Media Contact:
Carrie Conko
Director of Communications
Mercatus Center at George Mason University
Office: 703-993-4899
Email: cconko@gmu.edu
Accountability and Government Oversight
Mercatus Center research seeks to understand the consequences – both intended and unintended – of public sector management processes, such as funding and management decisions by state and federal governments, and improve the state of knowledge to which these processes refer, thereby fostering solutions that promote a freer, more prosperous, and civil society. Research focus includes: tax and fiscal policy, government accountability, the contracting process, government reform, and congressional oversight.
Related Links:
Annual Performance Report Scorecard
Accountable Legislation Test
Outcome Based Scrutiny
Recent Publications
9th Annual Performance Report Scorecard
ScorecardMaurice McTigue, Jerry Ellig, Henry Wray
May 13, 2008
This study evaluates and ranks the 24 largest federal agencies under the Chief Financial Officers Act on the quality of disclosure they provide in their fiscal year 2007 performance and accountability reports.
Mercatus on Policy - Ending Translucent Government: Putting Government Data Online
Mercatus On PolicyJerry Brito
April 28, 2008
Mercatus Senior Research Fellow Jerry Brito examines government transparency regulation and the need for greater access to public information online.
The Trillion-Dollar War
News Articles and Op-EdsVeronique de Rugy
April 15, 2008
This article by Mercatus Center Senior Research Fellow Veronique de Rugy appeared as the May 2008 cover story in Reason. The article addresses the current spending levels and process used to fund the War on Terror.
The Never-Ending Emergency: Trends in Supplemental Spending
Mercatus Policy SeriesVeronique de Rugy
April 14, 2008
In this Mercatus Policy Series paper, Mercatus Senior Research Fellow Veronique de Rugy takes a look at the use of supplemental spending over the last 25 years. The paper addresses the budget rules that lawmakers are subject to, it looks at trends in supplemental spending, demonstrates how the White House and Congress have abused their powers to request and pass supplemental bills, and also offers four different and complementary ways to fix the supplemental spending process.
Making Hurricane Response More Effective
Mercatus Policy Series, Policy CommentsSteven Horwitz
March 19, 2008
In this policy comment Professor Horwitz compares the relative effectiveness of Wal-Mart, the US Coast Guard, and FEMA in the hours and days after Katrina made landfall and pulls out policy implications about how to better engage the public and private sectors after future disasters.
Fire in the National Forest System
Mercatus On PolicyRobert Nelson
March 4, 2008
In this paper, Robert Nelson proposes three decentralization alternatives for the U.S. Forest Service that would allow state and local governments to address directly the increasing instances of forest fires.
Billions and billions dig a deeper hole
News Articles and Op-EdsVeronique de Rugy
February 6, 2008
Veronique de Rugy writes on President Bush's fiscal year 2009 budget in this Los Angeles Times op-ed.
Put more government data online
News Articles and Op-EdsJerry Brito
January 8, 2008
In this Des Moines Register article, Jerry Brito makes a case for making public information available online in order to facilitate transparency.
Mercatus Reports: Winter 2007 - Transparency
News Articles and Op-EdsJerry Brito, Mark Adams
December 31, 2007
This report in the Winter 2007 issue of Regulation discusses transparency of government data and ways the government can display information to make it more useful to the public.
Mercatus Reports: Winter 2007 - Big Banks, Not Small Businesses, Benefit from the SBA
News Articles and Op-EdsVeronique de Rugy
December 31, 2007
This report in the Winter 2007 issue of Regulation discusses the ways in which large banks benefit from SBA loan programs.
Next 10
