Posts Tagged ‘Transparency’

June6

Google should disclose its political spending and leave the U.S. Chamber of Commerce

By: Jake Parent

You can Google anything right?

Well, try going to the search engine and entering “Google’s political spending.”

You’ll get something like this:

A screen grab of a Google search for the phrase "Google's political spending"

Ironically, the top result is Google’s “transparency policy.”

As you can see, while we get a few results for the company’s direct lobbying activities (which it is required by law to disclose), there’s little else to indicate what Google is doing with its other political dollars.

To make things clearer, I should explain that companies can spend money on politics in a few ways.

First, they can spend directly on lobbying themselves. They can also make direct political expenditures to back candidates or contribute to federally registered political committees. And in some states, they can contribute directly to candidates. This spending generally has to be disclosed.

But they can also spend money that doesn’t have to be disclosed. This spending can vary, but is most commonly done when a company makes contributions to “social welfare” organizations like Karl Rove’s Crossroads GPS or to “trade associations” like the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. Neither the organizations nor the companies have to disclose these types of contributions, and the organizations can spend money on a wide range of political activities.

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Posted in: Consumer Protection, Open Government, Social Justice9 comments

March25

Bipartisan congressional caucus creates culture for transparency

By: Keith Wrightson

Congressional oversight is a fundamental constitutional duty, and an important tool to detect problems in the government. Recognizing this, a bipartisan congressional Watchdog Caucus has launched with the goal of increasing oversight in government. The caucus’ purpose is to expose fraud, waste and abuse and will promote a more open government.

The Watchdog Caucus’ mission is one we fully endorse: promoting accountability of government employees and creating a culture of transparency and protecting taxpayer dollars.

The goal of the Watchdog Caucus is to empower watchdogs, wherever they are. Watchdogs include inspectors general, federal auditors, Freedom of Information Act officers, whistleblowers and transparency groups like Public Citizen, as well as private individuals.

Taxpayers need and deserve strong watchdogs to guard against waste, fraud and abuse. Watchdog Caucus co-chairs, Reps. Jackie Speier (D-Calif.) and Mike Coffman (R-Colo.) both have a history of investigating abuse and fraud within the government. Speier has spent the last 29 years encouraging openness on all levels of government and promoting the rights and protections of whistleblowers and others who expose government waste and abuse. Coffman is the chair of the House Veterans’ Affairs subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations.

“Establishing the Watchdog Caucus is only the first step to get control of the abuses exposed by government watchdogs and to tap the expertise of experienced investigators,” wrote Speier and Coffman in a recent Politico op-ed. “Moving forward, we want to be champions of whistleblowers and a constituency for good government.”

For more about the Watchdog Caucus, visit its web site.

Keith Wrightson is Public Citizen’s workplace safety expert. Keep up with Public Citizen’s workplace health and safety work by following @SafeWorkers on Twitter.

Posted in: Congress, Open Government0 comments

January8

SEC moves to shine a light on corporate political spending

By: Kelly Ngo

A significant move by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) takes aim at a glaring loophole in the Supreme Court’s ruling in Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission.

In response to overwhelming public pressure – including a record-breaking 322,000 comments — and efforts by the Corporate Reform Coalition the agency has added to its agenda a rule that would require all publicly traded companies to disclose political spending to their shareholders. The SEC plans to consider the rule in April 2013.

“By supporting this rule’s placement on its regulatory flexibility agenda, which in turn is now on the Office of Management and Budget’s Unified Agenda, the SEC has taken a critical step to protect investors and to address the flow of secret corporate political spending that has arisen since Citizens United,” Congress Watch Director Lisa Gilbert said at a tele-press conference on the rule.

The rule would eliminate the paths that corporations have used to hide money they spend to influence elections, like giving to “dark money” nonprofits and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce.

“It’s important to understand the CEOs across America enjoy unchecked authority to spend unlimited sums of other people’s money to influence elections,” Adam Kanzer of Domini Social Investment Funds said. “They funnel millions of dollars to a wide range of tax-exempt entities including trade associations and 527 organizations. In fact, every election cycle we’re dealing with a new provision in the tax code and new type or organization.”

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Posted in: Campaign Finance0 comments

August30

Verizon Joins OSHA List of Severe Safety Violators

By: Editor

By Keith Wrightson

Verizon Logo on a buildingThe Severe Violator Enforcement Program (SVEP) was created by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) in 2010 with a promise of getting tough on employers who have not honored their employee’s safety and health and OSHA’s direction.

By all indications the SVEP is doing just that.

As of this June, OSHA reported that 332 of the nation’s employers have found their way onto OSHA’s SVEP list. SVEP concentrates on inspecting employers that have demonstrated indifference to their Occupational Safety and Health Act (OSH Act) obligations by willful, repeated, or failure-to-abate workplace violations. Employers that have been identified as severe violators can expect heightened inspection rates and increased fines when additional occupational safety and health violations occur.

Some of the nation’s largest corporations, such as Verizon, Tyson Foods, Wegman’s and Cooper Tire & Rubber, all have the dishonor of being a members of this exclusive club. On March 19, Verizon became a member of SVEP after a worker came into contact with high-voltage electrical wires in Brooklyn, New York. OSHA says that this fatality was preventable.

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Posted in: Consumer Protection, Social Justice, Workplace Health & Safety1 comments

July2

People-Powered Groups Are Standing Up to Front Groups

By: Rick Claypool

Between now and November, sham, shell and phony front groups will be blasting our airwaves with

Flickr by Steve Wampler Photography

smears, half-truths and outright lies.

But people-powered groups are fighting back. A growing chorus of organizations like the League of Women Voters, Greenpeace and the Sunlight Foundation are joining Public Citizen in calling on Congress to pass the DISCLOSE Act (S. 2219, H.R. 4010).

Now, local organizations have the opportunity to join the fight too.

If you’re a leader or member of a civic group, club, student organization, nonprofit organization or small business that supports transparency of money in politics, let us know.

I’ll add your group’s name to the letter we’re delivering to Congress from people-powered organizations that support the DISCLOSE Act. Already, several nonprofit organizations, occupy groups, faith groups and even small businesses have signed on to the letter.

The DISCLOSE Act will unmask the front groups, ensuring the public is informed about who is behind the political ads they see, regardless of whether that funding comes from corporations, labor unions, or millionaires and billionaires.

Make no mistake. Between now and November, a deluge of negative ads will be aimed directly at influencing your vote. As much as $9.8 billion will be spent on ads trying to influence U.S. voters over the course of the election season.

Help make sure voters know who is behind the billions. Add your group’s name to the letter supporting transparency of money in politics.

 

Posted in: Activism, Campaign Finance, Congress, Social Justice0 comments

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