Congressional Record mobile application now available for iPads

By Debbie Siegelbaum - 01/18/12 12:48 PM ET

Congress has taken another step forward in reducing unnecessary printing and wasteful spending with the introduction of an iPad application for the Congressional Record.

On Wednesday, the Committee on House Administration, in collaboration with the Library of Congress and the Government Printing Office, introduced the application on iTunes. The application currently provides users with mobile access to the publication on iPad devices only, not on iPhones.

The app was created at the behest of the Committee on House Administration, according to a statement Wednesday from the GPO. The Congressional Record — a compilation of the proceedings and debates of Congress — is also available online and in print form.

The launch of the app comes on the heels of Tuesday’s announcement of a new House website created as part of an ongoing effort to increase transparency. The website will provide all legislation to be considered by the House in XML, an open, machine-readable format.

Last April, House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) and House Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-Va.) directed House Clerk Karen Haas to work with the Committee on House Administration to establish electronic data standards for the House to make information more easily accessible to the public.

“At the start of the 112th Congress, the House adopted a Rules Package that identified electronic documents as a priority for the institution,” Boehner and Cantor wrote in an April 29 letter to Haas. “The new House Majority is dedicated to changing how our institution operates, with an emphasis on real transparency and greater accountability.”

In an effort to cut down on unnecessary printing, one month later the GPO initiated a survey of lawmakers’ offices to see how many would be willing to cease receiving paper copies of the Congressional Record and Federal Register, among other congressional publications.

Last May, Committee on House Administration Chairman Dan Lungren (R-Calif.) and Rep. Phil Gingrey (R-Ga.), chairman of the Administration subcommittee on Oversight, circulated a “Dear Colleague” letter encouraging lawmakers to opt out of receiving the paper publications.

 “It costs taxpayers approximately $1,300,000 from the Congressional Printing and Binding fund to print the daily and permanent editions of Congressional and Federal publications for Member offices each year,” according to the notice.

On Wednesday, Lungren praised the creation of the iPad application and Congress’s ongoing efforts to improve access to legislative data.

“The Congressional Record — the official record of our nation’s legislative endeavors — is vital to legislators doing their job and to the public holding them accountable,” he wrote in a statement. “I commend the Library of Congress and the Government Printing Office for their dedication to creating this app.”

Librarian of Congress James Billington said “access to the Record on tablet devices will provide portability for Members of Congress as well as the public, and allow for searching, saving and sharing content from the Record.”

 "The Library of Congress is pleased to develop a new way to receive authoritative and convenient access to the debates, proceedings and activities of the Nation’s legislature,” he added in a statement.