama Administration; American Recovery and Reinvestment Act

Contents: An important website that deserves every taxpayer’s attention over the next several months is Recovery.org. Established by the Obama administration to provide education, transparency, and accountability regarding American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, the site provides explanations of the legislation, shows how, when and where the funds are to be spent, and provides a forum in which taxpayers may evaluate the Act’s progress and provide feedback. In his YouTube video address featured on the homepage, President Obama describes the site as an “online portal” for “publishing information about how the funding secured by the legislation will be spent in a timely, targeted and transparent manner.” Still in its development stages, the site currently serves to provide projections for the expenditure of the funds and their targeted impact through the use of compendiums, charts, maps, and graphics. As the legislation progresses into full motion, the site will regularly be updated to reflect how funds are actually being allocated and distributed. For the immediate future, the site is run by a team of individuals chosen by President Obama from various Federal agencies. The team will track spending and make reports to the site until the Recovery Accountability and Transparency Board (created by the Reinvestment Act) becomes operational, at which point the Board will take over those responsibilities. In the meantime, there is a fairly extensive list of answers to what are anticipated to be frequently asked questions, such as how the legislation will work, how to make the best use of the site, and how to track the effect of the legislation on one’s own community. A link to a PDF copy of the full text of the final legislation is available, and there is an announcements tab which will feature, among other things, a weekly address from the White House. A search engine of moderate quality is available; there are some indications that this will improve as the site is developed. Visitors to the site may sign up to receive email updates and, in classic Obama Administration fashion, are invited to share their recovery stories.

Author of Annotation: A. Emerson