A searchable online database of 2012 salary data for every public school employee in Ohio is now available online, thanks to a right-leaning Columbus-based think tank that published the information.

Opportunity Ohio also has on its website pay data for employees of Ohio’s 600 public school districts dating back to 2004, and roughly 65,000 state government employees’ pay data from 2003 through 2011.

Opportunity Ohio President Matt Mayer said the pay data isn’t meant to entertain gawkers. It helps voters make more informed choices and promotes government transparency, he said.

“It allows Ohioans to see what public servants are making. And not just from a prurient ‘I want to know how much money they make’ (point of view.) It’s a ‘Look, when my family has lost ground and not had a pay raise, I want to see what my school district’s doing. I want to see what my state government’s doing,’” Mayer said.

Employee pay comprises a large majority of government costs, and thus should be singled out over other expenses, Mayer said. Also, it’s relatively easily obtainable through the Ohio Department of Education, which compiles the information, he said.

Mayer said he plans to publish 2012 pay information for state employees once it is available.

The Buckeye Institute, another conservative think tank, has previously published the same data from 2011 and earlier, which Ohio Treasurer Josh Mandel then republished on his office’s website.