Government transparency refers to the presence or lack of public visibility into government decision-making, revenue collection, spending, and official conduct. Generally, the greater the transparency, the stronger the public trust in government’s integrity, competence, stewardship of public funds and assets, and ability to make sound decisions. When transparency is lacking, members of the governed community tend to assume that corruption, special interest influence, and inefficiency are rampant problems within the government structure.

Government organizations are presently under more scrutiny and from more quarters than ever before. Social media, the internet and 24-hour news sources, highly-segmented audiences, declining understanding of governmental processes, and siloed opinion echo chambers all generate real and false news accounts and narratives that government officials are forced to deal with as they try to move policy-making agendas forward.

When under fire, the natural human response is to close ranks and retreat, but the more effective means of responding to government scrutiny is to be more open and transparent with information and actions. When government meetings are open, investigations are impartial, processes are clear and consistently applied, and judgments are fair, members of the public have greater trust in their government and the intensity of the scrutiny tends to subside. Government organizations that make it simple and convenient for the public to access information, systems, and people in a timely fashion and without undue barriers or obstacles can position themselves for stronger public trust, less intense scrutiny, and less time spent battling false narratives. Many software solutions are designed to help public sector organizations achieve those goals.

MaintStar’s public portals, public mobile app, CivicPoint CRM, and numerous modules for managing many types of workflows and optimizing public resources all contribute to greater transparency and stronger public trust and confidence in government.