Tennesseans can now see how state government spends their hard-earned tax dollars “down to the agency, person, and penny…”

A project of the Tennessee Center for Policy Research, OpenTennessee sets about accounting for dollars the state spends in payroll, pensions, and other expenditures. The site launched last week.

I applaud TCPR’s commitment to holding state government accountable. The site is easy to use and very informative. Of course, the data is compiled by filing open records requests, seemingly ad infinitum. I say this because the folks at TCPR have on more than one occasion rubbed legislators and bureaucrats the wrong way with numerous requests. In fact, Cookeville Democrat Hank Fincher, known for his striking partisanship in comments on the House floor and in committee, filed legislation last year to restrict access to state electionic communications.

Kudos to the folks at TCPR for their hard work. Go check it out.

In a study released late last year about the effects of red light cameras, the Tennessee Center for Policy Research revealed that red light cameras often do more harm than good. Justin Owen, co-author of the report, writes:

“The argument that red light cameras increase safety is preposterous. The only thing that increases is the amount of money going from the pockets of drivers into the pockets of the cities and the red light camera companies.”

Kleinheider included the report in his aggregation for 22 September 2008. What Owen argued in the report was that the installation of red light cameras actually increases the number of collisions, not decreases them – as experts said.

At the time, local media balked at TCPR’s claim. Local police scoffed at TCPR’s research, but alas! the Murfreesboro Police Department released its report today:

The crash data reported from the monitored intersections during the first 12 months of the program indicates that side impact crashes have decreased from 71 in 2007/2008 to 63 in 2008/2009, a decrease of 11.27 percent. For the same intersections during this time period, rear-end crashes increased from 102 in 2007/2008 to 126 in 2008/2009, an increase of 24 crashes or 23.53 percent.

That, ladies an gentlemen, is a net increase of 16 crashes. Also in the report:

The remaining 25 reports listed “other” (17 reports), “inattentive” (4 reports), “careless driving” (1 report), “driving under the influence” (1 report), failure to obey traffic control device (1 report) and failure to maintain lane (1 report) as the contributing driver actions.

TCPR argued that the issue at hand was not – in fact – traffic safety, rather it was about revenue increases. What does MPD say?

During the period of July 5, 2008 through June 30, 2009, a total of 19,995 citations were issued, which resulted in a total of $1,296,607.50 in fines and penalties. Through June 30, fines and penalties of $790,272.97 have been collected.

Payments received from red light violations are used in part to offset the cost of the installation and maintenance of the cameras.

“The primary goal of this program continues to be safety,” Chief of Police Glenn Chrisman stated.

Is Chief Chrisman lying?

Kleinheider announced that Drew Johnson and the Tennessee Center for Policy Research – in conjunction with Citizens Against Government Waste – have released their fourth annual “Pork Report”, which details over $500 million in government waste, fraud, and abuse. From their release statement:

NASHVILLE – The 2009 Tennessee Pork Report, released today, exposes over $500 million in waste, fraud and abuse of tax dollars. Authored by the Tennessee Center for Policy Research, Tennessee’s free market think tank, in partnership with Citizens Against Government Waste, the nation’s premier taxpayer watchdog, the 2009 Tennessee Pork Report is the only extensive examination of the waste of taxpayers’ money committed by politicians and bureaucrats at all levels of government in Tennessee.

In total, the Pork Report uncovers nearly 100 examples of wasteful and questionable spending by state and local governments, including $7.4 million to finance government-approved art, including a grant to an author of sex novels and support for a film festival showing “porn-influenced sexual encounters,” and $482,572 to fund the “Barge to Nowhere,” a ferry that carries fewer than 17 passengers per day.
Other examples of questionable expenditures include:
•    $9 million for the “Party Bunker,” an underground entertainment facility buried in the front yard of the Governor’s Mansion;
•    $6.5 million to “eradicate” boll weevils, even though Tennessee’s cotton fields are already more than 99 percent free of the pest.
•    $2.3 million to bailout 11 insolvent state-owned golf courses;
•    $1 million to study mice genes; and
•    $39,816 to pay for phone lines in state offices that went unused.
“The government waste uncovered in the Pork Report shows a blatant disregard for taxpayers and their hard-earned money,” said Tennessee Center for Policy Research President Drew Johnson. “By rooting out the waste, fraud and abuse of tax dollars uncovered in the Pork Report, Tennessee’s policymakers have an opportunity to show their commitment to responsible spending and address the state’s budget shortfall.”

The full report can be read here.