Here are Tuesday's transparency-related news items, congressional committee hearings, transparency-related bills introduced in Congress, and transparency-related events. News Roundup: Government

• The Department of Health and Human Services released a progress report regarding its compliance with President Obama's Open Government Directive. (RegBlog)

• The Commodity Futures Trading Commission decided not to finalize a whistleblower provision at its Tuesday meeting. (Reuters)

• A whistleblower on army psychological operations filed a lawsuit for investigation results he previously requested through FOIA. (POGO)

• Opinion: A new bill by Rep. Michael Grimm (R-NY) would eviscerate certain whistleblower programs at the SEC and CFTC that were created as a result of the Dodd-Frank financial overhaul. (POGO)

Ethics

• Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW) called for an investigation into the House Ethics committee following a report of secretive, unethical actions taken in the committee. (Politico)

Campaign Finance

• Foreign entities spend millions of dollars to influence Washington elections every year, according to a Huffington Post report. (HuffPost) (The report cites our work on this issue from last December.)

• D.C. Mayor Vincent Gray accepted campaign contributions above the legal limit, the Washington Post reports. (The Washington Post)

Technology

• A Commons co-founder described in an interview what's next in the technological push for open government. (GovFresh)

State and Local

• The Pew Research Center released a comprehensive review on Monday of 39 non-profit websites, including a section ranking the best state watchdog groups. (Pew)

• New Jersey Gov. Christie signed legislation that will provide greater oversight of spending for programs in urban cities and poor municipalities. (MoreMonmouthMusings)

• The Democratic Party of New Mexico criticized Secretary of State Duran for failing to follow through on Gov. Martinez's pledge to open government and transparency. (NMDemocrats)

• Opinion: The Minnesotan Capitol should be open to the public during the government shutdown. (TC Daily Planet)

International

• Watchdog groups have given Kenyan's open data initiative mixed reviews. (VOA News)

• The Brookings Institution suggested that Brazil is not fit to lead the Open Government Partnership. (Brookings)

• The Canadian Information Commissioner said that Canada could take a leadership role in the international open government initiative. (MetroTube)

• Opinion: Given the recent corruption, the UK should implement open government standards similar to those of Sweden. (Telegraph)

• Opinion: Ottawa's town hall should institute a lobby registry to enhance transparency. (Ottawa Citizen)

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Here is Monday's look at the week's transparency-related news items, congressional committee hearings, transparency-related bills introduced in Congress, and transparency-related events. News Roundup: Government

• Members of the bipartisan Financial Crisis Inquiry Commission leaked confidential information to partisan allies at think tanks and lobbying firms. (Huffington Post via POGO)

• Former Ohio Attorney General Richard Cordray will be nominated by President Obama to become the first Director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. (Politico)(Huffington Post)

• GovTech speculated on the agenda of the next CIO, following Vivek Kundra's departure from the position. (GovTech)

• An N.S.A. whistleblower will not face jail time for releasing information about the agency's Trailblazer program. (The New York Times)

Lobbying

• Lobbyists are not always required to disclose donations made in the form of honorary contributions to lawmakers' favorite charities. (Huffington Post)

Ethics

• Key staffers on the House Ethics committee may have compromised the extensive investigations of Democratic Reps. Maxine Waters and Charles Rangel by engaging in inappropriate ex parte communications. (Politico)

Campaign Finance

• Only a few U.S. senators have filed their second quarter fund-raising numbers electronically. (OpenSecrets)

• Nearly half of Obama's campaign cash has come from bundlers, or well-connected individuals who raise money through their networks of wealthy friends. (The Washington Times)

• After the Obama campaign released its list of fundraising bundlers, we ran the list through our influence tracking tools and published the results online. (Sunlight Blog)

• Rep. Jeff Landry (R-LA) released a statement on Friday afternoon saying he would not release his second quarter fund-raising numbers before the midnight deadline. (National Journal)

Access to Information

• Government transparency adviser Tim Kelsey said that releasing open data will generate “vast markets.” (Information Age)

• Opinion: Releasing troves of data is not equivalent to transparency, especially when individuals do not know how to utilize that data. (Wired)

State and Local

• The Koch brothers have spread their message of no unions, low taxes, and minimal government regulation to more states, beyond their well-publicized involvement with movements in Wisconsin and Ohio. (Bloomberg)

• A Tennessee legislator worked with a lobbyist on legislation but says he was unaware that the legislation was identical to a model drafted by ALEC. (Knoxnews)

• A Texas county defended its hiring of a legislative lobbyist to work on environmental review process issues. (Statesman)

International

• The Prime Minister of India has placed a live webcam in his office as an anti-corruption tool. (New York Times).

• Opinion: Russian transparency lags behind the rest of the EU. (Epsiplatform)

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TGIF! Here is Friday's look at transparency-related news items, congressional committee hearings, transparency-related bills introduced in Congress, and transparency-related events. News Roundup: Government

• House Oversight Chair Darrell Issa questioned CFPB head Elizabeth Warren on an “inadequate” repsonse to FOIA requests in a heated hearing yesterday. (The Washington Examiner)

• CIO Vivek Kundra unveiled a seventeen-member task force charged with eliminating unnecessary government websites and determining how to prevent future “bloating of government URLs.” (GovTech)

• The House Appropriations Committee will require the GAO to investigate and report what steps have been taken to prevent mistakes after the Office recently released an error-ridden report on for-profit colleges. (The Daily Caller)

• The GAO is encouraging tipsters to come forward with knowledge about government waste. (ExecutiveGov)

Revolving Door

• Opinion: the new rule proposed by FINRA designed to protect against the revolving door does not go far enough. (POGO)

Lobbying

• Wall Street lobbyists have put their influence tools into full gear, seeking to ease the impact of the Dodd-Frank financial overhaul on their investment bank clients (The New York Times).

• Wachovia lobbied heavily for its loans to be bought up in TARP. (Charlotte Observer)

• Opinion: the current legislative standstill in Congress should make issue groups re-examine the value of their influence and lobbyist efforts. (The Hill)

Campaign Finance

• It is still up in the air whether presidential candidates in 2012 will reveal the names of their top "bundlers," individuals who reach their maximum donation levels and turn to their networks for other contributions, submitting all the checks in one bundle. (OpenSecrets)

Ethics

• Rep. Mazie Hirono (D-Hawaii) stepped down from the House Ethics Committee yesterday due to her upcoming senatorial election campaign, noting that the non-partisan role of the Ethics committee could conflict with her bid. (Roll Call)

Technology

• In a House Oversight hearing on federal information technology yesterday, CIO Vivek Kundra identified what he considers the ten principles of federal transparency. (Sunlight Blog)

Access to Information

• A University of Michigan professor is demanding that the FBI and CIA respond to his FOIA requests for information about the government secretly investigating him due to his outspoken criticism of President Bush. (Courthouse News)

State and Local

• Dozens of state legislatures adopted anti-environmental regulation bills that were authored by the American Legislative Exchange Council. (The LA Times)

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Here is Thursday's look at transparency-related news items, congressional committee hearings, transparency-related bills introduced in Congress, and transparency-related events. News Roundup: Government

• President Obama and House Speaker Boehner have engaged in secretive dialogue to negotiate the debt-limit crisis, with Boehner's recent meeting at the White House unpublished on his public schedule. (Yahoo News)

• Sen. Pat Toomey (R-Pa) criticized the hidden debt-limit negotiations for their lack of transparency. (National Journal)

• CIO Vivek Kundra appeared in a live video broadcoast to discuss wasteful federal government websites. (FCW)

• Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand has clarified certain components of her OffTheSidelines.org website after being criticized for its use as a reelection fundraising tool. (Buffalo News)

Revolving Door

• A senior SEC official has left the commission to head up a new organization connected to the Dodd-Frank whistleblower program. (WSJ)

• Three San Diego lobbyists have left federally registered lobbyist positions to work as government aides for both Republicans and Democrats. (San Diego Reader)

Lobbying

• The American League of Lobbyists hired a new executive director, the former head of the National School Transportation Association. (The Hill)

• The powerful religious lobby is behind many political programs, but the church lobbying disclosure exemption restricts transparency. (OpenSecrets)

• TechDirt called for a response to the U.S. Chamber of Commerce's intensive lobbying for passage of PROTECT IP. (TechDirt)

• Opinion: The American business lobby has corrupted democracy and has contributed to the rise of right-wing policy agendas nationwide. (Salon)

Campaign Finance

• Sunlight came out in support of a new bill in the House and Senate (see below) that would require companies to get shareholder authorization before making certain political expenditures. (Sunlight Blog)

Technology

• A report card was released on Rahm Emanuel's IT efforts during his first thirty days as governor. (GovWin)

• GovFresh interviewed Get Satisfaction CEO Wendy Lea on how technology can be used to connect government with citizens. (Gov Fresh)

• Opinion: Files no longer have a place in the digital age. Data storage should take place fully on computer systems. (O'Reilly)

Access to Information

• A district court ruled on Monday that DHS and ICE could not withhold embarrassing documents requested through FOIA. (Center for Constitutional Rights)

State and Local

• The gun lobby wields significant influence in Arizona, supported by thousands of Arizonans and constantly present at the state legislature. (The Arizona Republic)

• Ohio lawmakers introduced legislation designed to enhance transparency in policymaking after Ohioans expressed frustration with a secretive budget process. (Progress Ohio)

International

• An EU watchdog group criticized the European Commission for hiring a former EP President and a former Irish presidential candidate as political advisers. (M&C)

• UK PM David Cameron promised greater transparency to the media related to meetings that he holds. (BBC)

• India is considering measures to heavily restrict the types of industry lobbyists that can influence government. (The Economic Times)

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Here is Wednesday’s look at transparency-related news items, congressional committee hearings, transparency-related bills introduced in Congress, and transparency-related events. News... View Article

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Collected by Policy Intern Jacob Hutt. Here is Tuesday's look at transparency-related news items, congressional committee hearings, transparency-related bills introduced in Congress, and transparency-related events. News Roundup: Government

• President Obama issued an executive order to independent regulatory agencies asking them to examine existing regulations that are ineffective or inefficient. (The Hill)
• The U.S. and Brazil will meet today to launch the International Open Government Partnership, which will encourage governments to focus on transparency, accountability, and citizen participation, among other things. (techPresident)
• Darrell Issa's experience as chairman of the House Oversight committee has thus far proved both parties' predictions for him wrong, the Washington Post reports. (The Washington Post)
• Opinion: Recent efforts at enhancing transparency in federal spending are not without their shortcomings. (Washington Business Journal)
• Opinion: The OMB should allow the National Institutes of Health to continue with their public disclosure requirements. (POGO)

Revolving Door

• The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority proposed a new rule banning former regulators from appearing as clients or testifying as experts at FINRA within one year of leaving their positions. Similar rules already exist in other SEC entities. (Bloomberg)

Lobbying

• Corporations and lobbyists donate to politicians' favorite charities in order to gain their approval, the Associated Press reports. (AP)

Ethics

• House Oversight Chair Darrell Issa sent a letter to President Obama's top lawyer on Monday questioning whether the president has been engaging in illegal campaign activity while in the White House. (Politico)
• Budget architect Rep. Paul Ryan met for dinner with two economists and the table ordered $700-worth of wine. Ryan reportedly did not pay for the wine, possibly constituting a gift-related ethics violation. (TPM)

Access to Information

• The National Archives' Wikipedian-in-residence has utilized crowd-sourcing as an innovative way to put more holdings online. His experience has proved as a model for other government agencies. (Next Gov)

State and Local

• The Oklahoma House Speaker ordered all interim legislative studies to be published online in an effort to enhance transparency. (The Norman Transcript) We'd like CRS to do the same!
• Students at the LBJ School of Public Affairs released a study describing progress towards open government in Texas. (Statesman)

International

• Opinion: In Australia, only regulating one class of lobbyists enables others to carry on without disclosure. (The National Times)

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Collected by Policy Intern Jacob Hutt. Here is Monday's look at the week's transparency-related news items, congressional committee hearings, transparency-related bills introduced in Congress, and transparency-related events. News Roundup: Government

• House Democrats accused Eric Cantor of having a conflict of interest in the debt ceiling negotiations, as he has investments that might rise in value if the government defaults on its debts. (Huffington Post)
• A recent study found that the investments of Members of Congress significantly outperform the market, in part due to their access to nonpublic information that can positively affect their trading prospects. (The New York Times)
• Elizabeth Warren, head of the new Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, has made her meeting schedule available online.
• Opinion: In order to ensure transparency, Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand should provide a greater distinction between her website advocating for women's participation in politics and her personal 2012 re-election campaign. (Buffalo News)

Revolving Door

• First Street published an exhaustive list of revolving door lobbyists involved in the merger of AT&T and T-Mobile. (First Street)
• President Obama's former communications director Anita Dunn is now managing the food and media industry's campaign against the president's anti-childhood obesity efforts. (National Journal)

Lobbying

• The Sensible Food Policy Coalition, an anti-regulation group of corporations, has lobbied four federal agencies against voluntary standards that the government sets for child nutrition. (The Washington Post)
• The Dalai Lama is a rare example of a revered lobbyist, as he has lobbied Congress and the American public on Tibet's behalf for years. (POGO)

Ethics

• The House Ethics committee announced that it will be reviewing a possible ethics violation by Rep. Michael McCaul's (R-TX) Chief of Staff. The committee frequently does not publicly announce these reviewals. (Chron)

Access to Information

• The Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe declared that access to the Internet is a fundamental human right. (Yahoo News)
• Opinion: States should increase public access to information by putting it online and eliminating unnecessary costs of access. (Herald Dispatch)

State and Local

• The South Dakota Secretary of State is seeking greater public accessibility to lobbyist information. (Argus Leader)
• Analysis of campaign donation data in Arizona shows that the largest source of campaign contributions in 2010 was individual donations, rather than corporation contributions. (Arizona Republic)
• Opinion: Tennessee Gov. Bill Haslam should rescind his January order that eased income disclosure requirements for politicians for the sake of state transparency. (The Tennessean)

International

• Opinion: the Punjab government should speedily enact the draft Punjab Freedom of Information bill to ensure the right to information in Pakistan. (Dawn)

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Here is Wednesday’s look at transparency-related news items, congressional committee hearings, transparency-related bills introduced in Congress, and transparency-related events. News... View Article

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