Read the bill, Congress — is that too much to ask?

Let’s say you’re considering an expensive decision. Maybe you’re thinking of buying a house or a car. Maybe you’re choosing a college or thinking of changing jobs. How long would you ponder?

Overnight?

A couple days?

Maybe a whole week?

Now let’s say you were considering a really expensive decision – a multi-billion-dollar decision, like your elected representatives in Congress routinely do. Wouldn’t you want a little time to consider the facts and make up your mind?

Like, 72 hours — just three days.

Is that too much to ask? 

Read The Bill from Sunlight Foundation on Vimeo.

No, it’s not. And that’s why the Center for Responsive Politics and a coalition of organizations of all stripes and missions is petitioning Congress to enforce the 72 Hour Rule – don’t vote on any non-emergency legislation that hasn’t been publicly available on the Internet, in its complete form, for at least three days. Routinely Congress gives itself mere hours to consider hundreds of pages — the recent stimulus bill was 1,100 pages long and got passed in 13 hours. Unless we start electing speed-readers, the result of this haste will continue to be wasteful spending, unintended consequences and hidden provisions becoming law.

Here’s what we’re asking of you: Sign the online petition supporting the 72 Hour Rule. You’ll find it at ReadtheBill.org, a project of our friends at the Sunlight Foundation. Once you’ve signed, send the petition along to folks you know.

Is that too much to ask?