In February the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform unanimously passed the Executive Branch Reform Act (H.R. 984) out of committee. The bill, sponsored by both Chairman Henry Waxman (D-CA) and Ranking Member Tom Davis (R-VA), would require all political appointees and high ranking executive branch officials to file quarterly reports detailing substantive contacts they have made with persons seeking to influence policy and policy-making decisions. The legislation is intended to combat the corrupt activities of Jack Abramoff and his contacts in the Executive Branch and the secrecy of the still unknown list of energy industry executives who helped craft the President’s energy policy. Waxman has called the bill “landmark legislation” that would be the most important open government reform since the Freedom of Information Act. But even in these days where transparency is all the rage open government still comes with its own list of enemies.
Continue readingNews from Sunlight
We are making two annoucements this afternoon: a second round of grants for 2007 (including two grants from our Mini-grant program), and a new member of the Board of Directors -- Craig Newmark. Craig is the founder and customer service representative for Craigslist, and one of the initial members of our Advisory Board. Craig is a visionary, and he has an understanding of power of the Internet technology that is nearly unrivaled. We couldn't be happier to have him assume a more formal role in guiding the Sunlight Foundation.
We are also very excited about the grant making opportunities that have come our way. Continue readingTwo Replies and Conversations with FOIA Officers
Today, we received a reply to our correspondence logs FOIA from USAID as an excel spreadsheet. This is only the second time we have gotten a reply in a format that can be uploaded and used to fulfill our goal of making the logs searchable using keywords. Here are the two replies we have received so far: from EPA(.xls) and USAID (.xls).
Just a quick update on how things are moving along: I've been asking FOIA officers from SBA, FERC and FTC to give us the logs in an electronic format and not as print outs. Although, as ...
Continue reading“Our Pledge to You, the Constituent…”
Here's an idea that occurred to me after reading John Stanton's piece today in Roll Call that notes the disclosure requirements for members of Congress who might personally profit from earmarks--part of the reforms adopted by the House and the Senate--don't apply to congressional aides. There's a passage in the article about a few members who have instituted internal ethics rules to deal with relatives of aides who lobby. Are these written rules? Are there other written rules that members have for their offices? And if so, will members make these public?
This is the relevant ...
Continue readingTalking about public disclosure of information
Writing in the Boston Globe, David Weil and Archon Fung dive into the new world of transparency and examine “a new idea of what public access to information really means.” While Weil and Fung don’t directly approach the topic of political information disclosure their analysis still resonates with the ongoing debate over transparency in Congress and in our political system.
Continue readingRoll Call Spots Huge Loophole in Earmark Reforms
Roll Call's John Stanton has noticed that the disclosure requirement for members of Congress who might personally profit from earmarks--part of the reforms adopted by the House and the Senate--doesn't apply to congressional aides. In October 2006, USAToday ran a big story by Matt Kelley and Pete Eisler that tracked the phenomenon among aides attached to the House and Senate Appropriations Committees and their members, and found that,
Continue readingRole of “Soft Money” in 2006…Implications for 2008
There's a new study out this morning from the Campaign Finance Research Institute that reminds us -- for all the talk of how much small money Sen. Barack Obama has raised on the Internet -- of the role of big money in politics. It should be sobering to those who think that small donor money obviates the need for fundamental reform of the campaign finance system.
This study just looked at one path of big money: the broad array of nonprofits active in the 2006 election: 527 political organizations, Section 501(c)(4) social welfare groups, (c)(5) labor unions and (c)(6) trade associations, and "taxable" entities that operate as nonprofits. Check it out.
Continue readingThe Paper Chase
For the past couple of hours I have been trying to get my hands on a letter that Senator McCain wrote to Air Force Secretary Michael Wynne on April 4 about requesting documents related to the Combat Search and Rescue helicopter program.
According to a Reuters report, Senator McCain has questioned an Air Force decision giving Boeing contracts worth about $15 billion under the program.
On calling the Senator's office I was told by the press spokeswoman, Melissa Sheffield that they don't release these letters to the press." She added that I could get it from the Air ...
Continue readingNational Journal: 63 Current Members of Congress Have Relatives with Ties to Lobbying
In what looks like the most authoritative list to date, National Journal reporter Marisa Katz identified 33 Senators and 30 Representatives "who have lobbied or consulted on government relations at the federal or the state level in recent years" in the magazine's March 31, 2007, issue. Regrettably, it doesn't appear that the excellent story that goes with that finding, or the chart, is online at National Journal's site. Among Senators, Richard Lugar, R-Ind., Mark Pryor, D-Ark., Harry Reid, D-Nev., Pat Roberts, R-Kan., and Ted Stevens, R-Alaska, had two relatives with connections, while Rep. Bill Shuster, R-Pa., had two and Rep. Roy Blunt, R-Mo., was the lone member of Congress to have three.
Continue readingMashup of the Day
With one week left till the close of our Congressional Mashup Contest we are excited to report that Steve Nelson's Second Life entry has made "Mashup of the Day" at Programmable Web. If you recall we introduced this exciting Mashup before here. Seeing Congressional information take center stage on this cutting edge website really shows how people get excited about new ways to view Congress.
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