Sunlight Foundation Press Release Archive
Press Releases for February 2009
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Sunlight Foundation Launches ReadTheBill.org Campaign to Urge Congress to Post Bills Online 72 Hours Before Debate
Washington, DC – Today, the Sunlight Foundation announced ReadTheBill.org, a grassroots campaign to create a more transparent government by calling for all non-emergency legislation to be publicly available online for at least 72 hours before Congress begins debate. Joining Sunlight in supporting its ReadTheBill.org effort is a bipartisan group of individuals and groups, including Newt Gingrich, Joe Trippi, the Electronic Frontier Foundation, Public Citizen and the Federation of American Scientists. Just yesterday, the House of Representatives approved a $410 billion omnibus spending bill, two days after the bill was posted online. That's not the first time important legislation has rushed through Congress—in near record time, Congress recently passed a 1,100-page, $787 billion stimulus bill only 13 hours after it was posted online. “ReadTheBill.org is nothing short of an effort to give Congress the chance to be a truly deliberative and representative democratic institution,” said Ellen Miller, executive director and co-founder of the Sunlight Foundation. “In the Internet age, there’s no reason important legislation should be deliberated under a shroud of secrecy. Instituting a 72-hour rule for posting bills online will give lawmakers the time to debate bills with full knowledge and consideration of its implications, while giving citizens time to read legislation and voice their concerns to their congressional delegation. Our elected legislators can’t adequately represent their constituents’ views if their constituents don’t have the chance to weigh in on a bill because they have never seen it.” Existing rules in the House and Senate are supposed to require a waiting period between the time a bill is reported and consideration, but neither chamber’s current rules provide that the public, too, should have the chance to review legislation. Moreover, the directive requiring the availability of bills has been routinely ignored no matter which party is in the majority.
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Sunlight Foundation Calls for Online Public Scrutiny of Stimulus Legislation
WASHINGTON, DC – Today, the Sunlight Foundation issued a statement urging Congress to post the Stimulus legislation online for at least 72 hours bill before consideration. Additionally, Sunlight urged President Obama to post the final version of the bill passed by both the House and Senate for at least five days on WhiteHouse.gov.
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Indecent Disclosure: Rangel Filings Don't Account for Assets Worth Between $239,026 and $831,000
WASHINGTON, DC – Rep. Charles Rangel, chairman of the powerful House Ways and Means Committee, failed to report purchases, sales or his ownership of assets at least 28 times since 1978 on his personal financial disclosure forms, according to a new analysis by the Sunlight Foundation’s Real Time Investigations. Assets worth between $239,026 and $831,000 appeared and disappeared with no disclosure of when they were acquired, how long they were held, or when they were sold, as House Rules require.
