**Media Advisory**
CAGW Updates FY 2008 Earmark Request Database

(Washington, D.C.) - Citizens Against Government Waste (CAGW), the nation’s premiere taxpayer watchdog, today posted on its website its updated database of which members of the House of Representatives have agreed to release their FY 2008 earmark request lists for the Appropriations bills, along with the lists themselves and those who have not released such lists.  CAGW has been conducting an aggressive campaign, first by letter and then by telephone, to determine which members of the House are truly committed to making this year’s appropriations process as transparent as possible by allowing their constituents and all taxpayers to view their earmark requests. 

CAGW’s database now lists 42 members of the House who have made their lists available, either directly to CAGW or via other public sources, such as newspapers or CNN. 

CAGW sent a letter to the House in early May asking that members list their earmark requests and this was followed by a series of phone calls.  A small number of taxpayer-friendly House members have stated that they will request no earmarks, others have stated that they are requesting earmarks and have shared the list with us (lists will be available on the database), and some have stated that they have no plans to make their earmark requests public. 

“Those members who have refused to request earmarks deserve the gratitude of the American taxpayer,” said CAGW President Tom Schatz.  “They are part of a growing shift in national attitudes about congressional spending.  Ever since the ‘Bridge to Nowhere’ debacle in 2005, and as recently as last week, when House Appropriations Committee Chairman David Obey (D-Wis.) was forced to abandon his star-chamber scheme to personally vet 36,000 congressional earmarks for inclusion during the conference phase of the legislative process, taxpayers around the country have begun to realize that they have the power to demand more disclosure and more accountability from their representatives.  CAGW’s database is a tool for taxpayers, and we hope they’ll visit it daily as the process unfolds.  We intend to keep the pressure on to persuade more House members to voluntarily shed light on the spending process.  The list will be expanded to include the Senate over the next few weeks.”      

What:               FY 2008 House Earmark Request Database

Who:                Citizens Against Government Waste

When:              Ongoing

Where:             www.cagw.org 

Citizens Against Government Waste is a nonpartisan, nonprofit organization dedicated to eliminating waste, fraud, abuse, and mismanagement in government.  

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