Part-Time Policy Wonk

From OMB Watch:
Today, the Obama administration made an important advance in executive branch transparency by agreeing to publish the White House visitor logs.  Norm Eisen wrote on the White House blog that, “Each month, records of visitors from the previous 90-120 days will be made available online.”  The White House agreed to this measure as [...]

From Federal Computer Week:
Federal officials plan to launch a new database with histories of contractors’ past work for the government, according to a Federal Register notice posted today.
The database, named the Federal Awardee Performance and Integrity Information System (FAPIIS), would contain specific information on companies’ and grantees’ past work with the government and how well [...]

From AALL’s Washington Blawg:
The Law Library of Congress just made it easier to keep track of the the latest action on the floor of the House and Senate: RSS feeds for the House Floor Today and Senate Floor Today.

From Bloomberg:
The Federal Reserve must make records about emergency lending to financial institutions public within five days because it failed to convince a judge the documents should be exempt from the Freedom of Information Act.

From the National Security Archive:
The National Security Archive announces the publication of the Torture Archive — more than 83,000 pages of primary source documents (and thousands more to come) related to the detention and interrogation of individuals by the United States, in connection with the conduct of hostilities in Iraq and Afghanistan as well as [...]

From OMB Watch:
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has released the most recent Toxics Release Inventory (TRI) data several months earlier than usual. The early release of 2008 data represents a concrete action taken by the new EPA leadership to improve transparency following numerous pronouncements calling for such actions. The TRI database tracks releases and [...]

From TechCrunch:
This guest post was written by San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom, who was elected to the position in 2003 and reelected in 2007. Newsom is also running for governor of California in the upcoming 2010 election. In this guest post, Mayor Newsom details the launch of DataSF.org, a new website that will offer convenient [...]

From OMB Watch:
At the close of President Obama’s first 200 days in office, the administration has demonstrated a willingness to experiment with new technologies and their potential role in making government more participatory and accountable. New e-government tools have been deployed to keep track of government spending, gather public input on policymaking, and convey the [...]

Press Release:
Governor Pat Quinn joined with Attorney General Lisa Madigan and members of the Illinois Reform Commission to sign bills to increase transparency and accountability in state government. The legislation strengthens the Illinois Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) and ensures the state’s boards and commissions are open and accessible to the public.
Bill Summary
Bill Overview

From the New York Times:
Immigration files containing a wealth of information collected by American border agents, some of it dating from the late 19th century, will be opened to the public soon and permanently preserved, providing intriguing nuggets about such famous immigrants or visitors as Alfred Hitchcock and Salvador Dalí.
But to millions of Americans, the [...]