E-mailing Congress Just Got Harder

In response to a request by the office of Rep. Devin Nunes (R-CA) in January, the House of Representatives last month began to make it harder for interest groups to send large numbers of e-mails to lawmakers. According to the Washington Post, House managers are adding what they call a logic puzzle to the barriers that constituents must overcome before e-mailing members. In addition to a zip code question that proves residency in a Member's district, the system now used by a growing number of lawmakers asks e-mailers to solve a simple numbers problem. For example, "What is 5 minus 1?" Or, "24: What number appears at the beginning of this question?" The idea is that only an actual person would be able to complete the puzzle and automated mass e-mail programs would be unable to blast offices with repeated form messages. About 60 Members have added the logic puzzle feature to their web sites.

Opponents of the questions justifiably worry that by curbing the overall volume of electronic communication e-mails from genuinely concerned constituents will also be restricted.

Ironically, a new loophole in election spending regulations also noted in the Washington Post is likely to produce a flood of unsolicited e-mails to voters -- and extensive complaints about political spam.

Under the loophole, individuals or groups not affiliated with campaigns could use mass e-mailings to affect the outcome of congressional races and remain anonymous. The Federal Election Commission (FEC) voted unanimously March 26 not to regulate political communication on the Internet, including e-mails, blogs and web sites.