
On Wednesday afternoon, the U.S. House of Representatives passed H.R.736, the Access to Congressionally Mandated Reports Act (ACMRA). ACMRA would... View Article
Continue readingOn Wednesday afternoon, the U.S. House of Representatives passed H.R.736, the Access to Congressionally Mandated Reports Act (ACMRA). ACMRA would... View Article
Continue readingThis morning, the House Appropriations Committee's Legislative Branch Subcommittee marked up its FY 2014 funding bill, agreeing to a plan that would cut funding for Congress and legislative support agencies well below FY 2013 levels, and even beneath sequestration levels for most offices.
Committee leadership claimed that cuts were necessary to "lead by example" and help get the government's "fiscal house in order," but, in reality, the cuts will likely limit accountability, access to information, and the ability of Congress and the legislative support agencies to do their jobs efficiently and effectively. The shrinking budgets could also make it more difficult for Congress to implement a number of important transparency initiatives.
Specifically, the plan would continue several years of cuts to House operations and the Government Accountability Office that have diminished the capacity of both bodies.
Senator Tom Coburn (R-OK) will introduce an amendment to create a publicly accessible online database containing all unclassified reports to Congress. It... View Article
Continue readingLegislation that would require reports to Congress be made available online in one central location was recently reintroduced by Representatives... View Article
Continue readingMarkup of a bill to make agency reports to Congress transparent did not occur as planned on Thursday after the measure... View Article
Continue readingTomorrow the Access to Congressionally Mandated Reports Act will get its turn in the spotlight. The legislation, which would require reports... View Article
Continue readingA bill to make federal agency reports to Congress available to the public online has garnered bipartisan support in the... View Article
Continue readingLegislation that would require copies of congressionally mandated reports to be published online by GPO cleared a major hurdle when... View Article
Continue readingMore representatives have indicated their support of a bill that would enhance public oversight of government through the Internet. The... View Article
Continue readingPublic oversight of government could become a lot easier if legislation introduced yesterday becomes law. The “Access to Congressionally Mandated... View Article
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