Taxpayers for Common Sense--What's the Big Secret?

May 22, 2012

The Defense Authorization Act is probably the most important policy bill for the nation’s annual spending, directing more than half of our annual discretionary budget—more than $600 billion dollars. It also sets guidance on issues ranging from detention to contracting policy. You would think that Congress would do its work such a bill in public for the taxpayers to see. Unfortunately, you would be wrong.

Tomorrow, the Senate Armed Services Committee will continue its tradition of marking up the Fiscal Year 2013 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) behind closed doors. Spending the taxpayers’ dollars in the dark is undemocratic because it encourages lobbying by special interests and prevents citizens from taking action on provisions they disagree with. This doesn’t have to happen: the House of Representatives marked up its version of the bill in public, and Senator Claire McCaskill (D-MO) conducts her subcommittee’s markups in the light of day.

Taxpayers for Common Sense joined dozens of other groups in asking committee members to open their debates to the public. Now, we’re asking you to do the same. Start by going to OpenNDAA.org to find your Senator’s phone number and some talking points. You’ll find a few other quick tips there as well.

Then call or email your Senator and tell them to:

1.Show Us the Bill: Release the draft Senate defense budget bill and proposed amendments to the public at least 24 hours before votes

2.Vote No to Close: Vote no to closing the debate and the votes to the public

Below are links to the page on the U.S. House of Representatives and U.S. Senate websites that allows you to search for your member of Congress using your zip code. From there it will link you directly to the page on your members' website where you can send your message (by clicking on the envelope).

U.S. House of Representatives
U.S. Senate

Time is short, so contact your Senator today and stop them from spending your money in the dark!

Sincerely,
Laura Peterson
Senior Policy Analyst, National Security
Taxpayers for Common Sense
651 Pennsylvania Ave SE
Washington, DC 20003