House launches new website to make legislation more transparent

Last April, Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) and House Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-Va.) directed House Clerk Karen Haas to work with the Committee on House Administration to establish electronic data standards for the House to make information more easily accessible to the public.

“At the start of the 112th Congress, the House adopted a Rules Package that identified electronic documents as a priority for the institution,” wrote Boehner and Cantor in an April 29 letter to Haas. “Towards that end, we are asking all House stakeholders to work together on publicly releasing the House’s legislative data in machine-readable formats.”

“The new House Majority is dedicated to changing how our institution operates, with an emphasis on real transparency and greater accountability,” they added. “Ultimately, legislative data is the property of the American public. It is our hope that these reforms will continue to rebuild the trust between Congress and the people we serve.”

On Tuesday, Committee on House Administration Chairman Dan Lungren (R-Calif.) praised the clerk and House leadership for their work on creating a “one-stop shop” for legislative information.

“I would like to thank the Speaker and Majority Leader for their continuing efforts to increase the transparency of House operations,” he wrote in a statement. “Improving access to legislative information will spur greater public participation and ultimately improve the legislative process.”