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2Day in #OpenGov 12/15/2011

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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:

Campaign Finance
  • Reform groups renewed their request for the IRS to investigate if nonprofits that spend millions on political activities are eligible for their tax-exempt status. In a letter, the groups called out organizations including Americans Elect and Crossroads GPS. (Roll Call $)
  • A new report from POGO and CRP found that companies involved in the Joint Strike Fighter program contributed almost twice as much money to lawmakers who joined the newly-formed Joint Strike Fighter Caucus than they did to other lawmakers. (Government Executive)
  • The DCCC has charted an aggressive fundraising course heading into 2012. They recently erased $19 million in debt and are almost debt free as they prepare to spend on 2012 races. (Politico)
Government
  • A small language change in the defense bill sparked a large lobbying battle this week. The edit, backed by Florida lawmakers and lobbyists for Odyssey Marine Explorations, would have made it easier for the company to claim $500 million worth of treasure from a shipwreck. The Spanish government and the Obama administration opposed the language and it was eventually removed. (Washington Post)
  • Code for America got a $1.5 million grant from Google to continue their efforts at making governments work better for people. (Government Technology)
State and Local
  • California's online campaign finance database has been offline for the past two weeks and the Secretary of State doesn't know when it will be back up. (Lobby Comply)
  • A Missouri State Representative introduced a wide ranging ethics bill that would ban lobbyist gifts, strictly limit campaign contributions, and prohibit legislators from working as political consultants. (Lobby Comply)

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2Day in #OpenGov 12/14/2011

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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 Roundup: Government

  • A new bill, the Whistleblower Improvement Act of 2011, will actually gut protections for whistleblowers included in the Dodd-Frank Act. (POGO)
  • The Ohio House of Representatives approved a bill that would set criminal penalties for those misusing taxpayer money for political purposes. (Lobby Comply)
  • Congress has blocked an Obama administration proposal that would have required companies to disclose people and organizations that they support politically when bidding for contracts. (Federal Computer Week)
Campaign Finance
  • A Wisconsin campaign finance law that caps donations to state PACs at $10,000 has been ruled illegal by a circuit court. (Courthouse News)
  • California is the first state in the nation to allow campaign contributions via text message. (Courthouse News)
  • Newt Gingrich is getting some Super PAC support from a new group, Winning Our Future. The PAC is being formed by a longtime fundraiser for Gingrich's American Solutions for Winning the Future organization. (Politico)
Revolving Door
  • The New Democrat Coalition is losing their press secretary to K Street. Natalie Thorpe Munoz is joining SKDKnickerbocker as a senior associate. (National Journal)

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2Day in #OpenGov 12/13/2011

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Here is the Tuesday's take on transparency-related news items, congressional committee hearings, transparency-related bills introduced in Congress, and transparency-related events. News Roundup: Access to Information

  • The US recently released a new data management tool as part of their efforts to take data.gov global. The tool allows governments to upload, fact check, and manage their data. The next step is to build a visual component for the tool. (Executive Gov)
  • A hackathon held last weekend in San Francisco aimed to promote open data and transparency in government. One notable tool that emerged would send out legislative alerts via text message. (Government Technology)
  • The Cook County, Illinois deputy director of new media goes into detail about the launch of the county's open data portal, data.cookcountyil.gov, on Gov 2.0 Radio. (GovFresh)
Campaign Finance
  • Democrats in the House and Senate have introduced resolutions that would blunt the Supreme Court's Citizens United decision and exclude corporations from "the rights given to natural persons." (Lobby Comply)
  • A new PAC has emerged with a decidedly non partisan goal. The WUFPAC aims to elect women under the age of 40 to office, regardless of their party affiliation. (Roll Call $)
  • Democrats and Republicans have accepted large contributions from MF Global, the bankrupt brokerage firm formerly headed by Ex-New  Jersey Governor John Corzine (D). (Roll Call $)
International
  • The European Commission announced the creation of an Open Data Strategy. The move comes after the UK and France have embraced open data initiatives. (techPresident)

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The Political One Percent of the One Percent

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This piece was prepared in collaboration with Ethan Phelps-Goodman. If you think wealth is concentrated in the United States, just wait till you look at the data on campaign spending. In the 2010 election cycle, 26,783 individuals each contributed more than $10,000 to federal political campaigns. Combined, these donors spent $774 million. That's 24.3% of the total from individuals to politicians, parties, PACs, and independent expenditure groups. Together, they would fill only two-thirds of the 41,222 seats at Nationals Park the baseball field two miles from the U.S. Capitol. When it comes to politics, they are The One Percent of the One Percent. A Sunlight Foundation examination of data from the Federal Election Commission and the Center for Responsive Politics reveals a growing dependence of candidates and political parties on the One Percent of the One Percent, resulting in a political system that could be disproportionately influenced by donors in a handful of wealthy enclaves. Our examination also shows that some of the heaviest hitters in the 2010 cycle were ideological givers, suggesting that the influence of the One Percent of the One Percent on federal elections may be one of the obstacles to compromise in Washington.

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2Day in #OpenGov 12/12/2011

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

  • Last year, the Obama administration pledged to strengthen regulations on for-profit colleges. The industry responded by spending $16 million to lobby their case. The result: the Department of Education produced a weak plan that is likely to have much less impact that the administration initially planned. (New York Times)
  • Former Representative and ambassador to India Tim Roemer (D-Ind.) joined public affairs firm APCO Worldwide as a senior vice president. (Roll Call $)
  • The controversial Keystone XL pipeline has seen its fair share of lobbying, according to Senate records. 42 lobbying firms, associations, and companies have registered to lobby on the issue since 2009. (The Hill)
Campaign Finance
  • Crossroads GPS, the outside group formed by Karl Rove, is preparing a $500,000 ad assault against Senator Ben Nelson (D-NE), who is still deciding if he will run for a third term. (National Journal)
Government
  • Sen. Claire McCaskill (D-MO) released a report detailing earmarks included in this year's defense authorization bill. According to the report, the bill included 115 earmarks worth $834 million. (Washington Post)
  • A new poll shows that the majority of average Americans think members of Congress have low honesty and ethical standards. The poll ranks members of Congress below telemarketers and lobbyists. (Politico)

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