HARRISBURG -- State Treasurer Robin Wiessmann unveiled a new Web site today that features a database of state government contracts that the public can access.

Ms. Wiessmann said the state's new right-to-know law, enacted this year, required her office to create the database, known as the Pennsylvania Contracts e-Library. Most of the law's provisions don't start until January, but this provision takes effect now, in order to increase public access to government records.

"The more transparent we are, the more accountable we become," Ms. Wiessmann said. "The public needs and deserves to know how operations are being conducted."

She said that "virtually all" state government departments are required to post their contracts with private companies on the database. Information may be blacked out if it contains personal details, like Social Security numbers, or "things that aren't germane," she said.

The site is accessible by clicking on the "PA Contracts e-Library" link at the state treasurer's Web site.

First Published: July 22, 2008, 6:45 p.m.