POGO Voices Support for Bipartisan Bill to Increase Court Record Transparency

The Honorable Jerrold Nadler
Chair
U.S. House Committee on the Judiciary

The Honorable Doug Collins
Ranking Member
U.S. House Committee on the Judiciary

Dear Chairman Nadler and Ranking Member Collins:

We, the following 16 organizations, are writing in support of the Electronic Court Records Reform Act, H.R. 1164. The legislation would improve the federal courts’ electronic records system, enabling greater access to court records and bringing increased efficiency and transparency to the courts.

The bill would consolidate the currently compartmentalized Case Management/Electronic Case Files (CM/ECF) system and require that all documents in the system be searchable, machine-readable, and available to the public and to parties before the court free of charge. The legislation would also protect private information, requiring the courts to redact any information prohibited from public disclosure.

We urge you to support the Electronic Court Records Reform Act when it comes before the Senate Committee on the Judiciary. 

Sincerely,

American Association of Law Libraries
American Civil Liberties Union
American Library Association
Association of Research Libraries
Citizen for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington
Data Coalition
Demand Progress
Engine
Government Accountability Project 
Government Information Watch
GovTrack.us
National Security Archive
National Security Counselors
Open The Government
Project On Government Oversight
Senior Executives Association

cc: Members of the Committee