Ohio's treasurer is calling on thousands of local governments to follow the state's lead and post spending information online.
Ohio Treasurer Josh Mandel, joined by Auditor Dave Yost, announced the effort at a news conference Tuesday.
Mandel sent a letter to more than 18,000 government and school officials throughout the state asking them to place their checkbooks online. The request includes an invitation to partner with Mandel's office at no cost to local governments.
The announcement comes in the wake of recognition received by Mandel's newly launched OhioCheckbook.com. That website offers a Google-style search of thousands of state expenditure records.
With the online checkbooks, Mandel said he hopes to create an "army of citizen watchdogs."
Representatives from several statewide associations and local school districts expressed support for the idea.