Publications :  The Watcher :  OMB Watcher Vol. 5: 2004 :  March 8, 2004 Vol.5, No.5 : 

In This Issue

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No Budget is Better than the Senate Budget (03/08/2004)
The budget resolution approved last week by the Senate Budget Committee has nothing good to recommend it. It will hand more tax breaks to the extremely wealthy while slashing assistance to low-income working families and children. Funds for education, housing, the environment and a host of other services that benefit ordinary Americans will also be cut. Ironically, in spite of all these cuts, the committee?s resolution will increase -- not reduce -- the deficit.

OMB Watch Makes Available Detailed Budget Data (03/08/2004)
Over the past two weeks, OMB Watch has posted detailed breakdowns of budgetary data.


Bad Budget Rule Changes Could Still be Proposed (03/08/2004)
The Senate budget being debated this week includes only a two-year cap on appropriations, and continues Senate pay-go rules that apply to both entitlement increases and tax cuts. However, concern over other changes in budget rules remains.

Economy and Jobs Watch: Labor Market Still Struggling (03/08/2004)
The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) announced last week that employment grew by only 21,000 jobs in February, and the unemployment rate remained unchanged at 5.6 percent.


DOJ Explains CII's Impact on FOIA (03/08/2004)
The Department of Justice (DOJ) released a memo explaining the impacts of a new Critical Infrastructure Information (CII) rule on the implementation of the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) throughout the federal government. The rule DOJ refers to was an interim final rule published by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), which restricts public disclosure and government action on voluntarily submitted information about infrastructure vulnerabilities and problems.

FERC Claims CEII Not A Problem for Public Access (03/08/2004)
The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) quietly issued a Feb. 12 notice soliciting public comments on the functions and procedures of the agency’s new restrictive information rule, Critical Energy Infrastructure Information (CEII).

FEC Begins Rulemaking on Scope of Regulation (03/08/2004)

In preparation for this rulemaking, the Alliance for Justice, Charity Lobbying in the Public Interest, the National Council of Nonprofit Associations, the National Committee for Responsive Philanthropy and OMB Watch developed four principles that we believe must be incorporated into any rule the FEC adopts. The principles are available at www.nonprofitadvocacy.org

Click here to see the FEC's Federal Register Announcment.

On March 4, the Federal Election Commission (FEC) approved issuance of a proposal that would establish a new threshold for when an organization becomes a regulated political committee, subject to fundraising and spending rules under the Federal Election Campaign Act. Several Commissioners and the General Counsel made it clear that they do not necessarily recommend the proposal, but feel it represents important issues that need public comment. The effect of the rule would be to greatly expand the scope of regulation, possibly reaching groups that are exempt under 501(c)(3) and 501(c)(4) of the tax code. The proposal contains several alternatives and a host of questions for comment.

FEC Defends "Issue Ad" Regulations in Federal Lawsuit (03/08/2004)
Briefs were filed in federal district court on Feb. 27 by Reps. Chris Shays (R-CT) and Martin Meehan (D-MA) and the Federal Election Commission (FEC) in a case challenging regulations implementing the Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act of 2002 (BCRA). At issue are regulations on soft money, defining illegal coordination between campaigns and outside groups and exemptions to the prohibition on broadcasts that mention federal candidates in the period before elections (called ?electioneering communications? in BCRA.) The regulations approved by the FEC exempt unpaid broadcasts and groups operating under Section 501(c)(3) of the tax code from the electioneering communications ban.

Faith-based Roundup (03/08/2004)
From federal suits to administrative action, Bush’s faith-based initiative remains in the public spotlight.

Possible House Hearings on Exempt Status for 501(c) Groups (03/08/2004)
In a March 2 speech to the Federation of American Hospitals, House Ways and Means Committee Chair Bill Thomas (R-CA) said he wants the committee to investigate the benefits tax exempt groups give taxpayers, and consider whether more specific requirements should be imposed in exchange for exempt status. A committee spokesman said nothing has been scheduled.

Study on Grants by Conservative Foundations Published by NCRP (03/08/2004)
The National Committee for Responsive Philanthropy has published Axis of Ideology: Conservative Foundations and Public Policy, a follow up to its 1997 report on conservative philanthropy. The research showed that conservative foundations continue to be more likely to provide flexible core operating and long-term support to their grantees than other foundations. In a March 3 press release, NCRP deputy director Jeff Krehely said these foundations “focus their grantmaking on a small number of grantees with an eye toward investing in and sustaining existing politically conservative policy centers, and they fearlessly support and promote organizations that lobby their conservative ideas aggressively in state capitals and in Washington.”

IRS Seeks comments on Form 8453 for Exempt Organizations (03/08/2004)
The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) is soliciting comments from the public concerning Form 8453-EO, Exempt Organization Declaration and Signature for Electronic Filing.

President Bush Stacks Council on Bioethics (03/08/2004)
On Feb. 27, President Bush dismissed two handpicked members of his Council on Bioethics who had publicly supported human embryonic stem cell research -- which the president opposes -- and replaced them with three members who can be counted on to fall in line.

Report Details Bush Donors, Industry Paybacks (03/08/2004)
The Bush-Cheney re-election effort has received $58.1 million from “Rangers” and “Pioneers” (those able to bundle contributions of at least $200,000 or $100,000) who overwhelmingly represent corporate special interests, according to a new report by Public Citizen.

U.S. Wearing Blinders on Global Warming (03/08/2004)
Ironically, just months after the business-friendly Bush administration squelched the climate change section of the Environmental Protection Agency’s report on the environment, the world’s second largest insurer released a report revealing how climate change is rising on the corporate agenda.

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