Tracking Committee Website Transparency

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Contents

Introduction

Each committee's website is graded below, according to the checklist featured on Sunlight's Suggestions for Committee Website Content.

Our findings for 2011 are also summarized in these three blogposts:

House Committees

' House Committees Agriculture Appropriations Armed Services Budget Education and the Workforce Energy and Commerce Ethics Financial Services Foreign Affairs Homeland Security House Administration Judiciary Natural Resources Oversight and Government Reform Rules Science, Space, and Technology Small Business Transportation and Infrastructure Veterans’ Affairs Ways and Means Intelligence
General Website Information
Does the front page of the committee’s website contain (or prominently link to):
A schedule of committee meetings/hearing Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes No Yes Yes Yes No Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes
A list of committee members Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes No Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes
Press information Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes
Video or audio of proceedings Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes No Yes Yes Yes No Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes No
A search box (with advanced search capabilities, such as sort by date, document file type, topic, etc.) Yes Yes No No No Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes
The locations of committee and *subcommittee* offices, including phone numbers or email addresses No Yes No Yes No No NA No No No No Yes No No No No No Yes No No No
Does the committee’s website contain (or links to):
A description of the committee’s jurisdiction Yes Yes Yes Yes No No Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes
Information about subcommittees Yes Yes Yes n/a Yes Yes NA Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes
Committee publications (prints, reports, etc.) No Yes Yes Yes Yes No Yes Yes Yes No Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes No No Yes Yes Yes Yes
Contact information for the relevant majority or miority staffers No Yes No No No No Yes No No No No No No No No Yes Yes Yes No No No
The minority website Yes Yes Yes Yes No Yes NA Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes
Does the committee contain (or link to) the following new media information:
A blog about the committee’s activities No Yes Yes No No No No Yes No No No No Yes No Yes No No No No No No
A Facebook account Yes Yes Yes No Yes No No Yes Yes Yes Yes No Yes Yes No Yes Yes No Yes Yes No
A Twitter account Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes No Yes Yes Yes Yes No Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes No
Podcasts (e.g., iTunes) No No No No No No No No No No No No No No No No No No No Yes No
Photographs (e.g. Flickr) No No Yes No Yes No No Yes Yes No No No Yes No No Yes Yes Yes No Yes No
A list of all RSS feeds/email sign-up Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes No Yes No Yes Yes No Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes
Committee Hearings
Do all hearing pages include:
The date and time the hearing takes place Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes No Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes
The location the hearing takes place Yes Yes Yes Yes No Yes No Yes Yes Yes No Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes No Yes
The topics/ subject matter of the hearing (what it is about) Yes Yes Yes No Yes No No No No No No No Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes No Yes Yes No
Identify the “type” of hearing, i.e., whether it is an oversight, mark-up, executive business, or nomination hearing Yes Yes Yes No No Yes No Yes No Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes
Include and identify whether the hearing is taking place before the full committee or a subcommittee Yes Yes Yes No Yes Yes No Yes Yes Yes No Yes Yes Yes No Yes Yes No Yes Yes No
Does the committee\'s hearing schedule include information about hearings that have already taken place during that session of Congress (ideally should include previous sessions as well) Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes No Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes
Do pages covering hearings that have concluded include:
A list of witnesses Yes No Yes Yes Yes Yes No Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes NA Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes No
The written testimony of the witnesses Yes No Yes Yes Yes Yes No Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes NA Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes No
Documents submitted to the committee No No No No Yes No No No No No No No Yes No Yes No Yes No Yes Yes No
A transcript of the hearing No No No No No No No No No No No No No No No No No No Yes No No
Video or audio from the hearing (streaming and archived) Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes No No Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes No
Do pages concerning mark-ups include:
The legislation that was referred to the committee (or a link to the legislation) Yes Yes No Yes Yes Yes No Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes
Discussion or working drafts of legislation Yes Yes No Yes No No No No No No No No No No No No No No No No No
The chairman’s mark (the measure recommended by the committee chairman for mark-up) No No Yes Yes No No No No No No No Yes No No Yes No No No No Yes Yes
Amendments submitted for consideration (and their sponsor) Yes Yes Yes No No Yes No Yes Yes Yes No Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes No Yes No
A brief summary of the amendments submitted for consideration Yes No Yes No No No No No No No No No No No Yes No No Yes No No No
Votes on amendments No No No No Yes Yes No Yes Yes Yes No Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes
The final committee report, or a link to where it can be found No Yes Yes Yes Yes No No Yes No Yes No Yes No No Yes No No No Yes Yes Yes
For witness disclosures, committees should ingest the disclosures as structured data, even through a spreadsheet with defined rows, and a google form, to allow for easier searching and analysis of witness disclosures.
Subcommittee Pages
Do pages for subcommittees include:
A plain English description of the jurisdiction of the subcommittee Yes Yes Yes n/a Yes Yes NA No No Yes Yes Yes Yes No Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes No
A list of the matters before the subcommittee No No No n/a No No NA No No No No No Yes No No No Yes Yes Yes Yes No
A list of subcommittee members Yes Yes Yes n/a Yes Yes NA Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes No Yes
Contact information for the relevant majority and minority staffers No No No n/a No No NA No No No No No No No No Yes No Yes No No No
Links to relevant hearings No Yes No n/a No No NA No No Yes No No Yes No No Yes No Yes Yes Yes Yes
The same general kinds of information that are available for the full committee No Yes No n/a No No NA No No Yes No No Yes No No Yes No Yes Yes No No
Membership Information
Does the website provide the following information regarding committee membership:
Include a list of all committee members Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes No Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes
Indicate the seniority of each committee member (they are often listed in order of seniority) Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes No Yes Yes Yes Yes No Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes
Separately indicate the members of the different subcommittees No No No No No No NA No Yes No No No No Yes No No No No No Yes No
Link to each committee member’s official web page Yes No Yes Yes Yes No No Yes Yes Yes No Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes
Publications
Does the website include the following committee publications:
Current committee reports, oversight reports, and other documents, or a link to where they can be found – reports from earlier Congresses are particularly helpful as well No No Yes Yes Yes No Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes No No No Yes No Yes
The committee’s rules Yes Yes Yes Yes No Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes No Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes No
Any related CRS/ GAO/IG or other reports or memoranda No No No No Yes No No No Yes No No No No No No No No No No No
A committee oversight plan (House only) or nominations information (Senate only) No No Yes No Yes No No Yes Yes Yes No No No No No Yes No Yes Yes Yes No
When possible, are documents available in non-PDF format as well, such as XML? No No No No No No No No Yes No No No Yes No Yes No No No No No No
Media/Press
Does the media/press page contain:
Press advisories/ releases Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes
Fact sheets No No Yes Yes Yes Yes No No No No No No No No No No No No No No No
Contact information for the majority and minority staff press persons No No No No No No No No No Yes No No Yes No No No Yes Yes No Yes No
An RSS feed Yes Yes No Yes Yes Yes No Yes No Yes Yes No Yes Yes No Yes Yes Yes Yes No No
Historical Information
Does the committee provide the following historical information:
A history of the committee Yes No No Yes Yes Yes No No Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes No Yes Yes Yes No Yes Yes No
Major historical documents produced by the committee No No No No No No Yes No No No No No No No No No No No No No No
Ethics information, such as recusal forms for committee members who cannot participate because they have a conflict of interest No No No No No No Yes No No No No No No No No No No No No No No
A list of earmarks requests (when appropriate) No No No No No No No No No No No No No No No No No No No No No
Memoranda of understanding (MOUs) reached with other committees regarding jurisdiction No No No No No No No No No No No No Yes No No No No No No No No
Whistleblower
Does the committee provide information on a secure way for whistleblowers to contact the committee? No No No No No No No Yes No No No No No Yes No No No No Yes No No


Senate Committees

' Senate Committees Standing Committees Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry Appropriations Armed Services Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs Budget Commerce, Science, and Transportation Energy and Natural Resources Environment and Public Works Finance Foreign Relations Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Judiciary Rules and Administration [http://sbc.senate.gov/public/ Small Business and Entrepreneurship Veterans' Affairs Special Committees Indian Affairs Select Committee on Ethics Select Committee on Intelligence Special Committee on Aging
Does the front page of the committee’s website contain (or prominently link to):
A schedule of committee meetings/hearing Yes Yes Yes Yes No Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes No Yes Yes
A list of committee members Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes No Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes
Press information Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes No Yes Yes
Video or audio of proceedings No Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes No No Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes No No Yes
A search box (with advanced search capabilities, such as sort by date, document file type, topic, etc.) No Yes No Yes Yes Yes No Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes No Yes No
The locations of committee and *subcommittee* offices, including phone numbers or email addresses No No No No Yes No Yes No No No No No Yes na na na na NA NA NA
Does the committee’s website contain (or links to):
A description of the committee’s jurisdiction No Yes Yes Yes No Yes Yes Yes Yes No No Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes No No No
Information about subcommittees Yes Yes Yes Yes n/a Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes NA NA NA NA NA NA NA
Committee publications (prints, reports, etc.) Yes No Yes No Yes Yes No No Yes Yes No Yes Yes No Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes
Contact information for the relevant majority or miority staffers No No Yes No No No No No No No No No No No Yes No Yes No No No
The minority website No Yes No No Yes Yes No Yes No No No No No No Yes Yes No No No Yes
Does the committee contain (or link to) the following new media information:
A blog about the committee’s activities No No No No No No No No No No No No No No No No No No No No
A Facebook account No No No No Yes No No No No No No Yes No No No No No No No No
A Twitter account No No No No Yes No Yes No No No No No No No No No No No No No
Podcasts (e.g., iTunes) No No No No No No No No No No No No No No No No No No No No
Photographs (e.g. Flickr) No No No Yes No Yes No Yes No Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes No No No
A list of all RSS feeds/email sign-up No Yes No No Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes No Yes Yes No Yes Yes Yes No No No
Committee Hearings
Do all hearing pages include:
The date and time the hearing takes place Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes No Yes Yes
The location the hearing takes place Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes No Yes No
The topics/ subject matter of the hearing (what it is about) Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes No Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes No Yes Yes
Identify the “type” of hearing, i.e., whether it is an oversight, mark-up, executive business, or nomination hearing No Yes Yes No Yes Yes Yes Yes No Yes No No Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes No NA No
Include and identify whether the hearing is taking place before the full committee or a subcommittee No Yes Yes No Yes No Yes Yes Yes No Yes Yes Yes NA NA NA NA No NA NA
Does the committee\'s hearing schedule include information about hearings that have already taken place during that session of Congress (ideally should include previous sessions as well) Yes Yes Yes Yes No Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes No Yes Yes
Do pages covering hearings that have concluded include:
A list of witnesses Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes No Yes Yes Yes No Yes Yes
The written testimony of the witnesses Yes No Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes No Yes Yes Yes No Yes Yes
Documents submitted to the committee No No No No Yes No No No No Yes No No Yes No Yes Yes No No No Yes
A transcript of the hearing No No Yes No Yes No Yes No No No No No No Yes No No No No No No
Video or audio from the hearing (streaming and archived) Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes No Yes Yes
Do pages concerning mark-ups include: no 2NoYes2 info available
The legislation that was referred to the committee (or a link to the legislation) Yes Yes Yes Yes No No Yes Yes No No Yes No No No No No No No No No
Discussion or working drafts of legislation No No No No No No No No No No No No No No No No No No No No
The chairman’s mark (the measure recommended by the committee chairman for mark-up) No No No No No No No No No No No No No No No No No No No No
Amendments submitted for consideration (and their sponsor) Yes No No No No No No No No No No No No No No No No No No No
A brief summary of the amendments submitted for consideration No No No No No No No Yes No No No No No No No Yes No No No No
Votes on amendments No Yes No No No No No No No No No No No No No No No No No No
The final committee report, or a link to where it can be found Yes Yes Yes No No No Yes Yes No No No No No Yes No No No No No No
For witness disclosures, committees should ingest the disclosures as structured data, even through a spreadsheet with defined rows, and a google form, to allow for easier searching and analysis of witness disclosures. Yes No No 2 3 No No Yes No No Yes No Yes
Subcommittee Pages
Do pages for subcommittees include:
A plain English description of the jurisdiction of the subcommittee Yes Yes Yes Yes n/a Yes Yes Yes No No No No No No No No NA NA NA NA
A list of the matters before the subcommittee No No No No n/a No No No No No No No No No No NA NA NA NA
A list of subcommittee members Yes Yes Yes Yes n/a Yes Yes Yes Yes No Yes Yes Yes No No No NA NA NA NA
Contact information for the relevant majority and minority staffers No No No No n/a No No No No No No Yes Yes No No No NA NA NA NA
Links to relevant hearings No Yes No No n/a Yes No Yes No No No Yes No No No No NA NA NA NA
The same general kinds of information that are available for the full committee Yes Yes No No n/a Yes No No No No No No No No No No NA NA NA NA
Membership Information
Does the website provide the following information regarding committee membership:
Include a list of all committee members Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes No Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes
Indicate the seniority of each committee member (they are often listed in order of seniority) Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes No Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes
Separately indicate the members of the different subcommittees No Yes No No No No No No No No No No Yes NA NA NA NA NA NA NA
Link to each committee member’s official web page Yes Yes No Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes No Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes
Publications
Does the website include the following committee publications:
Current committee reports, oversight reports, and other documents, or a link to where they can be found – reports from earlier Congresses are particularly helpful as well No No Yes Yes Yes Yes No No Yes Yes No Yes Yes No Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes
The committee’s rules Yes No No No Yes No Yes Yes Yes Yes No No Yes No Yes No Yes Yes No Yes
Any related CRS/ GAO/IG or other reports or memoranda No No No No No Yes No No No Yes No Yes No No Yes No No No No Yes
A committee oversight plan (House only) or nominations information (Senate only) No No No No No No No Yes Yes Yes No Yes Yes No No Yes Yes No Yes No
When possible, are documents available in non-PDF format as well, such as XML? No No No No No No No No No No No No No No No Yes No No No No
Media/Press 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Does the media/press page contain:
Press advisories/ releases Yes No Yes Yes Yes Yes No Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes
Fact sheets No No No No No No No No No No No No No No No No No No No No
Contact information for the majority and minority staff press persons No No No No No No No No Yes No No Yes Yes Yes Yes No Yes No No No
An RSS feed No Yes No No No No No Yes Yes Yes No Yes Yes No Yes Yes Yes No No No
Historical Information
Does the committee provide the following historical information:
A history of the committee Yes Yes No No Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes No Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes No Yes Yes
Major historical documents produced by the committee Yes No No No No No Yes No No No No Yes Yes No No Yes No No No No
Ethics information, such as recusal forms for committee members who cannot participate because they have a conflict of interest No No No No No No No No No No No No No No No No No No No
A list of earmarks requests (when appropriate) No No No No No No Yes No No No No No No No No No No No No No
Memoranda of understanding (MOUs) reached with other committees regarding jurisdiction No No No No No No No No No No No No No No No No No No No No
Whistleblower
Does the committee provide information on a secure way for whistleblowers to contact the committee? No No No No No No No No No No No No No No No No No No No No


Joint Committees

' Joint Committees Joint Committee on Printing Joint Committee on the Library Joint Economic Committee Joint Committee on Taxation
General Website Information Not updated since 2005 Not Updated since 2005
Does the front page of the committee’s website contain (or prominently link to):
A schedule of committee meetings/hearing Yes No
A list of committee members Yes Yes
Press information Yes Yes
Video or audio of proceedings No No
A search box (with advanced search capabilities, such as sort by date, document file type, topic, etc.) No Yes
The locations of committee and *subcommittee* offices, including phone numbers or email addresses Yes Yes
Does the committee’s website contain (or links to):
A description of the committee’s jurisdiction Yes Yes
Information about subcommittees n/a NA
Committee publications (prints, reports, etc.) Yes Yes
Contact information for the relevant majority or miority staffers No No
The minority website Yes No
Does the committee contain (or link to) the following new media information:
A blog about the committee’s activities No No
A Facebook account Yes No
A Twitter account Yes No
Podcasts (e.g., iTunes) No No
Photographs (e.g. Flickr) No No
A list of all RSS feeds/email sign-up Yes No
Committee Hearings
Do all hearing pages include:
The date and time the hearing takes place Yes No
The location the hearing takes place Yes
The topics/ subject matter of the hearing (what it is about) Yes No
Identify the “type” of hearing, i.e., whether it is an oversight, mark-up, executive business, or nomination hearing No No
Include and identify whether the hearing is taking place before the full committee or a subcommittee No No
Does the committee\'s hearing schedule include information about hearings that have already taken place during that session of Congress (ideally should include previous sessions as well) Yes No
Do pages covering hearings that have concluded include:
A list of witnesses Yes No
The written testimony of the witnesses Yes No
Documents submitted to the committee No No
A transcript of the hearing No No
Video or audio from the hearing (streaming and archived) Yes No
Do pages concerning mark-ups include:
The legislation that was referred to the committee (or a link to the legislation) n/a NA
Discussion or working drafts of legislation n/a NA
The chairman’s mark (the measure recommended by the committee chairman for mark-up) n/a Na
Amendments submitted for consideration (and their sponsor) n/a NA
A brief summary of the amendments submitted for consideration n/a NA
Votes on amendments n/a NA
The final committee report, or a link to where it can be found n/a NA
For witness disclosures, committees should ingest the disclosures as structured data, even through a spreadsheet with defined rows, and a google form, to allow for easier searching and analysis of witness disclosures.
Subcommittee Pages
Do pages for subcommittees include:
A plain English description of the jurisdiction of the subcommittee n/a NA
A list of the matters before the subcommittee n/a NA
A list of subcommittee members n/a NA
Contact information for the relevant majority and minority staffers n/a NA
Links to relevant hearings n/a NA
The same general kinds of information that are available for the full committee n/a NA
Membership Information
Does the website provide the following information regarding committee membership:
Include a list of all committee members Yes Yes
Indicate the seniority of each committee member (they are often listed in order of seniority) Yes Yes
Separately indicate the members of the different subcommittees n/a NA
Link to each committee member’s official web page Yes Yes
Publications
Does the website include the following committee publications:
Current committee reports, oversight reports, and other documents, or a link to where they can be found – reports from earlier Congresses are particularly helpful as well Yes Yes
The committee’s rules No No
Any related CRS/ GAO/IG or other reports or memoranda No Yes
A committee oversight plan (House only) or nominations information (Senate only) No No
When possible, are documents available in non-PDF format as well, such as XML? No No
Media/Press
Does the media/press page contain:
Press advisories/ releases Yes Yes
Fact sheets No No
Contact information for the majority and minority staff press persons No No
An RSS feed Yes No
Historical Information
Does the committee provide the following historical information:
A history of the committee Yes Yes
Major historical documents produced by the committee No No
Ethics information, such as recusal forms for committee members who cannot participate because they have a conflict of interest No No
A list of earmarks requests (when appropriate) No No
Memoranda of understanding (MOUs) reached with other committees regarding jurisdiction No No
Whistleblower
Does the committee provide information on a secure way for whistleblowers to contact the committee? No No

Transparency Notables

These committee websites provided tools that promote transparency beyond what we recommended.

Retrieved from "http://www.opencongress.org/wiki/Tracking_Committee_Website_Transparency"
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