The Premier Online Source for Federal Data

Transcription

1 TRAC Transactinal Recrds Access Clearinghuse The Premier Online Surce fr Federal Data

2 What is TRAC? The Transactinal Recrds Access Clearinghuse is a nnpartisan prject f Syracuse University prviding the American peple with cmprehensive infrmatin abut the federal gvernment s actins and emplyees. Using data btained frm many gvernment rganizatins largely thrugh the Freedm f Infrmatin Act, TRAC has built acdemcracy versight tl f unprecedented accuracy, magnitude, and ease f use. Once btained, the data and recrds are rigrusly checked fr cmpleteness and accuracy by statisticians at the university. These recrds are then prvided in an nline frum t citizens, schlars, jurnalists, lawyers, infrmatin prfessinals and the gvernment itself. Frm Human Rights Watch t the Natinal Rifle Assciatin, frm The New Yrk Times t The Evansville Curier, frm U.S. Marshals t city cuncils, and frm the Senate Finance Cmmittee t law firms big and small, TRAC clients have btained cmprehensive nnpartisan infrmatin that allws them t grasp a huge variety f imprtant gvernment issues. T prvide the American peple with cmprehensive infrmatin they fairly judge the effectiveness f the federal gvernment. It is n lnger acceptable r necessary fr citizens, watchdg grups, jurnalists, lawyers, schlars and Cngress t rely n infrmal hunches, anecdtes, leaks r gvernment handuts when data abut what the gvernment is actually ding are available.

3 Hw can I use TRAC As the mst cmprehensive surce fr a wide range f accurate federal agency data, TRAC reveals critical and intriguing issues f bureaucratic efficiency, cnsistency and effectiveness. TRAC enables users t examine brad natinal trends r minute details f federal agency activity in three main areas: Criminal, Civil and Administrative Enfrcement TRAC data detail the day-t-day enfrcement f federal law. Fr the first time, virtually the entire recrd f federal enfrcement actins since 1986 are available n the Web. Criminal Civil Admin Thrugh a simple Web interface, users can see numerus layers f enfrcement data: Peple -- Criminal enfrcement activities, such as: Prsecutins. Cnvictins. Prisn sentences. U.S. Attrney s Offices wrklads. -- Civil and Administrative enfrcement activites, including: Mney Cntext Civil suits by the gvernment. Civil suits against the gvernment. Antitrust, civil rights, frfeiture, Clean Air Act, and FOIA cases. Administrative enfrcement f the tax laws -- fr individuals, businesses and crpratins. Agency Staffing TRAC prvides unprecedented access t federal staffing data fr virtually all civilian emplyees -- wh they are, where they are, what they are paid, and what they d -- by agency, ccupatin, salary and grade level. TRAC s 25 years f data shw statistical verviews t individual recrds -- by cunty, city, state, federal judicial district r the natin as a whle. Agency Funding In a single nline lcatin, TRAC enables users t view exactly what the gvernment is spending, where the mney ges and wh benefits. Users can see details, rankings and cmparisns by agency, prgram categry, r class f expenditure fr cunties, states, federal judicial districts r the natin as a whle.

4 TRAC includes an incredible amunt f very useful detail. It is infrmatin that is generally nt available therwise. - David Cay Jhnstn Pulitzer Prize-winning reprter, New Yrk Times TRAC at Wrk The best methd fr gauging the effectiveness f large rganizatins is t systematically examine what they d and d nt d. Hw have their activities changed ver time? Are there hard-texplain gegraphic disparities? TRAC's data illustrate bureaucratic effectiveness in ways that individual cases cannt. Detailed maps, tables and graphs allw users t mnitr enfrcement trends ver time. TRAC transactinal data shws which laws are being enfrced and which are nt. TRAC bth answers and raises crucial questins abut the wrkings f the gvernment. Cnsider: What des it mean that the Justice Department has prsecuted mre than 90 percent f all immigratin matters, cmpared t abut five percent f all civil rights matters? Wh determines that Vermnt receives ver three times mre mney per capita fr Head Start prgrams than New Hampshire? Why are cnvicted white cllar criminals in the Atlanta area much mre likely t wind up behind bars than white cllar criminals in the Bstn regin? Why was there a 44 percent decline in referrals fr prsecutin by the Bureau f Alchl, Tbacc and Firearms during the Clintn Administratin? (see table/graph.)

5 Hw des the Justice Department explain the fact that it takes nearly twice as lng t prsecute criminals nw as it did fifteen years ag? (see table/graph.) Hw des the IRS explain why Kentucky, Kansas and Tennessee each have twice as many full-time IRS emplyees per capita as Michigan, Illinis, and Cnnecticut? Nw, by searching with TRAC, yu can crack the bks n all the federal law enfrcement agencies and undertake yur wn perfrmace audit. - Dave Marash, ABC News Wh Runs TRAC? TRAC s c-directrs and principal investigatrs are: Susan Lng, PhD., a prfessr and statistician at Syracuse University s Schl f Management. Lng is a Freedm f Infrmatin Act pineer wh has specialized in the study and measurement f federal enfrcement activities in such agencies as the IRS and the Justice Department. David Burnham, an authr and frmer investigative reprter with The New Yrk Times. He has specialized in cvering lcal, state, and federal enfrcement agencies since 1966, writing numerus bks and articles n the New Yrk Plice Department, the IRS, the Justice Department, the FBI, the Nuclear Regulatry Cmmissin and the privacy issue. He is an assciate research prfessr at the S.I. Newhuse Schl f Public Cmmunicatins.

6 Getting TRAC TRAC ffers agency data, free reprts and essays n a public Web site, available at This resurce is maintained as a public service. It prvides natinal verview infrmatin n agencies including the DEA, INS, ATF, Custms and FBI. The TRAC public site als features infrmative analytical reprts and essays based n the numbers. In additin t the public site, TRAC als ffers a pwerful and dynamic premium tl called TRACFED. This service is available thrugh tw ways: Organizatinal License The mst cst-efficient way t receive TRACFED is t purchase an rganizatinal site subscriptin. This ensures that every member f yur rganizatin has access t the cmplete data stres and analysis tls f the TRACFED. Included in the premium services are nging tech supprt, help and live tutrials. Pricing fr TRACFED varies based n usage and is discunted fr educatinal and nn-prfit institutins. Individual subscriptin Individual subscriptins are available t users wh need their wn passwrd-prtected TRAC accunts. A TRAC individual subscriptin allws users t use TRAC frm any cmputer with Internet access. but is nt intended fr use by mre than ne user. Individual subscriptins are available n a mnthly r annual basis. Cntact TRAC Syracuse Washingtn DC Online 488 Newhuse II Syracuse University Syracuse NY Tel Fax Cnnecticut Ave., NW Suite 200 Washingtn DC Tel Fax trac@syr.edu Transactinal Recrds Access Clearinghuse