Honda wants Congress to go paperless

Rep. Mike Honda (D-Calif.) wants Congress to go paperless, but says lawmakers aren't ready to take that leap yet.

Speaking at Thursday's House Administration Committee hearing, Honda echoed the views of some of his colleagues that Congress has been slow to adapt to new technology.

“There have been bills introduced that would cut back or eliminate most congressional printing," Honda said. "That begs the question, is Congress ready to go paperless? While I wish the answer were yes, I am extremely doubtful that old ways can be changed on a dime.”

Honda urged members to move away from paper as quickly as possible, arguing it is a waste to print documents like the Congressional Record every morning when they are available in digital formats.

“I believe every member can support moving toward a more paperless Congress as technology allows," Honda said.

"And I would join my colleagues on both sides of the aisle in finding ways to restructure our processes so that we can eventually get to a point where less and less paper is needed for this body to properly function. However, we’re just not there yet.”

Honda also emphasized that the Government Printing Office is not responsible for the proliferation of printed documents, noting the agency only prints what is requested by Congress.