Policy Fellow Matt Rumsey wrote this post. Here is the week’s last look at transparency-related news items, congressional committee hearings, transparency-related bills introduced in Congress, and transparency-related events. News Roundup: Government Rep. Spencer Bachus (R-AL) is under investigation by the Office of Congressional Ethics for possible insider trading violations. (Washington Post) The House Administration CommitteeRead… Read more »
Previously in Sunlight Labs: Influence Explorer redesigned, James moved to Boston, and Capitol Words was released. So then why is Luigi cleaning out his desk? Where did Transparency Data go? Why is Ethan calling in to the morning check-in meeting? Find out on this episode of Labs Update! Goodbyes… Let’s start off with some terribleRead… Read more »
Earlier this week, appropriators held a hearing on funding for the legislative agencies that make government information available to the public. Three organizations, the Sunlight Foundation, the Participatory Politics Foundation, and PopVox, filed comments on the importance of making legislative information directly available to the public as a downloadable database, instead of item-by-item, which isRead… Read more »
On Thursday, the Senate Judiciary Committee voted to favorably report a bill that would require the Supreme Court to allow television coverage of its arguments (S. 1945). Currently, only a limited number of citizens are able to see the court’s sessions in person. Audio files of proceedings are released after the fact, but are notRead… Read more »
House Democrats unveiled The DISCLOSE 2012 Act (HR 4010, not up on THOMAS yet) today, a crucial step toward transparency to address the corrupting influence unlimited, secret corporate and union money is having on our elections and our elected officials. Shortly before the second anniversary of the Supreme Court’s disastrous Citizens United decision, the SunlightRead… Read more »
“Transparency promotes accountability and provides information for citizens about what their government is doing. Information maintained by the Federal Government is a national asset.” – President Barack Obama An interesting discussion to have is what is driving government to be more open and transparent. Is being more open occurring out of necessity by government dueRead… Read more »
What have government agencies done to innovate procurement systems? What creative measures have been taken for successful procurement reforms? If you have a great story to answer these questions, bring it to the Procurement Innovation Challenge. The Challenge has just launched and invites members of the GovLoop community to share experiences in innovative approaches, processes,Read… Read more »
By Alex Moll, Communications Officer, eRulemaking Program Management Office Executive Summary – This past month marked the one year anniversary of a significant Open Government milestone. One year ago, President Obama signed Executive Order 13563, “Improving Regulation and Regulatory Review.” Since then its implementation appears on the pages of agency retrospective reviews, new guidance setRead… Read more »
Forty years ago, Congress passed a law to make government agencies more accountable and transparent in how they sought advice from industry and the public. It was called the Federal Advisory Committee Act. But over the years, the way the law was implemented led to less citizen involvement and reluctance by agencies from seeking advice.Read… Read more »
New York is looking at a new measure that aims to increase transparency in the state government. The bill will require the Assembly to make meeting materials available to the public online either before or at the start of meetings. The bill is sponsored by Assemblywoman Amy Paulin who has a background in citizen activismRead… Read more »