Posted by Jonathan Adler:
Toward Greater Congressional Transparency:
http://volokh.com/archives/archive_2009_05_31-2009_06_06.shtml#1244134718
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi should be commended for her recent effort
to increase transparency and accountability within Congress. The
Washington Post [1]reports:
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) said yesterday that the House
will soon start posting online quarterly records of how members use
their personal office funds, giving watchdog groups a chance to
examine staff salaries and other spending by members of Congress.
Congress has long published such information in a volume called the
Statement of Disbursements, but it will now be released online,
which Pelosi said would increase transparency. The change comes as
members of the British Parliament are under fire for spending huge
sums of taxpayer money through their public accounts on such
expenses as cleaning a moat and having light bulbs installed in
their homes.
"Consistent with my goal to increase transparency and ensure
greater accountability to the public, please take all steps
necessary to ensure that the quarterly Statement of Disbursements
be made available online free of charge to the public and on a
suitable House website," Pelosi wrote yesterday in a letter to the
chief administrative officer of the House.
Now if only Congress were as transparent with regard to [2]health care
reform.
References
1.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/06/03/AR2009060303500.html?hpid=sec-politics
2.
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB124398857510379561.html#mod=todays_us_opinion
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