Links to Senate earmark disclosure requests in a database

Links to Senate earmark disclosure requests in a database

Posted by Bill Allison, May 19th, 2009 · 2 Comments

They labeled them as funding priorities, programs and project requests, investments in their states and, in just one case, earmarks. They posted image files that can’t be cut and pasted, tables, single files with every item or dozens of files for each individual item. Still, 96 members of the Senate have, for the very first time, posted their earmark requests for appropriations bills online—and you can find all the links to those disclosures here.

Unlike the House, which has required members to disclose the name and address of the beneficiaries of all their earmarks since 2007, rules adopted when the Honest Leadership and Open Government Act was passed allowed senators to file a single disclosure certifying that neither they nor their immediate family members had a financial interest in any of their earmark recipients—without specifying who those recipients are. That changed in January 2009, when Sen. Daniel Inouye joined his House counterpart, Rep. David Obey, in requiring more stringent earmark disclosure. Senators now must post their requests on their Web sites before they can be considered by the Appropriations Committee.

via Links to Senate earmark disclosure requests in a database.