Today, the Sam Adams Alliance launched a new website, SunshineReview.org, to over 600 conservative participants and bloggers at the Americans for Prosperity state summit in Austin, Texas. Sunshine Review analyzes government secrecy by evaluating whether if government websites effectively disclose information to the public and media.

"Sunshine Review is a goldmine as it removes the information iron curtain between government and the public," said John Tsarpalas, president of the Sam Adams Alliance. "Whether you're a concerned citizen or a journalist on a deadline, Sunshine Review lets you know if government agencies want to share information with you."

Sunshine Review determines government's commitment to transparency by identifying if the following items are published online:

-- Yearly budgets;

-- Open meeting schedules and minutes;

-- Contact information for elected and administrative officials;

-- Audit reports;

-- Bids and contracts for purchases over $10,000; and

-- Taxpayer-funded lobbying information.

"By creating a new web 2.0 tool for citizens, we are bringing information online that otherwise would have been kept in dusty government storage rooms," said Tsarpalas.

The Sunshine Review website is part of the Sam Adams Alliance's "No Taxation Without Information" campaign to promote greater transparency at the state and local level. Currently, Sunshine Review has 85,550 page views and over 95 contributors.

About Sunshine Review

Sunshine Review is a wiki website designed to call attention to the information gap between citizens and their government, promote the importance of government transparency and openness, and compile existing government information in one easy-to-access resource. Sunshine Review is a project of the Sam Adams Alliance, a new media non-profit based in Chicago.