Transparency Rankings

Growing expenditures made by toll and transit authorities require a greater level of transparency.

With this in mind, Texas Budget Source has developed its own transparency rankings to recognize toll and transit authorities that lead, put an effort into, or can improve upon transparency initiatives, according to three categories: exemplary, pass, andfail. These rankings are based on an analysis of what information the authority has posted online—e.g. budgets, check registers, and financial statements—as well as the quantity of information available; how prominently it is displayed; how searchable the information is; and whether the data is in an easily downloadable format that users can manipulate.

More authorities will be added to these rankings as their information is reviewed. If your toll or transit authority is currently ranked by Texas Budget Source, but has upgraded its transparency, please send a note to Texas Budget Source [hyperlink admin email address].

The categories are defined below:

Exemplary: An “exemplary” ranking indicates that a toll or transit authority has exceeded basic expectations of open government.
Pass: A “pass” designation indicates a toll or transit authority that has taken steps to become transparent, but with room for improvement.
Fail: A rank of “fail” denotes a toll or transit authority that is not meeting its obligation to make public information available, accessible, or searchable.