How Government Works

Feb 8, 2016

Top 400 Taxpayers See Tax Rates Rise, But There’s More to the Story

As Americans were gathering party supplies to greet the New Year, the Internal Revenue Service released their annual report of cumulative tax data reported on the 400 tax r...

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Feb 4, 2016

Chlorine Bleach Plants Needlessly Endanger 63 Million Americans

Chlorine bleach plants across the U.S. put millions of Americans in danger of a chlorine gas release, a substance so toxic it has been used as a chemical weapon. Greenpeace’s new repo...

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Jan 25, 2016

U.S. Industrial Facilities Reported Fewer Toxic Releases in 2014

The Toxics Release Inventory (TRI) data for 2014 is now available. The good news: total toxic releases by reporting facilities decreased by nearly six percent from 2013 levels. Howe...

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Jan 22, 2016

Methane Causes Climate Change. Here's How the President Plans to Cut Emissions by 40-45 Percent.

UPDATE (Jan. 22, 2016): Today, the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) released its proposed rule to reduce methane emissions...

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Parts of Patriot Act Ruled Unconstitutional

On Sept. 6, the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York ruled that a controversial section of the USA PATRIOT Act is unconstitutional. In John Doe v. Gonzales, Judge Victor Morrerro ruled that the National Security Letter (NSL) provisions of the USA PATRIOT Act are in violation of the separation of powers doctrine and the First Amendment's protection of free speech.

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Federal Agencies Knew of Diacetyl Dangers and Kept Silent

Federal regulatory agencies have known for years the dangers that diacetyl exposure creates among workers in factories where bags of microwave popcorn are tested. The only agency to have taken any action, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), has kept its study of the chemical's impact on consumers secret except for sharing it with the popcorn industry. Now the first case of potential consumer illness from exposure to diacetyl has been documented.

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Senate Passes FOIA Reform

On Aug. 3, the Senate passed the OPEN Government Act of 2007 (S. 849) by unanimous consent. The House passed similar legislation in March.

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House Committee Holds Hearing on Abuse of Information

A July 31 House Natural Resources Committee hearing continued to investigate reports of science manipulation within the U.S. Department of the Interior. Much of the hearing focused on the 2002 Klamath salmon die-off and former U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) Deputy Assistant Secretary Julie MacDonald's interference in Endangered Species Act (ESA) findings.

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Surgeon General Warning: Manipulated Science

At a July 10 hearing of the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, former Bush administration Surgeon General Richard Carmona joined a growing list of officials to disclose the executive branch's political manipulation of science. Carmona's claims that agency science is being distorted for political purposes echoes charges leveled by recent whistleblowers from the Department of the Interior, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration.

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Vice President Avoids Oversight, Claims Office not Part of Executive Branch

On June 21, the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform

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Kyl Unveiled as FOIA Foiler

Shortly after supporters of the Openness Promotes Effectiveness in Our National (OPEN) Government Act began aggressive online and telephone campaigns to discover the senator who had placed an anonymous hold on the bill, Sen. Jon Kyl (R-AZ) acknowledged that he was blocking the legislation. Kyl explained that the move was at the behest of the Department of Justice (DOJ), which he explained had "uncharacteristically strong objections to the bill."

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Whistleblower Week in Washington Succeeds

The first national Washington Whistleblower Week (May 14-21) highlighted the importance of whistleblowers in our country and urged the Senate to pass new protections for whistleblowers. The week of events included participation by hundreds of whistleblowers and dozens of public interest organizations.

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Improved FOIA on Hold

On April 12, the Senate Judiciary Committee unanimously passed the Openness Promotes Effectiveness in Our National (OPEN) Government Act, sponsored by Sens. Patrick Leahy (D-VT) and John Cornyn (R-TX). However, the bill is now stuck after an unidentified senator placed an anonymous hold on the legislation that would improve the government's implementation of the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA). Increasing pressure is being brought to bear on the Senate to uncover the hold and move forward with the bill.

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Open House Project Calls for New Era of Access

At a briefing in the U.S. Capitol on May 8, the Open House Project, a collaborative effort by government information experts, congressional staff, nonprofit organizers and bloggers to develop attainable reforms to promote transparency in the House of Representatives, publicly launched its new report and recommendations. The project was initiated and is managed by the Sunlight Foundation, a nonprofit that strives to use the Internet and technology to ensure greater government transparency and accountability.

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