Bill Would Require Public Info To be Available On 'Net
Legislation introduced in the House this week would redefine executive branch public information as content that is available on the Internet and searchable, requiring agencies to post all future public records online within three years, Nextgov.com reported Wednesday.
The bill introduced Tuesday by Rep. Steve Israel, D-N.Y., would task the federal chief information officer in the Office of Management and Budget, a position currently held by Vivek Kundra, with establishing publication rules for all agencies except independent regulatory agencies such as the FCC. CIOs at independent regulatory agencies would have discretion in setting rules.
The measure would take public information "out of the metal file cabinets and into the sunlight of the Internet," Israel said at a news conference. The event was scheduled to coincide with Sunshine Week, an annual nationwide campaign to promote open government and freedom of information. It was spearheaded by journalists in 2002 and now attracts civic groups, libraries and lawmakers.
Under the bill, each agency would have to create a searchable catalog of materials it makes publicly available, including where the records can be found, whether the records are available to the public at no cost or for a fee, and brief descriptions of the records.
Currently, many public documents are accessible on paper or on computers in federal buildings, which typically are open only from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., noted Ellen Miller, executive director of the Sunlight Foundation, a government transparency group that joined Israel to debut the bill. To read more, click here.
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