It’s been more than a year since the Senate began online streaming of sessions and hearings, many have been asking when the House of Representatives will follow suit.
On Wednesday, during a discussion with House members, Speaker Savali Talavou Ale said now that they have moved to the new Maota Fono, they should consider whether or not to broadcast House sessions and hearings.
He said this was something that House members should think about and next week they will come to a decision
In August of last year, Swains Rep. Su’a Alexander Jennings introduced a resolution requesting that sessions and hearings of the House of representatives be streamed live once the new Fono building is completed.
The resolution points out that live or recorded webcasts of legislative sessions and hearings are available in all 50 state legislatures, and legislatures of the District of Columbia, Northern Marianas, Puerto Rico, and Guam and the American Samoa Senate.
“It is in the public interest and in alignment with the democratic values of transparency, accountability and accessibility that the people of American Samoa can observe the legislative process in real time, whether in person or via electronic means,” says the resolution.
It goes on to day that the new Fale Fono will be equipped with the necessary infrastructure and personnel capable of supporting reliable and professional live streaming of House proceedings.
The resolution requested that the authorization of live streaming of House proceedings be included in House rules, subject to a majority vote of members of the House.
