2Day in #OpenGov 10/13/2011

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Policy Fellow Matt Rumsey wrote this post.

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

News Roundup:

Super Committee 
  • The Super Committee has been reluctant to share information with the public. But, that hasn’t stopped some people close to the committee from speaking about it off the record. (Politico)
  • House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi has released deficit-cutting ideas that Democratic committee ranking members will be delivering to the Super Committee tomorrow. She also called on the committee to hold open hearings on previous deficit plans including the Simpson-Bowles, Rivlin-Domenici, and “Gang of Six” proposals. (National Journal)
Campaign Finance
  • American Crossroads, a major conservative Super PAC, is seeking permission to feature Federal candidates and officeholders in their ads. The PAC claims a precedent has already been set by “issue ads” featuring Senator Ben Nelson (D-Neb.) that the Democratic party has been running. (Washington Post)
  • Former Senator Norm Coleman will be leading a new Super PAC dedicated to electing Republican candidates to the House of Representatives. The Congressional Leadership Fund is designed to counter the efforts of the Democratic House Majority PAC. (Politico)
Government
  • Darrell Issa stated, at a Transparency Caucus event, that he would move whistleblower protection legislation before the end of the year. The proposal he discussed would mirror a plan by the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence and aim to provide protections for members of the intelligence community. (POGO)
  • The relaunch of USAjobs.gov that we mentioned yesterday appears to be off to a shaky start. The program’s Facebook page has been inundated with complaints. (Federal Computer Week)
State and Local
  • Open government data is making it easier to search for vacant and abandoned buildings in the Chicago area. ChicagoBuildings.org uses 311 reports to create a searchable map of properties. (Gov 2.0)
  • The Cook County, Illinois government is banking on a new open data website to transform their image as a hive of corruption and villainy. (Government Technology)

Relevant committee hearings scheduled for 10/13:

Senate

  • None.
House
  • House Administration. Federal Election Commission: Reviewing policies, processes, and procedures. 1310 LHOB. 3:00 pm. Subcommittee on Elections.

Relevant bills introduced:

  • None.
Transparency events scheduled for 10/13:
  • None.

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