Last year we called the Cyber Intelligence Sharing and Protection Act (CISPA), H.R. 3523 in the 112th Congress, “terrible on... View Article
Continue readingThe Landscape of Municipal Lobbying Data
While the word “lobbyist” might evoke images of power brokers in Washington, D.C., lobbyists are also influential at the local... View Article
Continue readingThe real scam: Don’t let broadcasters shut down FCC political ad database over online ripoff
A story which had been making the rounds in broadcast trade publications, broke into the mainstream media Thursday, when NPR reported that scammers have been taking advantage of the Federal Communications Commission's online political ad file to rip off political consultants.
Hold the no-honor-among-thieves jokes. Let's just stipulate that stealing is not a good thing, even if the victims are political consultants. More worrisome than what the latest developments on the FCC database mean for advertisers' information is what they could mean for yours.
Walking Through the Doors of City Hall
City hall is a living metaphor for the way citizens and government exchange information. People visit their city hall to... View Article
Continue readingFinding the Leaders Behind the Data
We recently took a look at the wide variety of municipal IT structures in an effort to gain a better... View Article
Continue readingPay Attention to the Leaders Behind the Data
The branch of municipal government that oversees technology and shares information with the public plays a vital role in keeping... View Article
Continue readingPublish all agency reports online – Sen. Coburn intros amendment for vote-o-rama
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 readingBell, California: Moving From Secrecy to Sunshine
We can't keep our eyes off the City of Bell, California -- and for good reasons.
The city gained notoriety in 2010 when the Los Angeles Times began to expose high salaries for city officials who did next to nothing. It was a problem that had been brewing for years, as the LA Times charted in a timeline of the corruption.
Bell's government is different now.
Bell has most recently been in the news not just for reaching a culminating point in the scandal -- the trial of six former city council members on corruption charges -- but also for a high transparency grade as part of a government website review. Sunshine Review, a non-profit that examines state and local government transparency, gave the city an A- grade in the 2013 Sunny Awards. The grades are based on whether certain information like budgets, open meeting laws, and lobbying records are posted online, as outlined in this checklist.
This is one indicator of the many steps the city government has taken toward greater transparency. Bell's efforts are notable for several reasons.
Continue readingBill Would Make Agency Reports to Congress Accessible
Legislation that would require reports to Congress be made available online in one central location was recently reintroduced by Representatives... View Article
Continue readingTransparency bills move through House Oversight Committee
The House Oversight and Government Reform Committee favorably reported a number of transparency related bills at a markup earlier today.... View Article
Continue reading
59063
