2Day in #OpenGov 8/29/2011

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Here is Monday’s look at the week’s transparency-related news items, congressional committee hearings, transparency-related bills introduced in Congress, and transparency-related events.

News Roundup:

Super Committee

  • When it comes to lobbying the Congressional Super Committee, lobbyists worry that it won’t be “business as usual” in Washington. (Politico)

Government

  • Performance.gov is having trouble complying with the 2010 Government Performance and Results Modernization Act due to the limited E-Government funding included in the 2011 budget. (National Journal)
  • The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. (FDIC) is not doing enough to protect the “confidentiality, integrity and availability” of bank financial systems and information, according to a Government Accountability Office (GAO) audit. (Gov Tech)
  • OpenCongress’ Danny Shaw points out that over 1,500 letters have been sent using OpenCongress’ new platform that allows users to send letters to their elected officials, but only mentions one that received a response, causing techPresident to question whether there is any actual feedback loop between Capitol Hill and constituents. (techPresident)
  • The Department of Justice refused to declassify a 2001 legal opinion from the Office of Legal Counsel regarding the legality of the Bush Administration’s warrantless surveillance program. (Secrecy News)
  • The Merit Systems Protection Board’s 2009 decision to uphold the firing of an air marshal has the potential to silence whistleblowers and should be overturned, according to the Office of Special Counsel. (Federal Times)
  • Department of Homeland Security Chief Procurement Officer Nick Nayak wants the agency to have more transparent conversations with contractors before and after the agency issues contract requests. (Washington Post)
  • President Obama plans to nominate Alan Krueger to replace Austan Goolsbee as chairman of the White House Council of Economic Advisers. (National Journal)

Campaign Finance

  • Presidential candidate Governor Rick Perry’s travel records – and the cost to Texan taxpayers of his travel – can be kept private for 18 months due to a provision in a school finance bill passed earlier this summer. (Washington Post)
  • Political donations from New Jersey union workers are frequently sent out of state, thereby bypassing local campaign finance regulations. (NorthJersey.com)
  • While Texan law prohibits elected officials from accepting campaign contributions while the Legislature is in session, Governor Rick Perry raised $22 million this year for the Republican Governors Association, a nonprofit political group that has been Perry’s top donor during his tenure as governor. (Chron.com)
  • Opinion: There is a statistical correlation of 99.669 percent between debt to GDP and congressional campaign spending increases, suggesting that the increasing amount of money in elections has played a role in causing the debt increases over the last three decades. (Politico)

Technology

  • Real-time communication tools could soon replace the use of e-mail in the workplace, according to a survey of 1,400 CIOs across the US. (Gov Tech)
  • Open source and free software were essential components of Steve Jobs’ success. (O’Reilly Radar)

State and Local

  • Even with California’s mandatory “cooling off” period, which prevents legislators from lobbying the Legislature within a year of leaving office, former lawmakers have a relationship with sitting legislators that most other lobbyists never develop. (The Sacramento Bee)
  • New York City’s official city website crashed on the morning of Aug. 26th; the New York Times suggested the crash could have been a result of the large number of people looking for information regarding the hurricane. (Gov Tech)

Relevant committee hearings scheduled for 8/29-9/2:

  • None

Relevant bills introduced:

  • None

Transparency events scheduled for 8/29-9/2:

Thursday

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