U.S. Budget and Government Spending: Influence and Money in Congress

Is the congressional power to create U.S. law being sold to highest spender?  Are members of both houses acting on outside interests instead of the interests of the American people?  The following sources will allow you to find exact dollar amounts flowing through Congress, track campaign contributions to the member, and track how the member voted, among other ways money can influence politics.  

These sources are free to anyone:

• Followthemoney.org -- Provides free access to federal and state level campaign contributions.  Data can also be accessed through an API or downloaded.
• OpenSecrets.org -- From the Center for Responsive Politics
• Sunlight Foundation -- Nonpartisan non-profit that advocates for open government.  Provides many tools and API (Application Programming Interface) for tracking money influencing Congress.
• Federal Election Commission's Data Catalog --  Find campaign finance information from the FEC.  Other areas of the site allow for chart creation, data on Super PACs, etc.
• LobbyView -- via MIT, allows tracking of lobby funds going back to the late 1990's for many organizations, companies, cities, etc.  Track by organization or bill number. Also provides access to lobbying disclosure forms.

The below sources are restricted to UCB ONLY:

The U.S. Congress is required to publish the receipts and expenditures of all its committees, leadership, and members.  Both the House and the Senate publish this information quarterly. 

• Statements of Disbursements of the House -- Available online from 2009-present. 
• Report of the Secretary of the Senate -- Available online from 2011-present.