Tag Archive: Transparency in a Box

Statelight, Transparency in a Box: Pt. 4(a)

by Laurenellen McCann Dec 14, 2010 11:56 am

This is a continuation of Statelight, our series on advocating for open government change on a local level. Depending on... View Article

How accurate are lobbying figures?

by Guest Blogger Dec 7, 2010 9:11 am

As part of our Statelight project, we’re reaching out to open government and open data activists around the country to contribute to (and expand!) the #opengov dialogue. Today, we welcome Diana Lopez to give some insight into the complications of lobbying reform. Lopez is the Senior Editor of Government Lobbying at Sunshine Review. She focuses on government lobbying disclosure and moderates #FOIAchat, a weekly Freedom of Information Act Twitter chat held every Friday at 2PM EST.

Sunshine Review

When looking at lobbying figures, it is important to keep in mind that you're looking at reported lobbying data. Not all lobbying is reported, however. Under federal law, lobbyists must register only if they:

make more than one contact,
spend more than 20 percent of their time lobbying
have more than $11,500 in expenses, or
have $3,000 in income from lobbying per quarter.

Local watchdogging starts with one good question

by Guest Blogger Oct 26, 2010 2:02 pm

When it comes down to it, beyond the ideal of “transparent governance,” everyone in the open government movement is looking... View Article

Statelight: Transparency in a Box, Pt. 3

by Laurenellen McCann Aug 24, 2010 10:19 am

As we set the stage for advocating on local and state transparency issues and highlight some policies issues of note,... View Article

Statelight: Transparency in a Box, Pt. 2

by John Wonderlich Aug 18, 2010 4:18 pm

As Nicole wrote last week, we’re digging into state level transparency, in order to share what we know, and to... View Article

Statelight: Transparency in a Box, Pt. 1

by Nicole Aro Aug 11, 2010 5:32 pm

I’m excited to announce a new project from Public Equals Online and the Sunlight Foundation: Over the next few weeks and months, we’ll be developing - in large part through public blog posts such as this one - a curriculum, or guide, on how to do state level organizing and advocacy around transparency and open government.