Up until now, what happened in Victoria stayed in Victoria - at least in terms of many expenses clocked up by MLAs.
Theoretically, there was a system in place for vetting of expenses. But as former provincial auditor general John Doyle pointed out, the system was such a mess it was of little use in figuring out who spent what.
Not surprisingly, correcting that has never been at the top of the priority list for elected officials.
But that will soon be changing - with a new system involving posting of MLA receipts online starting in September.
That will make it easier to tell exactly what taxpayers are footing the bill for. It should also help to end the practice of hiding questionable expenses in larger quarterly totals.
Not all MLAs have welcomed the changes with open arms, hinting that their integrity is being questioned.
We've seldom had cause to question the expenses of our own MLAs. But the same can't be said for everyone.
Speaker Linda Reid became a particular flashpoint after it was revealed she had taken her husband on a taxpayer-funded trip to South Africa on the public dime, along with spending on a host of other out-of-province jaunts.
In posting receipts online, it doesn't mean every glass of orange juice or family visit will be questioned.
But it could get politicians to think ahead of time about how their spending could be perceived.
We all know no politician should utter words they wouldn't want to see on the front page of the paper.
That goes double for spending on the taxpayers' dime.
