Publications :  The Watcher :  OMB Watcher Vol. 3: 2002 :  July 8, 2002 Vol. 3 No. 14 : 

In This Issue

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Activist Central Service Allows Easy Access to Congress (07/08/2002)
As part of our newly re-designed website, OMB Watch would like to invite nonprofits to use our Activist Central system. Over the next few issues of the Watcher, we will be highlighting different features of the system.

'April Surprise' Turns Into July Fright As States Begin New Budget Year (07/08/2002)
Last Monday, July 1, marked the start of a new fiscal year for most states, many of which had to resolve large deficits after years of "April Surprises" -- the affectionate name given to the larger-than-expected influx of state income tax revenue each April 15.

OMB Watch Comments on New Performance Evaluation Tool (07/08/2002)
During the past three years, OMB Watch has sought to increase the participation of nonprofit groups in the implementation of the Government Performance and
Results Act (GPRA). On July 3, OMB Watch submitted comments to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) on the recently issued Program Assessment Ratings Tool (PART) arising from the first meeting of the Performance Measurement Advisory Council.


President Signs Debt Ceiling Increase Bill (07/08/2002)
On June 28, after much public and bipartisan hand-wringing, the President quietly signed a $450 billion increase to the debt limit, and thereby allowed the federal government to continue to sell Treasury bonds to help finance its current spending needs. Treasury Secretary Paul O’Neill had warned that without this increase, the U.S. would have to default on its debts for the first time in its history.

Senate Passes E-Gov Bill (07/08/2002)
The Senate unanimously passed legislation on June 27 that pushes the federal government to provide greater Internet access to information and services, authorizing $345 million over the next four years for an e-government fund, just one part of the bill.

Campaign Finance Update (07/08/2002)
Soft Money Going to States, Congressmen Propose Bill for Free Air Time for Candidates, Tax Credit for Small Campaign Contributions, and the Supreme Court Overturns Limits on Judicial Candidates

Final Soft Money Rule Limits Candidate Fundraising for Nonprofits (07/08/2002)
The FEC has approved a final rule implementing the soft money ban in the Bipartisan Campaign Finance Reform Act of 2002 (BCRA), which becomes effective the day after the election this fall. It limits fundraising and donations by federal candidates and political parties for groups exempt under 501(c) that are involved in voter registration and get-out-the-vote (GOTV) efforts for federal elections, even if they are nonpartisan. Fundraising for Political Action Committees (PACs) (exempt under 527 of the tax code) is also prohibited. However, exceptions allow federal candidates to make general solicitations for a 501(c) organization even if it conducts some voter registration and GOTV activity, if that is not its primary purpose, and the funds are not earmarked for it. Federal candidates and political parties can also respond to requests from donors for information about tax-exempt groups that share their "political or philosophical goals."

Final Rule Gives Reason to CARP About Webcasting (07/08/2002)
Nonprofit, commercial, and individual webcasters, along with music industry interests, remain dissatisfied with a recent rule issued on royalty fees for recorded music handed down by the U.S. Copyright Office and Library of Congress, in response to February 2002 recommendations laid out by the federal Copyright Arbitration Review Panel.

Full story: http://www.ombwatch.org/article/articleview/892/1/77/

Senate Committee Passes Bill to Reduce Power-Plant Pollution (07/08/2002)
Legislation requiring significant cuts in emissions from electric power plants, including carbon dioxide, squeaked out of the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee by a vote of 10 to 9 on June 27, over the objections of the Bush administration.

Confidential Interim Report on Chemical Plant Safety Stirs Little Reaction in Congress (07/08/2002)
In 1999, President Clinton signed the Chemical Safety Information, Site Security and Fuels Regulatory Relief Act (P.L. 106-40), and also directed the Justice Department (DOJ) to conduct a study of site security at chemical plants. An interim report on the study was due August 5, 2000, and the final report was to be completed by August of 2002. DOJ missed the first deadline, offering a lack of funding as the excuse for not getting the interim report out on time.

Hearings All Around, But Is Anyone Really Listening (07/08/2002)
Hearings continue in both the House and Senate on the Administration’s Homeland Security proposal. Since introducing the President’s proposal to create a cabinet-level Department of Homeland Security, Tom Ridge, Director of Homeland Security, has testified almost nonstop before numerous congressional committees. Yet even with these many hearings on the biggest bureaucratic reshuffling in decades the President’s bill seems to have avoided serious criticism from Congress.

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