Who do these legislators get information from? Professional, highly paid lobbyists who also eventually assist them in lining their re-election coffers. Now, I don't want to disparage all lobbyists, because I do think they provide some valuable information. The problem is, their input in most cases lacks any semblance of balance.
A good example of this was the SOPA/PIPA battle over copyright & intellectual property rights in the digital age. The momentum for this bill that was being largely driven (read: written) by the RIAA (Recording Industry Association of America). Luckily, over time sanity prevailed due to a massive amount of consumer activism and some key industry players (like GoDaddy.com) getting pressured to withdraw support. It was actually a great testament as to how the citizenry can mobilize and influence a legislative outcome.
The problem with this effort is that it took a lot of energy from a public that has a hard time keeping their attention on issues like this. That sort of capital can only be used periodically, else you risk losing their attention by crying wolf too often.
So what can be done? I have an idea, but I'm concerned it may far to idealistic to work. The basic concept is a citizen advisory board, or CAB. It works a little differently between Senators and Representatives, but not it doesn't have to. Here's the concept:
A member of the CAB:
- Must be a registered voter in the district (for Rep) or state for that Congress member
- Cannot have been a registered lobbyist within the last 5 years
- Cannot be compensated, with the exception of any expenses incurred (for example, for travel to DC) for serving as a CAB member
- Must have demonstrable expertise in the field in which advice is being provided
- Must sign a confidentiality agreement that stipulates when the CAB member may communicate publicly outside of their CAB member role (not sure on this one, trying to think of means of providing unfiltered guidance while maintaining confidentiality)
- Can donate to campaigns as an individual, but cannot donate to PAC or lobbying organizations
The duties are pretty simple:
- When called upon, provide guidance to the Congress member or related staffers on a pending legislative matter for which the member has direct involvement via committee
- This guidance can be written, verbal, or any viable medium
- Can (optional) provide guidance to other members of Congress at the request and approval of their home Representative or Senator (for example, when legislation is pending floor vote and is outside of the expertise of the home member of Congress) (ie. a loaner program)
- May be called upon to provide comment on approved drafts of legislation
So that's the basic draft. The idea is that any citizen can volunteer for this activity to help keep their Congress critters informed on the issues of the day and provide guidance on pending legislation. It is also a means for interested citizens to help create a better decision making process in Congress
I do see a few challenges with this:
- Lobbyists still control the $$$, and thus have more influence than the CAB member, at least conceptually
- Smaller states could have trouble fielding experts, but I think the loaner program may help with this
- How much time can be committed could be an issue, as many of these folks will have full time jobs
- Managing how CAB members are influenced would need to be reviewed (ie. avoid backdoor lobbying)
- No clue as to how much support this would have from members of Congress, I haven't even field tested it with my own critters yet. Or if they would even listen to the advice.
Admittedly, this is a very raw idea. So feel free to make suggestions or tear it apart. Naturally, I'd be one of the first to volunteer on issues concerning information technology, security, and privacy.
So whaddya think?
