If you agree that it's time for the Federal Elections Commission to extend the definition of electioneering to online communications and require disclaimers and disclosures for paid political advertising on Internet platforms, please tell them!
Continue readingIt’s time for the Justice Department to finalize and release its new FOIA policy
As a result, this morning, the Sunlight Foundation, Cause of Action Institute, and our open government allies wrote a letter asking The United States Department of Justice and the The White House Office of Management and Budget (OMB) to finalize and publish a new Freedom of Information Act policy that makes "release-to-one, release-to-all" the official stance of the United States government.
Continue readingLawmaking is Data-making
The Open Law Library is working with Washington, D.C. to create a platform to make capturing and using legal data cheaper and scalable, opening more of the law to the public it governs
Continue readingHow transparency can help the public trust federal stewardship of taxpayer dollars
In 2017, we cannot trust and verify that is occurring in our federal government. The American public should be able to see how secretaries are conducting public business, when, where and with whom.
Continue readingReduced online access to federal scientific information is diminishing democracy
Originally posted on the UCS Equation On Monday, Scott Pruitt, Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency, announced his long awaited... View Article
Continue readingChanges to USGS website highlight the importance of search for public access
If the public cannot find a resource in a search result list anymore, can that public information still be said to be accessible? Yes, and no.
Continue readingOPEN Government Data Act poised to pass Congress as part of NDAA
On Monday, the United States Senate quietly passed the OPEN Government Data Act as part of the 2018 National Defense... View Article
Continue readingDoes your city rely on federal data? We want to know about it.
Are you a city employee? Take a short survey to tell us what federal datasets you rely on most.
Continue readingTrump administration commits to participating in Open Government Partnership
The big idea behind the Open Government Partnership’s founding in 2011 was that it would provide a platform for the public to hold a national government accountable for meeting commitments that have been created in open consultation between the governed and a government of the people. When countries elect leaders like President Donald J. Trump who don’t value basic democratic norms for accountability, transparency and ethics, it poses a stern test: can a voluntary mechanism between community of democracies be used to protect and defend it?
Continue readingWorried about public comments on draft open data policy? Here are the most common sentiments.
Inviting public comments on draft policy can be a daunting proposition, especially in the age of angry Internet comments. Knowing how residents in other cities have responded to draft open data policy can help make that process more approachable. To better understand that we took a look at the most common sentiments in draft open data policy comments.
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