Open Government: Questions for 2016 federal candidates

ASNE and OpenTheGovernment.org have drafted these open government-related questions that can be asked of all candidates for federal office. Our hope is that they will be used broadly by editorial boards and reporters covering the 2016 campaigns, as well as interested members of the public who have an opportunity to speak with candidates.

Transparency is vital for public accountability and it needs to be a part of the greater conversation on democracy and open government. Indeed, government transparency and secrecy have played a major role in the most salient political issues of this still nascent election cycle, ranging from FOIA requests on Flint’s water crisis, to debates on NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden, to questions on campaign finance. Still, while these issues are raised frequently in the midst of a high-profile controversy, candidates are rarely asked about their underlying open government beliefs and policies. Less than one-third of Americans view elected officials as “honest,” and yet transparency is mostly absent from the larger discussion.

Because this list consists of questions related to federal open government issues, it is therefore most relevant to candidates for President, United States Senate, or the United States House of Representatives.  However, we also encourage those interested in transparency at the state level to use them as a model when speaking with candidates for state or local office.

Contact information for ASNE and OpenTheGovernment.org is listed here as well, along with contact information for individual subject matter experts, so please do not hesitate to reach out to any identified individuals for additional information. Please also follow the #OpenOurGov campaign at OpenOurGov.org, calling on the presidential candidates to give their views on government transparency. 

                                      
 

Questions for 2016 Candidates for Federal Offices on Government Accountability, Public Disclosure and the Right to Know

• How would you support measures to improve the accuracy and consistency of use-of-force data from law enforcement across the country?
• Would you be willing to commit to requiring the development of a national database of all police-involved shooting deaths and deaths in custody?

• What steps do you believe are necessary (legislative reforms and/or Executive measures) and what policies would you implement to guarantee and advance public access to government information and sources?
• Specifically, what measures would you put into place to ensure strong Freedom of Information Act implementation to guarantee timely access to information essential for democratic governance and accountability?

• Do you support greater public accountability through disclosure of information relating to our government’s communications surveillance, in particular with regard to the number of Americans whose information is caught up in programs that are meant to target foreigners outside the United States?

• Do you believe the government should make more information available to the public relating to these programs?
• What do you believe is the appropriate level of disclosure needed to ensure public scrutiny and government accountability for such programs?

• What measurable and concrete steps do you believe are needed to ensure that government officials are using only official email addresses to conduct the public’s business and to further ensure public access to those public records?

• Ensuring that intelligence community contractors who blow the whistle through designated channels receive the same whistleblower protections available to all other contractor employees?
• Providing federal employees with whistleblower protections that are as strong as those for private sector employees, including access to a jury trial?
• Protecting both public and private sector employees against criminal or other civil liability when they engage in whistleblowing already protected by employment law?
• Disciplinary action against managers who have engaged in whistleblower retaliation?

• Do you believe the public has a right to know more about the provisions of international trade deals before they are finalized?
• Would you support measures to make future negotiations more transparent, including the periodic release of consolidated draft texts, as is common practice in many other international negotiations?
• Could measures be taken to make the negotiations more reflective of the interests of a broad range of affected stakeholders?

• Does the public have a right to know the source of all significant election funding (including contributions to leadership PACs, super PACs, 501(c)(4) dark money outlets, trade associations, etc.)?
• If so, what would you do to ensure that such information is disclosed to the public?
• What will you do with regard to ensuring the identification of donors to 501c4 groups, trade associations and other dark money outlets and requiring such organizations that engage in election-related activities to file regular publicly available reports before Election Day?