Pushing For Greater Government Transparency

One of my top priorities in Washington is making the government more open and transparent to the American people- whose tax dollars pay the bills in Washington. This week, I questioned top government oversight experts on the ways that we can make federal agencies more transparent.

The House Committee on Oversight and Government reform, which I sit on, has had a hard time getting information from the government on things like Operation Fast and Furious, so I can't even imagine the amount of stonewalling the average person must deal with when requesting information from the Government.

I also co-chaired a hearing this week on a bill I recently introduced, called the Furthering Asbestos Claim Transparency (FACT) Act of 2013. H.R. 982 aims to eliminate fraudulent claims filed to the asbestos trust system, protecting the funds for legitimate victims of asbestos exposure.

The Wall Street Journal wrote about the hearing: "Bankruptcy trusts paying claims to sickened victims of companies that once made dangerous asbestos products aren't 'limitless, bottomless pits of money,' according to Rep. Blake Farenthold (R., Texas), who backs more scrutiny for their payment activities."

Read more from that article here...