The web has done a remarkable job at democratizing knowledge and creating the tools necessary for sharing and seeking out... View Article
Continue readingLobbyist Proposal Leaves Loopholes for Stealth Lobbyists
The Washington Post reported yesterday on new lobbyist regulations being proposed by the American League of Lobbyists. According to the... View Article
Continue readingStock Act Passes, Bill on Political Intelligence Firms to be Introduced
As expected, the Senate passed a watered-down version of the STOCK Act today. We are glad to see new rules... View Article
Continue readingFEC: Perry can use some presidential funds to create super PAC
The Federal Election Commission green-lighted Texas Gov. Rick Perry’s request to turn the funds he collected for his presidential campaign to other political uses -- just not all the funds.
After Perry dropped out of the race for the GOP nomination in January, his presidential campaign asked the FEC whether it could use its leftover funds to create a traditional political action committee or a super PAC -- either of which would enable the Texas governor to support other politicians, a traditional way of building goodwill for candidates with national aspirations.
All the commissioners present at the open meeting agreed that ...
Continue reading2Day in #OpenGov 3/22/2012
Policy Fellow Matt Rumsey wrote this post. Here is Thursday’s look at transparency-related news items, congressional committee hearings, transparency-related bills... View Article
Continue readingTransparency Works Next Week in Vilnius
Next week Andrew Pendleton and I will be joining our colleagues at Transparency International Lithuania for the Transparency Works event... View Article
Continue readingOn IPO bill, Democratic senators nibble on the hand that feeds them
A bill backed by President Obama and largely drafted by some of his Silicon Valley donors is causing an embarrassing rift in his party's ranks and creating an awkward situation as Democratic leaders in the Senate try to make last-minute changes today before sending it to the White House.
Proponents of the bill say it will drive capital to startups by reducing the barriers to going public. Opponents say it invites potential fraud and reduces transparency for most business seeking an IPO—not just small ones.
On Wednesday, one day after the Democrats failed to pass their own version ...
Continue readingNaming names: How super PAC ads might look if DISCLOSE were enacted
If this hasn't happened yet to you, it probably will in this year of record-breaking spending by outside interest groups: You are watching TV or perusing the Internet when you are confronted by one of those ads telling you that your prospective public servant is a disgusting human being and completely incompetent. Worst of all, the ads are brought to you by a committee or organization whose vague name gives no clue as to its true identity. Then you ask, "Who is doing this to me? "
Sunlight is trying to give those obnoxious ads a transparency makeover! The DISCLOSE ...
Continue readingGovernment: Do You Really Need An API?
As the term "API" has become more widely recognized through its ubiquity in social media and other web services, its coolness factor has grown considerably, and has become something frequently called for from government.
But does government really need to rush around and make APIs for all of their stuff? Peter Krantz argues that offering direct downloads to bulk data is a much more scalable, simple, and sane solution in most cases.
You should go read his article, rather than just our summary. But specifically...
Continue readingThe News Without Transparency: Bain Execs Spend Big for Romney
The News Without Transparency: Bain Execs Spend Big for Romney Last month iWatch News reported that executives from Bain Capital, Romney’s... View Article
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