OMB Watch Lauds the Introduction of DATA Act in the Senate

PRESS RELEASE
-For Immediate Release-
September 21, 2012

Contact: Brian Gumm, (202) 683-4812, bgumm@ombwatch.org

OMB Watch Lauds the Introduction of DATA Act in the Senate

WASHINGTON, Sept. 21, 2012—OMB Watch welcomed the introduction of a revised version of the Digital Accountability and Transparency Act, or DATA Act, in the Senate and commended Sens. Mark Warner (D-VA) and Rob Portman (R-OH) for working together on this important legislation. The DATA Act will provide an unprecedented level of transparency and create critical new tools to track and analyze federal spending and hold officials accountable for their decisions.

Katherine McFate, President of OMB Watch, made the following statement:

With Congress preparing to make momentous decisions about the federal budget, it’s critical that the public have accurate information about current federal government spending. Expanding USAspending.gov to improve the accuracy and comprehensiveness of the spending information available to the public is a significant step forward.

OMB Watch has been calling for the spending transparency reforms contained in the DATA Act for years, and we hope that the Senate acts quickly to make these reforms.

We want to thank Sens. Warner and Portman for their leadership in introducing this legislation and for their efforts to open the federal spending process to public scrutiny and review.

The companion measure in the House, H.R. 2146, passed on April 25.

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OMB Watch is a nonprofit research and advocacy organization dedicated to promoting government accountability and effectiveness and increasing citizen engagement. Find OMB Watch on Facebook and Twitter.

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