A press release from the Walz congressional office:
Congress Adopts Earmark Reforms Championed by Walz
Says reform will help restore the American peoples’ trust in their government
(Washington, DC) – Today, Congressman Walz applauded the House and Senate Appropriation Committees for moving to implement increased transparency throughout the earmarking process, changes Walz strongly advocated for during his first term.
Walz said that every member of Congress will now be required to publicly release a list of their earmark requests, something Walz has done since he first arrived in Congress. In 2007, Walz pushed for increased transparency and publicly released the list of projects he submitted to the Appropriations Committee on behalf of southern Minnesota. In 2008, Walz went a step further, publicly releasing his requests as well as the dollar amounts he requested. He also co-authored legislation that required his colleagues to do the same.
“This is a giant step forward for transparency and openness in government,” said Walz. “Last year Members of Congress were required to put their name by each of their requests that were funded. I went two steps further and released a list of each project I asked for, and the amount requested. I am thrilled that from now on, everyone in Congress will be required to follow suit.”
The new reforms, implemented by the chairman of the House and Senate Appropriations Committees, will affect FY2010 requests, requiring Members post their earmark requests on their websites and explain the purpose of the earmark and why it is valuable to taxpayers. This increased transparency and accountability will provide more opportunities for public scrutiny of member requests.
We're off to do some chores, but we hope to be back soon with a sledge full of news.
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