Massachusetts Comptroller Announces Major Expansio

SEATTLE, WA--(Marketwired - Aug 9, 2017) - Massachusetts Comptroller Thomas G. Shack III announced the first major expansion of CTHRU , the Comptroller's cloud based transparency and open records platform. After a successful launch, the Comptroller's team focused on expanding available data sets including: Quasi-Governmental Financial Summary, Quasi-Governmental Payroll, State and Teachers' Retirement Benefits, and Executive Department New Hires.

Uncharacteristic of typical governmental IT projects, CTHRU was built in just seven months, and went live in September of 2016. Comptroller Shack unveiled the innovative transparency and open records platform CTHRU which quickly became a national model for its depth, breadth, timeliness, and its intuitive experience for exploring how and where Commonwealth dollars are utilized. The initial launch, with statewide spending and payroll, was flawless and praised by both constituents and the media with the Boston Globe quoting Comptroller Shack's description of CTHRU as a "Truth Machine".

"I am enormously proud of our teams' effort and collaboration with the Baker-Polito Administration, Treasurer Deborah Goldberg, Auditor Suzanne Bump, the Massachusetts State Retirement Board, the Massachusetts Teachers' Retirement System, and the Quasi-Governmental agencies, to offer this data to the public through our intuitive and engaging CTHRU platform," said Shack.

Now ranked as one of the top ten states for online access to government spending data, according to the Public Interest Research Group's " Following the Money 2016 " report, Massachusetts is constantly exploring transparency enhancements and efficiencies for the benefit of both the public and Government.

"Compiling available data for the public and media in one spot and providing it with CTHRU is an enormous step forward in fulfilling our mission to promote accountability, integrity, and clarity in Commonwealth business, fiscal, and administrative enterprises," said Shack.

CTHRU is powered by software-as-a-services provider, Socrata, the market leader in making existing government data discoverable, usable, and actionable for government workers and the people they serve.

Explore CTHRU via the "Transparency" button on the Comptroller's Home Page http://www.mass.gov/comptroller/ .