One thing about "reinventing government" it's putting a lot of information journalists can use on the Internet.
The concept of reducing government paperwork means many agencies opt to churn out reports and information in electronic versions. It's cheaper than printing bulky reports. Some agencies are trying to save money by no longer publishing paper versions of reports. For reporters, this expanding use of the Internet means they can get information faster.
Agencies are finding it hard to turn back. The Securities and Exchange Commission thought about killing its project that offered free access to corporate financial reports. An uproar ensued. The agency changed its mind.
Here are some federal government sites you may find useful.
Searchable sites
Check on the White House, including speeches, press releases and a searchable index of remarks at press briefings. This site also lets you sign up for daily e-mail from the White House, so you'll know what's new. http://www.whitehouse.gov/White_House/Publications/html/Publications.html
Search the congressional record and proposed bills by using key words. This is a great way to background an issue and find legislators on different sides of an issue. Click off for either bills or the congressional record from http://thomas.loc.gov/
For those who want perspective on events, visit the National Archives and Records Administration. It offers a searchable guide to the Federal Register's table of contents, and recent moves like notices that certain files are declassified. It also links to 11 presidential libraries. http://www.nara.gov
You can also search the congressional record, the full Federal Digest, General Accounting Office reports and more issued by the Government Printing Office at http://ssdc.ucsd.edu/gpo/multi.html You can also telnet for GAO reports swais.access.gpo.gov Log in as "gao." Search using key words. Press "m" to e-mail the reports to yourself.
EDGAR lives. This free resource for SEC filings recently avoided a proposed shutdown. Remember it is not complete. It won't be until 1997 at the earliest. And, as part of avoided shutdown, filings will be delayed 24 hours. Go to a pay-for service or the company itself for same-day documents. Until Oct. 1, the site remains at http://www.town.hall.org
Need check a zip code? Go to the U.S. Post Office's searchable index. http://www.usps.gov/ncsc/
Search the 1990 Census at these ever-improving sites. The major improvements are with the detailed STF3 series of reports. http://cedr.lbl.gov/cdrom/lookup http://bigsur.lbl.gov/cdrom/lookup
The U.S. budget is available from several sites. This handy one breaks the budget down by topic, and can be downloaded and cleaned up in a spreadsheet. gopher://sunny.stat-usa.gov/11/BudgetFY96
To check out the details of "reinventing government," visit FinanceNet. It offers information on how the government sells off assets, resources for examining state and local government finances, and even details on how much federal officials can get reimbursed for travel expenses. http://www.financenet.gov/
For social programs, go to the Department of Health and Human Services. It offers a way to use ftp and grab the 'green book' a compilation of data for entitlement programs. HHS oversees a series of key agencies, including the Health Care Financing Administration, the National Institutes of Health, the Food and Drug Administration, and the Social Security Administration. All offer press releases and data. http://www.os.dhhs.gov/
The Department of Interior runs a series of key agencies. From here, you can quickly click to the Bureau of Indian Affairs, the National Park Service, the Bureau of Mines, the U.S. Geological Survey, and more http://www.usgs.gov/doi/ Check out data, including information on the Mississippi River floods, at the Geological Survey's data center. http://sun1.cr.usgs.gov/eros-home.htm
Andrew Lehren can be reached at (314) 882-0684, or send e-mail to andy@nicar.org