On March 1, 2007, Rep. Henry A. Waxman along with Reps. Duncan, Clay, Platts, and Emanuel introduced H.R. 1254, the Presidential Library Donation Reform Act of 2007, to require the disclosure of donors to presidential libraries.
- Requiring Disclosure of Donations. Presidential libraries are built using private funds raised by an organization or foundation working on behalf of the president. Under current law, donations for the presidential library can be unlimited in size and are not required to be disclosed. The bill would require that all organizations established for the purpose of raising funds for presidential libraries or their related facilities report on a quarterly basis all contributions of $200 or more.
- Duration of the Disclosure Requirement. Organizations that raise funds for presidential libraries typically begin fundraising while the president remains in office. Before the library is turned over to the National Archives, these organizations must raise enough money to build the library and to provide the Archivist with an endowment for the maintenance of the facility. Under the legislation, organizations fundraising for presidential libraries would be required to disclose their donations while the president is in office and during the period before the federal government has taken possession of the library. The bill sets a minimum reporting period of four years after the end of a president’s term.
- Making Information about Donations Publicly Accessible. Under the bill, presidential library fundraising organizations would be required to disclose to Congress and the Archivist the amount and date of each contribution, the name of the contributor, and if the contributor is an individual, the occupation of the contributor. The National Archives would be required to make the information available to the public through a free, searchable, and downloadable database on the internet.
