2Day in #OpenGov 12/16/2011

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Policy Fellow Matt Rumsey wrote this post.

It’s Friday and this is week’s final look at transparency-related news items, congressional committee hearings, transparency-related bills introduced in Congress, and transparency-related events.

News Roundup:

Campaign Finance
  • The FEC declined to write new rules that would require more information about donors backing political advertisements. The panel deadlocked 3-3 on the vote. (Politico)
  • A federal judge struck down Alabama’s ban on PAC-to-PAC money transfers. The Alabama Democratic Conference brought the suit, alleging that the law prohibited their PAC from accepting money from other PACs to use on voter communication and turnout efforts. (Lobby Comply)
Access to Information
  • Massachusetts launched a new transparency website aimed to help users interpret state spending data. The site uses graphics and visualizations to break down the data. (Government Technology)
  • The Army’s case against Bradley Manning, accused of leaking thousands of classified documents to WikiLeaks, has been highly opaque. It will gain a bit of transparency at a public legal hearing scheduled for today. (Politico)
Government
  • The Chairman of the Office of Congressional Ethics, Porter Goss, recused himself from the post because his son is running for Congress in Florida. He will remain on the board, but will not be involved in any investigative activities. (National Journal)
  • The joint House and Senate 2012 appropriations bill released yesterday restores some funding to the E-Gov fund and ensures that it’s budget will be independent from that of the Citizen Services Fund. (Nextgov)
  • The Justice Department has recovered nearly $7 in fraud for every dollar it has spent on health care enforcement over the past three years. It also recovered more than $5.6 billion in criminal and civil fraud in the past year. (POGO)
International
  • The British Lord Chief Justice issued guidance that will allow journalists in England and Wales to tweet from court. Previously, reporters had to make an application to the individual judge overseeing a case. (BBC)

Relevant committee hearings scheduled for 12/16:

  • None.

Relevant bills introduced:

  • None.
Transparency events scheduled for 12/16:
  • None.

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