CCAGW to Senate: Provide Earmark Request Lists 

May 11, 2007

U.S. Senate
Washington, DC  20510

Dear Senator,

By May 15, all senators will need to submit their final requests for earmarks to the Senate Appropriations Committee. On behalf of the millions U.S. taxpayers who will pay for these projects, we are asking you to make your requests available to the public.

While the Senate rules do not require you to make your requests available to the public, we believe complete earmark transparency is vitally important and will assure the American people that business as usual in Washington has changed. At least three committees have changed the procedures for earmarking to make the process more transparent. Some senators have publicly stated they will not ask for earmarks. These actions should be applauded. If you have not done so, we encourage you to follow their lead and either not ask for or publish your earmark requests.

Members of Congress make various excuses for not publishing their lists, claiming that they have to “manage expectations,” they don’t want to “offend local officials,” and that requests are “confidential.” Several House members have been publishing their lists for many years. They have apparently not suffered the supposed adverse consequences of publishing such “private” or “confidential” information.

Providing the request after the appropriation is approved is not sufficient information for taxpayers who deserve a more open and transparent appropriations process.

CAGW intends to encourage taxpayers around the country to ask their Senators to publish their list of earmark requests. A list of who has and has not done so will be published on the organization’s website, www.cagw.org.

Sincerely,

Thomas Schatz,
President