In 2011, the General Assembly enacted Act 18, which provides "for the establishment of a searchable budget database-driven Internet website." The resulting statute, known as the Pennsylvania Web Accountability and Transparency (PennWATCH) Act, gives Pennsylvania what many other states already have available – a single, searchable, public website for citizens of the Commonwealth to reference information about state government. Through this site, the average citizen can access annual appropriation (funding) and expenditure information (what agencies expended funds on), state revenue, employee information, and performance measures.
Every agency that receives state funds, such as the Liquor Control Board, the Department of Education and the Department of Public Welfare, is incorporated into the PennWATCH site. Each agency is responsible for providing their own data and updating it on a monthly basis.
The General Assembly and the Governor's Administration are promoting transparency in state government with the passage of the PennWATCH legislation. PHEAA is doing our part to comply with this act and provide information to the citizens of the Commonwealth.
The appropriation expenditures for the fiscal year will exceed the actual appropriation due to supplemental funding provided by PHEAA and funding expended in this fiscal year which was carried over from prior years.