Dear members of the subcommittee:

The following is a letter addressed to the chairmen and ranking members of the Joint Committee on the Library; the House and Senate legislative branch appropriations subcommittees; the Committee on House Administration; and the Senate Committee on Rules and Administration. It was signed by 25 former Congressional Research Service (“CRS”) employees, with a combined 570 years of service with the agency. They formally request that Congress provide a central online source for timely public access to CRS reports, which would allow all members of the public to enjoy access on equal footing and to verify that the reports are authentic. The nonconfidential reports of other legislative-branch support agencies—such as the Congressional Budget Office, the Government Accountability Office, and the Library of Congress’ law library—already are made available publicly. These former and retired CRS employees respectfully request the same of CRS reports.

Featured Publications