In the 110th Congress, transparency provisions have quickly moved into a central role in efforts to bring about greater oversight and accountability. From lobbying reform to national security oversight, the new Congress has made legislative strides toward a more open government.

National Security

Since 9/11, the Bush administration has liberally exercised executive powers to track and unilaterally act on potential terrorist threats. Accompanying the increase in executive powers has been the excessive use of secrecy and controversies created over government spying and other data collection efforts. The new Congress recognizes that transparency is a central part of greater oversight and accountability in this area. The new Congress has called for greater oversight of government contracts in Iraq, and efforts have been made to ensure that the executive exercises transparency in its collection and analysis of personal information. The Federal Agency Data Mining Reporting Act of 2007 (S. 236) was introduced by Sens. Russell Feingold (D-WI) and John Sununu (R-NH) to require the government to report on any efforts to use data mining technologies and to circumvent privacy protections already in place.

Whistleblower Protection

Whistleblower protections have long served to ensure greater transparency in government practices and to uncover government abuse. However, court decisions and lackluster support from government agencies have weakened whistleblower protections over the years. Sen. Daniel Akaka (D-HI) introduced the Federal Employee Protection of Disclosures Act (S. 274) with bipartisan support to prevent retaliatory actions against government employees who expose government fraud, waste or abuse. "If we fail to protect whistleblowers," Akaka stated, "then our efforts to improve government management, protect the public, and secure the nation will also fail."

Ethics Reform

The Democrats were, to a great extent, swept into power on the promise to reform corrupt processes in Washington, which catered to lobbyists and subverted the public interest. In its first month of operations, the Senate passed a package of ethics reform measures, a central theme of which is greater transparency and disclosure. The Legislative Transparency and Accountability Act (S. 1) includes the following transparency provisions:

• Conference reports are required to be made available on the Internet at least 48 hours before they are considered.
• Information on approved travel and lodging gifts and the meetings involved in such travel must be posted on the member's official website.
• Greater lobbying disclosure requirements along with the requirement that such lobbying disclosure forms be submitted in an electronic format so that they can be provided to the public on the Internet in a searchable database.
• Requirement that all earmarks be publicly available on the Internet along with their intended justifications at least 48 hours before they are considered.
• Requirement that all committees and subcommittees have to release a transcript, video or audio recording of each meeting within 14 days.

These provisions will go a long way toward ensuring greater transparency and accountability in government practices. Though the Legislative Transparency and Accountability Act passed the Senate 96 to 2, it will need to pass the House and be signed into law by the president.

As Congress continues to exercise its oversight responsibilities, we expect to see the continual articulation of the need for transparency and open government. It is likely that Sens. John Cornyn (R-TX) and Patrick Leahy (D-VT) will reintroduce bills to improve the government's implementation of the Freedom of Information Act, which they have previously proposed. On the House side, Rep. Henry Waxman (D-CA), a longtime proponent of government openness, is also expected to introduce legislation addressing public access. Dating back to the financial reforms of the New Deal, the requirement to disclose information about an institution's practices has proven to be an effective method of preventing abuse and waste and promoting efficiency.