With more and more civil society organizations in the open government universe recognizing that “thorny issues” -- such as political finance transparency or surveillance -- need to be tackled somewhat more vehemently, we are eager to seize the momentum and start a hopefully constructive dialogue around an embarrassingly under- or unregulated area: lobbying disclosure. A few weeks back, with the support of our friends at the Open Knowledge Foundation, we took the first steps to create a community of interested advocates, activists and academics, and launched a public working group around the world of influence.
Today, we are excited to announce our draft lobbying disclosure guidelines and invite the community to provide input on these recommendations.
Continue readingThe EU lobbyist register needs fixing
After a summer of debate, the EU working group responsible for reviewing the joint lobbyist register of the European Commission and European Parliament is poised to make recommendations for the future of the register. Strong regulations can shed light on how lobbyists shape the policy making process in the EU. However, the register in its current form is “unsustainable, misguided and simply not credible” -- according to a detailed report by the ALTER - EU, a coalition of about 200 civil society groups, trade unions, academics and public affairs firms concerned with the increasing influence exerted by corporate lobbyists on the political agenda in Europe.
The Sunlight Foundation applauds efforts to create more transparency around lobbying in the EU and encourages everyone to sign the petition launched by the ALTER-EU coalition.
Sunlight Teaming Up With the Open Knowledge Foundation to Create New Lobbying Transparency Working Group
The Sunlight Foundation and the Open Knowledge Foundation are teaming up to convene a new global group on lobbying transparency. We want... View Article
Continue readingA State by State Look at Lobbyist Disclosure
by Eric Dunn, Sunlight policy intern All 50 states require lobbyists to disclose some information about their work. Some require... View Article
Continue readingAdvisory Committee Event
A quick reminder: the Advisory Committee on Transparency event on lobbying starts in about an hour. If you can’t make... View Article
Continue readingTransparency In The SOTU
President Obama’s mentioned several of Sunlight’s core issues in his State of the Union Address issues last night. A closer... View Article
Continue readingCitizens United Part 2 – Lobbyist Disclosure
Sunlight recently developed a seven-point plan for a comprehensive and meaningful disclosure regime in a post-Citizens United political world. John... View Article
Continue readingLobbyists Help Write Senator’s Amendment
Further dispatches from the Fifth Branch of government provided by the Washington Post: Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) is likely to... View Article
Continue readingThis Week In Transparency – June 26, 2009
Here are a few of the more interesting media mentions of Sunlight and our friends and allies from the week:... View Article
Continue readingA Treasure Trove of Information Left Unopen
Sometimes important information about the way Washington works is easily accessible online, but those “in the know” don’t know how... View Article
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