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The
State of Disclosure in Virginia
Virginia
ranked 7th again in 2007, earning its second
straight B. The state earned higher grades
in both the disclosure law and Online Contextual
and Technical Usability categories in 2007,
while also remaining strong in terms of access
to disclosure records.
Legislation
enacted in 2006 to strengthen independent
expenditure reporting improved Virginia’s
law grade to an A-, and brought the state
into a top-five ranking in this category.
All independent expenditures must be reported
within 24 hours, which ensures that such expenditures
will be disclosed before Election Day. Candidates
are required to disclose detailed information
about contributors giving over $100, including
occupation and employer data. Expenditure disclosure
is excellent and candidates must report vendor
name, subvendor details, and accrued expenses.
All statewide candidates in Virginia are required
to file disclosure reports electronically.
While electronic filing is not mandatory for
legislative candidates, 90 percent voluntarily
do so, a reflection of the strong training
and support programs provided by the State
Board of Elections.
Virginia
maintained its B and a top 20 ranking in
the Disclosure Content Accessibility category
in 2007. The State Board of Elections’ web
site features a comprehensive, searchable database
of contributions and expenditures. As noted
in 2005, using the campaign finance database
remains cumbersome, as retrieving search results
requires a user to click through multiple screens.
Users are also not able to sort database search
results online or search the database by a
donor’s employer. The Board offers campaign
data on disk at no cost, and intends to reduce
the cost of paper copies in the future.
A
redesign of the disclosure site in late 2005
helped Virginia earn a B- in 2007 and a top
ten ranking in the usability category. Usability
testers found the redesigned site easier
to understand and gave it a higher overall
assessment. The site could be enhanced by providing
overviews of campaign financing trends, and
by adding a user’s guide to provide instructions
for the searchable database.
→ Quick
Fix: Improve the campaign finance
database by adding an employer search
field.
♦ Editor’s
Pick: The State Board
of Elections’ web site uses clear
language and graphics that make navigation
very easy. View image
 Disclosure Agency: State Board of Elections
Disclosure
Web Site: http://www.sbe.virginia.gov
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