For immediate release: Wednesday, November 14, 2018
Contact: Jolene Nieves Byzon, 215-300-1071
Philadelphia, PA – As part of a larger effort to increase transparency and inform the public about how the City of Philadelphia spends taxpayer money, the City Controller’s Office released data detailing its expenditures from January 1, 2018 through September 30, 2018, covering the last two quarters of fiscal year 2018 and the first quarter of fiscal year 2019. The data will be updated each quarter. The data is posted in a searchable format and is downloadable. A brief summary of the expenditures is available on controller.phila.gov.
“Now more than ever, government needs to be focused on restoring and growing the trust between it and the people it serves. Transparency is key to that process. The people deserve to know what their tax dollars are being used for,” said City Controller Rebecca Rhynhart. “By releasing our expenditure data, the Controller’s Office is showing Philadelphians how we spend their money.”
The Controller’s Office expenditures are grouped by four major classes (payroll, contracts/leases, supplies/materials, and equipment). Since funds can be moved between equipment and supplies/materials, we’ve combined these expenses. The data shows expenditures by three major classes and twenty-nine smaller classes. Approximately 99% of Controller’s Office expenditures are paid from the General Fund with the remaining expenses paid from the Grants Fund. The Controller’s Office’s single largest expense, representing about 90% of the total spending, is the payroll for permanent, full-time employees.
After releasing the data, Controller Rhynhart called on the Mayor’s administration to follow suit and release expenditure data for all City departments by early 2019.