Today in #OpenGov 2/19/2014

by

Keep reading for today’s look at #OpenGov news, events and analysis including Open Data Day, a member of Congress investigating himself, and a chance for campaign finance reform in NY.series-opengov-today

National News

  • In a unique twist, a member of Congress is asking the House Ethics Committee to initiate an investigation against him. Tom Petri (R-WI) asked for the investigation following recent reports that question his congressional actions in relation to his stock holdings. (POLITICO)
  • Netflix is taking a page from its political thriller House of Cards and building up its Washington presence. The company nearly doubled its federal lobbying spending between 2012 and 2013. (Public Integrity)

International News

  • Open Data Day is taking place this weekend at 135 locations around the world, including 33 in Japan alone! (Open Data Day)
  • The Open Data Institute is continuing its rapid international expansion with five new nodes. The new chapters will open in Osaka, Seoul, Sheffield, Philadelphia, and Hawaii. (Future Gov)
  • The Open Knowledge Foundation is officially expanding outside of Europe for the first time. Brazil’s chapter has signed a Memorandum of Understanding to become an official chapter of the Foundation. (Open Knowledge Blog)
  • The People’s Assembly is a new parliamentary monitoring service focusing on South Africa. (mySociety)

State and Local News

  • Governor Andrew Cuomo (D-NY) included election reforms in his budget proposal, giving advocates for public campaign financing hope for the future. (Washington Times/AP)

Do you want to track transparency news? You can follow the progress of relevant bills on our Scout page. You can also get Today in #OpenGov sent directly to your preferred news reader!