[Congressional Record Volume 155, Number 127 (Thursday, September 10, 2009)]
[Senate]
[Pages S9258-S9259]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                 EMPOWERING THE PUBLIC'S RIGHT TO KNOW

  Mr. LEAHY. Mr. President, if information is power, then an informed 
public is certainly an ingredient that helps make government work 
better and more responsively for the people.
  I have always had a keen interest in technology and the Internet, so 
it has been encouraging to see the commitment and skill that the Obama 
administration has invested in applying information technology to the 
functions of government. One of the clearest examples of this has been 
in the innovative release of data about funds appropriated under the 
American Recovery and Reinvestment Act--the so-called economic stimulus 
package. It is all the more encouraging to see the way these efforts 
have spawned complementary initiatives by private foundations and 
entrepreneurs.
  As a Vermonter I am especially proud that a project called 
ThisWeKnow.org became a top-three finalist in the Apps for America 2: 
The Data.gov Challenge, sponsored by The Sunlight Foundation, which 
asked contestants to produce Web applications to showcase the benefits 
of sharing Federal Government data with the public. ThisWeKnow.org, 
along with the other two finalists, showcased their Web sites this week 
in the Nation's Capital, at the Gov 2.0 Expo Showcase.
  ThisWeKnow.org was selected as one of the three finalists out of 47 
applications submitted. ThisWeKnow.org was built by GreenRiver.org and 
Intellidimension of Brattleboro, VT, to empower citizens to enter in 
their locations and to explore data related to their communities from 
across Federal agencies. Their site offers citizens one-stop shopping 
for information available to them about their own towns, States and 
communities.
  The public's right to know is a cornerstone of our democracy. By 
using technology, a site such as this can provide citizens with access 
to data that is relevant to them and that can enable and encourage them 
to make informed decisions. This site is designed to make what was once 
a difficult and time-consuming process into a faster and more 
streamlined experience.
  ThisWeKnow.org was designed and developed by Michael Knapp, managing 
director of GreenRiver.org, and Derrish Repchick, vice president of 
Product Development at Intellidimension, who are in Washington to 
attend the Gov 2.0 events this week. Although they did not win the 
grand prize, we congratulate them for all of their hard work and their 
public spirit, and encourage them to continue their efforts to promote 
a more accessible and open government.
  I ask unanimous consent that a copy of a September 8 article from The 
Brattleboro Reformer be printed in the Record.
  There being no objection, the material was ordered to be printed in 
the Record as follows:

[[Page S9259]]

             [From the Brattleboro Reformer, Sept. 8, 2009]

                        Your Government, Online!

                        (By Howard Weiss-Tisman)

       Brattleboro.--Michael Knapp thinks the government can do a 
     better job of getting data into the hands of average 
     Americans.
       Knapp, who is Managing Director of GreenRiver.org, a 
     Brattleboro software development company, believes that 
     social change will come after more citizens learn more about 
     their government and he's got a plan to make that happen.
       GreenRiver.org, along with Intellidimension, another 
     Brattleboro high tech company, is one of three finalists in a 
     national competition to help the U.S. government revamp how 
     it gets information into the hands of the public.
       The two Southern Vermont companies joined together to 
     design a Web site that would make it easier for citizens to 
     access the thousands of pages of data that the various 
     government agencies produce every year.
       And the two small Main Street firms, which went up against 
     46 other mostly larger and more heavily financed companies 
     from all over the United States, now have a chance to meet 
     with some powerful Washington insiders to change how 
     government information is delivered to the public.
       ``Too much data produces nothing but noise. But if we can 
     get information into people's hands that is presented well 
     and clearly and accurately people will make more informed 
     decisions,'' Knapp said from his office overlooking the 
     Connecticut River. ``We're trying to help people make 
     connections, so they can start to take control of their 
     communities.''
       Knapp and his cohorts entered the Apps for America contest, 
     which is sponsored by The Sunlight Foundation, a non-partisan 
     Washington group dedicated to increasing government 
     transparency.
       The Brattleboro companies developed their Web site, 
     ThisWeKnow.org, that allows the user to enter a location in 
     the search engine.
       Reports from across the government that have recorded 
     information on that location are gathered and the user can 
     compare, for instance, a town's cancer rate with the toxic 
     chemicals released by nearby factories and political 
     contributions to area lawmakers.
       Knapp said all of the various government agencies issue the 
     reports and put out press releases occasionally on the data, 
     but the Web site ``takes the middleman out of the information 
     presentation. Instead of the agencies controlling the 
     story,'' Knapp said, ``you get to tell the story.''
       Intellidimension Vice President of Product Development, 
     Derrish Repchick, said the two companies put in weeks worth 
     of work developing the site. They are flying to Washington 
     next week to present their site, and Vivek Kundra, the Obama 
     Administration's Federal Chief Information Officer, is 
     expected to check out the work of the three finalists.
       ``It was a huge amount of data we had to work with. It was 
     a challenge,'' said Repchick, who was responsible for the 
     back end of the Web site where all of the data is accessed. 
     ``It was also fun and it gets some pretty important eyeballs 
     on you.''
       Knapp is a big fan of what the Obama Administration has 
     done to make government more transparent but he said there 
     are still countless amounts of information out there that 
     should be more readily available.
       The winner of the contest will not necessarily win a 
     government contract but Knapp said the contest and his site 
     is one more way to get every citizen in the country to 
     realize that it is their government and the fastest way to 
     implement change is by getting them the information they need 
     to demand it.
       ``We didn't do this for the money,'' Knapp said about the 
     $10,000 prize that will go to the winner. ``We want to break 
     down all the separate silos of information and have people 
     make connections. We did this because we believe technology 
     can make a better future for everybody.''
       Voting for the best application is being done online at 
     www.sunlightlabs.com.

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