CHICAGO- On the heels of their statewide transparency project, promoting an online database that brings greater transparency to county governments and their grassroots support for transparency in state government (HB 4765), the Illinois Chapter of Americans for Prosperity unveiled a new weblog designed to fight government waste, fraud and abuse. “The Pork Report”, which can be found at http://www.porkreport.org/, is a weblog edited by members of the AFP team in Illinois which will feature regular guest posts from grassroots activists across the state.

In March, 2007, AFP-Illinois launched the Mystery Pork Tour, and has since traveled the state highlighting the most egregious examples of lawmaker pork. The grassroots organization has highlighted projects from Rock Island to Litchfield, and has demonstrated that the list of past pork projects is seemingly endless.

The Pork Report will also host the numerous FOIA’s that Americans for Prosperity has secured during their investigations of waste, fraud and abuse in state governments.

“Americans for Prosperity has been a leading voice for reform of government spending,” said Joe Calomino, AFP-Illinois state director, “We have exposed pork projects that include a 3-D ear, a heated mansion driveway, and a sewing factory that didn’t exist. But we know that those projects formed only the tip of the iceberg.”

With an opaque budget process and virtually no government transparency, Americans for Prosperity is urging everyday Illinoisans to report pork projects that are popping up in their communities.

“No one organization is going to be able to get to the bottom of the Illinois pork-barrel,” Calomino said, “with tools like The Pork Report, citizens can begin a dialogue for reform and spread the word about how state taxpayer funds are being spent on wasteful projects in their community.”

To learn more about the efforts of the Illinois chapter of Americans for Prosperity, go to http://www.afpil.org/ or to http://www.porkreport.org/, home of The Pork Report.

Americans for Prosperity (AFP) is a nationwide organization of citizen leaders committed to advancing every individual’s economic freedom and opportunity. AFP believes reducing the size and scope of government is the best safeguard to ensuring individual productivity and prosperity for all Americans. AFP educates and engages citizens in support of restraining state and federal government growth, and returning government to its constitutional limits. For more information, visit http://www.americansforprosperity.org/.

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