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Free Government Information (FGI) is a place for initiating dialogue and building consensus among the various players (libraries, government agencies, non-profit organizations, researchers, journalists, etc.) who have a stake in the preservation of and perpetual free access to government information. FGI promotes free government information through collaboration, education, advocacy and research.

Check out OpenSecrets new Anomaly Tracker

This is fascinating. Check out OpenSecrets new Anomaly Tracker tool. By collecting data on lawmakers, donations received by their committees or super PACs, and legislation sponsored, out of the ordinary occurrences can be exposed.

The Anomaly Tracker tool highlights “anomalies” in our money-and-politics data. An anomaly, as we define it here, is an occurrence that is out of the ordinary. It is not necessarily an indication that there is something amiss.

We are tracking six kinds of anomalies here:

  1. Lawmakers sponsoring legislation that was lobbied by only one company or other organization whose employees or PAC also donated to the sponsoring lawmakers.
  2. Lawmakers receiving twice as much in contributions from their top donors as their next highest donors.
  3. Lawmakers receiving twice as much in contributions from their top donor industries as their next highest donor industries.
  4. Lawmakers receiving more than 50 percent of their itemized contributions from out of state.
  5. More than 50 percent of a committee or candidate’s spending is paid to a single vendor.
  6. PACs giving at least $7,500 to a candidate’s Leadership PAC but nothing to the candidate’s committee.

Have a suggestion for a type of anomaly you would like to see or wish to speak to us about this tool? Email us!

via Anomaly Tracker | OpenSecrets.

Tracking political advertising spending

Everything you need to know about political ads, by Jenn Topper, Sunlight Foundation (Nov. 10, 2015). ” Here’s what you need to know about political ads and the (lack of) disclosure around them.”

Campaign Financing Data Easier to Find at New Federal Election Commission Website

The Federal Election Commission (FEC) is an independent regulatory agency that administers and enforces federal campaign finance laws. The FEC has jurisdiction over the financing of campaigns for the U.S. House of Representatives, the U.S. Senate, the Presidency and the Vice Presidency.

Roundup of New Resources and Other Government Info News (12 Items)

Greetings from DC.

Here’s a roundup with a bunch of recent postings from our INFOdocket site containing news and new resources of possible interest to the FGI community.

This is a small sample of what we post each day. Most of the following items were shared in the past week or so. We are also available on Twitter.

1. New From U.S. Census: 2008-2010 ACS 3-Year Estimates

2. Article: “Patriot Act Turns 10, With No Signs of Retirement” + Patriot Act Infographic (Facts and Stats)

3. State Library of Tennessee Partners With Ancestry.com, Database Includes Millions of Images and Names

4. New Report: The State of World Population 2011 (World Population Tops 7 Billion, via UNPA)

5. New from U.S. Census: American Indians and Alaska Natives in the United States Wall Map

6. “A 5th Anniversary For the Forest Service National Library Celebrates 100 Years of History”

7. U.S. Census: USA Counties (New Stats)

8 New: Director of U.S. Copyright Office Announces Priorities, Special Projects for Next Two Years

9. Register of Copyrights Names Associate Register for Policy and International Affairs

10. Archivist of the United States on Digital Public Library of America Plenary

11. Legal Information: Cameras in Court Pilot Project Now Has 70 Videos Online

12. Campaign Finance: OpenSecrets.org Unveils New Interactive Features To Monitor 2012 Presidential Money Race

13. EPA: Office of Pesticide Programs Launches Online Searchable Database of Inert Ingredients Approved for Use in Pesticides

14. New From the C-SPAN Video Library: MP3 Audio Files Available for All Programs

We hope you find these resources useful. We hope you stop by or follow.

Direct to INFOdocket
INFOdocket on Twitter

cheers,
gary price

Senate still files financial disclosures the old-fashioned way

Low-tech Senate slow rolls disclosures, by VICTORIA MCGRANE, Politico (4/22/09).

You can learn instantly via Twitter that Claire McCaskill needs an iPhone repair or that Chuck Grassley burned his leg on his Iowa farm.

But if you want to comb through the details of a senator’s quarterly campaign finance reports online, it’s going to take a month to get the information — and a boatload of government money to make it available.

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