SUNLIGHT DEBUTS ‘INSANELY USEFUL WEB SITES’ GUIDE TO GOVERNMENT INFORMATION

July 2, 2007

Contact: Gabriela Schneider 202-742-1520 ext 236

WASHINGTON, DC – The Sunlight Foundation has posted a new resource guide of “Insanely Useful Web sites” that offers access to legislative, civic and political information with Web 2.0 ease of use.

The sites listed by Sunlight aim to increase government transparency by offering the tools to track government and legislative information, campaign contributions and the role of money in politics. Whether tracking campaign finance, following the progress of legislation or looking for background on a congressional committee, this listing is the one-stop-shop for valuable government information.

Most of the sites profiled are mashups of official government databases displayed in innovative, dynamic ways that allows even complex data to be accessible and understandable to anyone, including:

• Campaign finance information mashed-up with congressional voting data to highlight the connection between the two
• Databases that provide open Application Programming Interfaces (APIs) and RSS feeds on legislative bills and votes in Congress
• Searchable lobbying information
• Searchable federal government contracting and spending information
• A citizens' wiki on members of Congress
• A user-generated database of executive branch e-mails related to the recent U.S. Attorneys firings scandal

Sunlight's Paul Blumenthal and John Wonderlich will review these and additional government information Web sites through weekly blog updates to show what the sites offer to both the amateur researcher and the experienced Web geek. User feedback with references to new projects that deserve recognition on the site are encouraged.

Founded in January, 2006, the mission of the Sunlight Foundation is to strengthen the relationship between lawmakers and their constituents. Sunlight puts information and tools in citizens' hands so they can learn more about what Congress and their elected representatives are doing. Its ultimate goal is full transparency by Congress, its Members and staff will help reduce corruption, ensure greater accountability, and foster public trust in this vital institution of democracy.

Since its founding, the Sunlight Foundation has issued nearly $2 million to groups to digitize existing information about Congress and those that use Internet technology to further Sunlight's goals. Additionally, the Sunlight Foundation has fostered its own projects such as Congresspedia, OpenCongress.org and Congress' Family Business.
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