PRESS RELEASE
-For Immediate Release-
March 19, 2008

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

New OMB Watch Report Unveils Top Five Open Government Questions for Candidates

WASHINGTON, March 19, 2008—OMB Watch today released a report that names the top five open government questions that Americans would like candidates for federal office to answer before the November elections. Top Open Government Questions for Candidates, based on a survey of more than 2,000 people, was released in conjunction with Sunshine Week.

Sean Moulton, Director of Federal Information Policy at OMB Watch, explained the rationale behind the survey and the top five list. "Transparency and open government have taken a hit in the last seven years," said Moulton. "Our government has become less open and less transparent, and the public is clamoring for a change in priorities; we needed a logical place to begin."

As part of its larger 21st Century Right to Know project that is designed to develop open government recommendations for the next presidential administration and Congress, OMB Watch worked with a wide variety of groups and gathered their input on the top open government questions for candidates for federal offices. After developing 12 questions on various government transparency issues, OMB Watch issued a survey to the general public. Respondents then picked the top five questions.

The survey was informal and was not conducted in accordance with strict, scientific procedures. However, OMB Watch believes the report provides a good guide to the top open government questions for voter groups, local and national media, and the general public.

Moulton concluded, "These top questions provide the tools to gauge where the candidates fall on the openness-secrecy spectrum."

The Top Five Open Government Questions for Candidates:

1) Manipulation of Facts
Concerns have been raised about possible manipulation of information produced by agencies and the influence of the White House over agency decisions. Do you support disclosure of all communications between the White House (including the Office of Management and Budget and other executive offices) and agencies regarding administrative decision-making and information disclosure?

2) Executive Privilege
What do you believe are the appropriate limits of executive privilege in the disclosure of information to Congress and the public?

3) Whistleblowers
Under the Sarbanes-Oxley law, only corporate whistleblowers revealing financial abuses are protected. In order to strengthen accountability against corporate crimes, would you support pending legislation that expands whistleblower protection rights to private sector workers who report violations of any federal public health and safety laws?

4) Presidential Records
Executive Order 13233 limits access to presidential records under the Presidential Records Act by giving former presidents the power to effectively veto the release of their records. Do you commit to reversing Executive Order 13233 to restore public access to presidential records after twelve years?

5) Health, Safety & Environment
Given the importance of health and safety information, how would you ensure that the public has easy access to understandable information about the air they breathe, the water they drink, and the products they use?

The full report is available at /files/info/CandidateQuestionsReport.pdf.

For more information on Sunshine Week, visit http://www.sunshineweek.org/.

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OMB Watch is a nonprofit watchdog organization dedicated to promoting government accountability, citizen participation in public policy decisions, and the use of fiscal and regulatory policy to serve the public interest.