Why It's So Hard to See Politicians' Financial Data - The New York Times

"Trump isn’t the only candidate who says we should  trust him. Laws across the US restrict access to information about public officials’ financial holdings and connections. The result -- a veil of secrecy that shields government officials from public scrutiny of potential conflicts of interests & self-dealing -- a litany of inadequacies & integrity of the information disclosed & the degree to which the data is accessible to the public. Almost 1/3 of states  do not allow online access to legislators’ financial disclosure statements. What is even more striking than the barriers to access, is the poor quality of information. Some forms feature only the loosest of definitions for financial interests with no way to know if a public official has a deep or shallow tie to  business interests. Some forms don’t require real estate holdings & gifts. Most bury relevant information in appendices.