Senators want congressional research available to the public

A resolution introduced in the Senate on Thursday would create a computer network to allow the public to access research reports that Congress relies on to make decisions and write laws.

Senate Resolution 118, introduced by Sens. Joseph Lieberman, I-Conn., and John McCain, R-Ariz., would require the creation of a database where the public could search for Congressional Research Service reports. The resolution also would require the development of an index for the reports and issue briefs. Only those reports that are available to all members of Congress would be made available to the public. Classified and sensitive documents would be exempt.

CRS is Congress' research arm and studies issues for congressional members, their staffs and committees. The agency has about 700 staff members and had a $107 million budget for fiscal 2009. The public currently cannot access the reports directly, but members of Congress and some private sector Web sites post some of them online. CRS also maintains a Web site for the reports, but only members and Hill staff can access it.

"Our constituents deserve widespread public access to these reports that their taxpayer dollars pay for, but they are currently available to the public only on a haphazard basis," Lieberman said. "This legislation would require the development of a comprehensive system that would allow the taxpayers to find CRS reports easily and access the most accurate and up-to-date information."

"We're thrilled. This is long overdue," said Leslie Harris, president and chief executive officer for the Center for Democracy and Technology, which worked with lawmakers to craft the resolution. The center also maintains the OpenCRS Web site, which publishes CRS reports online.

Lawmakers have tried to introduce similar legislation several times, but they have never made it out of committee, said Ari Schwartz, vice president and chief operating officer at the center. Because the proposed legislation is a resolution and not a bill, it would need the approval of the Senate Rules Committee and a floor vote, but not House approval or the President Obama's signature.

In the past, CRS leaders have been effective in conveying their concerns about making the reports public to the Rules Committee, so previous chairmen have avoided marking up the legislation, Schwartz said. The concerns CRS voiced included a fear of harming the relationship between members and their constituents, he said.

Janine D'Addario, spokeswoman with CRS, said the service works exclusively for members of Congress and their staffs and is prohibited from publishing reports directly to the public. She declined to comment on discussions between CRS and Congress, but said the organization will "abide by any congressional directives that affect us."

CRS currently offers a service through which members can take any report available to all members of Congress and post them directly to their Web sites for public viewing, D'Addario said.

Schwartz said it is likely the resolution would pass the committee this year because both political parties support it. "Thanks to the push for openness by the executive branch, the effort is getting more attention this year," he said.

The center, however, has not heard from Sen. Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., the Rules Committee chairman, about the issues. Schumer's office did not respond to a request for comment on Friday.

A report issued last month by the center and OpenTheGovernment.org found that CRS reports were most popular with the public. Also in March, the Web site wikileaks.org posted thousands of CRS reports.