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Trump’s Attacks on Transparency & Accountability

OTG releases a timeline of Donald Trump’s attacks on democracy. The former president has earned a spot in the history books as the most controversial, least transparent, and most divisive of U.S. presidents. His presidency was beleaguered with frequent scandals, many with damaging implications for our democracy. The timeline highlights Trump’s varied attacks on transparency

Congrats, President-Elect Biden! Now, Restore Accountability in the Federal Government

40 Advocacy Organizations & Experts Release Accountability 2021 Reform Agenda for Biden Administration — Open The Government today announced Accountability 2021, a robust agenda of actionable recommendations that president-elect Joe Biden must address to repair critical gaps in transparency, ethics, and oversight, in order to forge a new path to accountable government. Our democratic institutions

OTG Coalition, Former Government Ethics Chief Calls on White House to Release Virtual Visitor Logs

Washington – Today, Open The Government led a coalition, including 13 transparency and ethics organizations, and Walter Michael Shaub Jr., the former director of the U.S. Office of Government Ethics, in urging the White House to reverse its decision not to release visitor logs for virtual visits. In a letter to legal counsel Dana Remus, the

Open The Government and Government Accountability Project Request Investigation into Illegal HHS Gag Orders

Washington – Earlier today, Open The Government and Government Accountability Project sent a letter to the Office of Special Counsel requesting an investigation into illegal gag orders issued by the political leadership of the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) last summer. Our organizations wrote: “It has come to our attention that [HHS] leadership

OTG Urges NARA to Revise Proposed Changes to Electronic Records Management Regulations

Open The Government wrote a letter to the National Archives and Records Administration raising important questions about its proposed changes to its electronic records management regulations regarding standards for digitizing permanent Federal records and disposing of original source records. The full text of the letter is below. January 28, 2021 The Honorable David S. FerrieroArchivist

OTG Announces Three New Steering Committee Members

The new additions each bring a unique background of expertise and commitment to government transparency and accountability Washington, D.C. — Open The Government welcomed Dr. Jeanine Abrams McLean, John Yang, and Nick Chedli Carter as the newest additions to its Steering Committee. OTG’s Steering Committee consists of leaders from a cross-section of accountability organizations that provide strategic and tactical advice

Biden’s Ethics Plan Earns First Victory for Accountability Reform Advocates

(Washington) — By signing an executive order on ethics commitments for the executive branch on his first day in office, President Joe Biden demonstrated the importance of structural ethics reforms that protect the public interest rather than public officials’ gain. The executive order is a major victory for accountability experts from across the political spectrum, who

A reprehensible attack on our democracy

(Washington) — Open The Government released the following statement from Lisa Rosenberg, executive director, in response to the violent mob that stormed the U.S. Capitol earlier today: “The insurrection on Capitol Hill that prevented the Electoral College vote count is a reprehensible attack on our democracy and a serious threat to our nation. The First Amendment protects Americans’

CLC Calls for Biden Administration To Restore Government Accountability Through Ethics Reforms

This blog post from our friends at Campaign Legal Center on Accountability 2021 was originally published here. By Delaney MarscoDecember 2, 2020 Campaign Legal Center (CLC) has joined a nonpartisan coalition, Open the Government, in calling on the Biden administration to implement an agenda of robust ethics reforms. The agenda, called Accountability 2021, includes a broad

Open The Government is an inclusive, nonpartisan coalition that works to strengthen our democracy and empower the public by advancing policies that create a more open, accountable, and responsive government.