Today in OpenGov: What’s in an open government plan?
Is it time for Congress to bring back the Office of Technology Assessment? Kevin Kosar and Zach Graves think so — and so do we. In a new paper, they explain that “despite the social and economic importance of science and innovation, policymakers are not always well equipped to understand and meet the associated challenges head-on. This problem is particularly conspicuous in the United States Congress, which serves an essential function through the crafting of legal frameworks for new technologies. Following short-sighted reforms in the mid-1990s…the First Branch has lacked the staffing and expertise to handle the increasingly technical nature of contemporary science and technology debates. These cuts included…the outright elimination of the Office of Technology Assessment (OTA) – an expert advisory agency that served as a think tank within Congress from 1972 to 1995, and made important contributions to shaping technology policy in the United States and abroad.” (R Street Institute)
