[DOCID: f:sr202.110]
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110th Congress
1st Session SENATE Report
110-202
_______________________________________________________________________
Calendar No. 435
PRESIDENTIAL LIBRARY DONATION REFORM ACT OF 2007
__________
R E P O R T
of the
COMMITTEE ON HOMELAND SECURITY AND
GOVERNMENTAL AFFAIRS
UNITED STATES SENATE
to accompany
H.R. 1254
TO AMEND TITLE 44, UNITED STATES CODE, TO REQUIRE INFORMATION ON
CONTRIBUTORS TO PRESIDENTIAL LIBRARY FUNDRAISING ORGANIZATIONS
<GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT>
October 22, 2007.--Ordered to be printed
COMMITTEE ON HOMELAND SECURITY AND GOVERNMENTAL AFFAIRS
JOSEPH I. LIEBERMAN, Connecticut, Chairman
CARL LEVIN, Michigan SUSAN M. COLLINS, Maine
DANIEL K. AKAKA, Hawaii TED STEVENS, Alaska
THOMAS R. CARPER, Delaware GEORGE V. VOINOVICH, Ohio
MARK L. PRYOR, Arkansas NORM COLEMAN, Minnesota
MARY L. LANDRIEU, Louisiana TOM COBURN, Oklahoma
BARACK OBAMA, Illinois PETE V. DOMENICI, New Mexico
CLAIRE McCASKILL, Missouri JOHN WARNER, Virginia
JON TESTER, Montana JOHN E. SUNUNU, New Hampshire
Michael L. Alexander, Staff Director
Kevin J. Landy, Chief Counsel
Troy H. Cribb, Counsel
Brandon L. Milhorn, Minority Staff Director and Chief Counsel
John K. Grant, Minority Professional Staff Member
Trina Driessnack Tyrer, Chief Clerk
C O N T E N T S
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Page
I. Purpose and Summary..............................................1
II. Background and Need for the Legislation..........................2
III. Legislative History..............................................3
IV. Section-by-Section Analysis......................................4
V. Evaluation of Regulatory Impact..................................5
VI. Congressional Budget Office Cost Estimate........................5
VII. Changes in Existing Law Made by the Bill, as Reported............7
Calendar No. 435
110th Congress Report
SENATE
1st Session 110-202
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PRESIDENTIAL LIBRARY DONATION REFORM ACT OF 2007
_______
October 22, 2007.--Ordered to be printed
_______
Mr. Lieberman, from the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental
Affairs, submitted the following
R E P O R T
[To accompany H.R. 1254]
The Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental
Affairs, to which was referred the bill (H.R. 1254) to amend
title 44, United States Code, to require information on
contributors to Presidential library fundraising organizations,
reports favorably thereon with amendments and recommends that
the bill do pass.
I. Purpose and Summary
H.R. 1254 is a bill to amend title 44, United States Code,
to require any organization that is established for the purpose
of raising funds for creating, maintaining, expanding, or
conducting activities at a Presidential archival depository or
any facilities relating to a Presidential archival depository
to disclose the sources and amounts of any funds raised, and
for other purposes. Under existing law, current and former
Presidents, through privately established foundations, are free
to raise unlimited amounts of money from undisclosed sources to
fund the construction and maintenance of their Presidential
libraries and related facilities. H.R. 1254 would amend the
Presidential Libraries Act (44 U.S.C. 2112) to make the
fundraising process for Presidential libraries open to public
scrutiny by requiring the disclosure of the sources and amounts
of certain donations made during and after a President's term
in office.
II. Background and Need for the Legislation
HISTORY OF THE PRESIDENTIAL LIBRARY SYSTEM
The Presidential library system formally began in 1939,
when President Franklin D. Roosevelt developed the concept of a
federally maintained Presidential library to house his
Presidential papers and other historical materials. Friends of
President Roosevelt formed a corporation to raise funds for the
construction of a library located on the grounds of his family
home in Hyde Park, New York. President Roosevelt's decision to
create a library came from his belief that Presidential papers
are an important part of the Nation's heritage and should be
accessible to the public. Today the National Archives and
Records Administration (NARA) administers a nationwide network
of Presidential libraries, beginning with the 31st President of
the United States, Herbert Hoover. The libraries are a valuable
resource for historians, academics, researchers and the public.
The Presidential Libraries Act of 1955 (P.L. 84-373)
established the basic policy for creating federally maintained
Presidential libraries. To establish a Presidential library,
friends, family members and associates of an incumbent
President generally establish a private foundation or other
organization to receive contributions to obtain a site and to
construct the facility. Once completed, the facility is turned
over, along with an operating endowment, to NARA, which is
headed by the Archivist of the United States. NARA operates and
maintains Presidential libraries using the operating endowment
(described below) and federally appropriated funds. The
libraries are typically located either in the former
President's hometown or on a university campus. They house the
official records and papers of former Presidents, as well as
documentary materials of the President's family and associates.
To address concerns about the increasing taxpayer cost of
Presidential libraries, Congress amended the Presidential
Libraries Act in 1986 (P.L. 99-323), establishing certain
reporting requirements for NARA, architectural and design
conditions, and fiscal limitations regarding future
Presidential libraries, including a requirement that an
operating endowment be provided. The endowment requirement is
intended to offset the building operation costs and to reduce
the amount of appropriations needed for building operations.
That endowment was set at 20% of the cost of the building for
libraries of 70,000 square feet or less, and for larger
facilities this percentage increases in accordance with the
size of the facility. The Consolidated Appropriations Act of
2003 increased the required endowment to at least 40% of the
cost of the building for future presidents (P.L. 108-7).\1\
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\1\The new requirements apply to ``any President who takes the oath
of office as President for the first time on or after July 1, 2002.''
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THE NEED FOR DISCLOSURE OF PRESIDENTIAL LIBRARY DONATIONS
Over the years, Presidential libraries have evolved into
multi-purpose institutes that, in addition to housing the
official papers of a former President, can include museums,
conference facilities, and classrooms. The cost of these
facilities can be substantial. Press accounts indicate that the
George H.W. Bush library center cost $83 million to build, the
William J. Clinton library center cost $165 million to build,
and George W. Bush library and think tank in Texas may cost as
much as $500 million.\2\
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\2\See A Room of His Own, The Economist (Mar. 15, 2007); SMU Has
the Inside Track on Presidential Library, The Fort Worth Star-Telegram
(Dec. 22, 2006); Bush's Dream Library, National Journal (Dec. 2, 2006);
House Bill Could Force Library Donors Out of Shadows, The Hill (Nov.
29, 2006).
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Fund-raising for Presidential libraries can begin well
before a President leaves office. Under current law, there are
no limits on the amount of money Presidents and their
associates may raise for a Presidential library, no constraints
on when fund-raising may begin, and no limits on the size of
donations. Foreign governments, foreign individuals, and
foreign corporations are not prohibited from making donations
to Presidential libraries. Unlike the disclosure of
contributions to federal campaigns under the Federal Election
Campaign Act (2 U.S.C. Sec. Sec. 431 et seq.) or the disclosure
of the amounts of interested parties spend to lobby Congress
and the federal government under the Lobbying Disclosure Act (2
U.S.C. Sec. Sec. 1601 et seq.), there is no requirement that
Presidential libraries disclose donations. Under the Honest
Leadership and Open Government Act of 2007 (P.L. 110-81),
registered lobbyists will be required, beginning in 2008, to
disclose on a semiannual basis contributions equal to or
exceeding $200 made to Presidential library foundations.
Building on this first step toward disclosure, H.R. 1254 will
create a comprehensive reporting system.
Witnesses at a March 1, 2007 hearing conducted by the House
Committee on Oversight and Government Reform supported the need
for disclosure of presidential library donations. They argued
that undisclosed contributions create a perception of
impropriety and noted the benefits of disclosure to public
confidence in the political process. Sheila Krumholz, the
Executive Director of the Center for Responsive Politics
testified:
Herein lies the central concern: that those who donate
money to presidential libraries will in return receive
special access to, and favors from, the president and
the federal government. To minimize the potential for
that sort of payback, and to build trust among a
citizenry that already questions the ethics of elected
officials, public disclosure of contributions to
presidential library projects seems both appropriate
and wise.
Celia Viggo Wexler, Vice President for Advocacy of Common
Cause, stated in her testimony that requiring disclosure is
important even after a President leaves office because many
former Presidents are active and influential in the public
sphere. Ms. Wexler noted that ``[g]iven the increasingly
ambitious scope of the presidential libraries and museums,
centers, and other entities linked to them, presidential
fundraising may continue long after structures are built, and
decades after a president held office.''
III. Legislative History
H.R. 1254 was introduced on March 1, 2007, and referred to
the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, which held a
hearing on contributions to Presidential libraries on March 1,
2007. The witnesses were Sharon Fawcett, Assistant Archivist
for Presidential Records, National Archives and Records
Administration; Celia Viggo Wexler, Vice President for
Advocacy, Common Cause; and Sheila Krumholz, Executive
Director, Center for Responsive Politics. The Committee on
Oversight and Government Reform held a markup to consider H.R.
1254 on March 8, 2007, and ordered the bill to be reported by
voice vote. On March 14, 2007, the House passed H.R. 1254 under
suspension of the rules by a vote of 390 to 34.
On March 15, 2007, the bill was received in the Senate and
referred to the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental
Affairs. On August 1, 2007, the Committee considered H.R. 1254
and ordered the bill reported favorably by voice vote as
amended by the amendment offered by Chairman Lieberman. The
Lieberman amendment, which was approved by voice vote, provided
separate requirements for disclosure of donations while a
President is in office and, after a President leaves office,
when NARA has assumed responsibility for the facility.
IV. Section-by-Section Analysis
Section 1. Short title
This section provides that the short title of H.R. 1254 is
the ``Presidential Library Donation Reform Act of 2007.''
Sec. 2. Presidential libraries
Subsection 2(a) adds a new subsection (h) to section 2112
of title 44, United States Code.
Subsection (h)(1)(A) requires Presidential library
fundraising organizations to submit, on a quarterly basis,
information about every contributor who gave the organization
contributions (whether monetary or in-kind) totaling $200 or
more during the quarterly period, with respect to a
Presidential archival depository (including a depository of a
sitting President) which has not been turned over to NARA. This
amount parallels the threshold for disclosing contributions to
federal political committees under the Federal Election
Campaign Act, 2 U.S.C. Sec. 434(b). Subsection (h)(1)(B)
requires the reporting of contributions (whether monetary or
in-kind) totaling $1,250 or more for the quarterly period with
respect to a Presidential archive which has been turned over to
NARA. This threshold corresponds, on an annual basis, to the
requirement that tax-exempt foundations must keep and report to
the IRS information regarding certain contributions totaling
$5,000 or more per year on IRS Form 990-PF, Schedule B.
Subsection (h)(2) establishes that those reports should be
made to NARA, the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform
in the House of Representatives, and the Committee on Homeland
Security and Governmental Affairs in the Senate and requires
that information to be provided by April 15, July 15, October
15, and January 15 (for the fourth quarterly filing).
Subsection (h)(2)(C) establishes that reporting will
continue during the lifetime of the President whose archives
benefit from fundraising of a Presidential library fundraising
organization.
Subsection (h)(3)(A) defines a Presidential library
fundraising organization as any organization established for
the purpose of raising funds for creating, maintaining,
expanding or conducting activities at a Presidential archival
depository or related facilities. Subsection (h)(3)(B)
establishes that Presidential library fundraising organizations
must submit the amount of each contribution, the name and
address of the donor, the date of the contribution, and, if the
donor is an individual, the occupation of the donor.
Subsection (h)(4) requires the Archivist to make the
information submitted publicly available in a free, searchable,
sortable, downloadable database.
Subsection (h)(5)(A) prohibits a contributor from knowingly
and willfully submitting false material information or omitting
material information with respect to a contribution. Under
subsection (h)(5)(B), a violation of (h)(5)(A) is treated as a
felony, subject to the penalties described in 18 U.S.C.
Sec. 1001.
Subsection (h)(6)(A) prohibits an organization receiving
contributions for a Presidential library from knowingly and
willfully submitting false material information, or omitting
material information, regarding contributions required to be
disclosed under this bill. Under subsection (h)(6)(B), a
violation of subsection (h)(6)(A) is treated as a felony,
subject to the penalties described in 18 U.S.C. Sec. 1001.
Subsection (h)(7)(A) prohibits any person from knowingly
and willfully making a contribution to a Presidential library
in the name of another person or permitting his or her name to
be used to make such a contribution. This subsection also
prohibits the knowing and willful acceptance of contributions
made by one person in the name of another person. Under
subsection (h)(7)(B), a violation of subsection (h)(7)(A) is
subject to the penalties set forth in 2 U.S.C. Sec. 437g(d),
the Federal Election Campaign Act, and is treated as if the
violation were a violation of 2 U.S.C. Sec. 441b(b)(3) of that
Act, a cross-reference that operates to apply the sanctions
described in section 437g(d)(1)(B).
Subsection (h)(8) authorizes NARA to promulgate regulations
to implement the provisions of subsection (h).
Section 2(b) of H.R. 1254 provides that the bill covers
organizations that were established to raise funds for a
Presidential library before, on or after the date of enactment
of this bill. It also provides that the requirement to disclose
information about contributions applies only to contributions
made after the date of the bill's enactment.
V. Evaluation of Regulatory Impact
Pursuant to the requirements of paragraph 11(b) of rule
XXVI of the Standing Rules of the Senate, the Committee has
considered the regulatory impact of this bill. The enactment of
this legislation will not have significant regulatory impact.
VI. Congressional Budget Office Estimate
August 16, 2007.
Hon. Joseph I. Lieberman,
Chairman, Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs, U.S.
Senate, Washington, DC.
Dear Mr. Chairman: The Congressional Budget Office has
prepared the enclosed cost estimate for H.R. 1254, the
Presidential Library Donation Reform Act of 2007.
If you wish further details on this estimate, we will be
pleased to provide them. The CBO staff contacts are Matthew
Pickford (for federal costs) and Paige Piper/Bach (for the
private-sector impact).
Sincerely,
Peter R. Orszag.
Enclosure.
H.R. 1254--Presidential Library Donation Reform Act of 2007
H.R. 1254 would require any organization that raises funds
for a Presidential library to disclose the sources and amounts
of such funds on a quarterly basis. The legislation would apply
to donations of $200 or greater while the current President is
in office and during the period before the federal government
takes possession of the library. After the federal government
takes possession of the library, this reporting requirement
would continue for any donations of $1,250 or more during the
President's lifetime. Additionally, H.R. 1254 would require
fund-raising organizations to provide this information to the
National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) and the
Congress. The legislation would direct NARA to make this
information public in a freely available searchable database.
Finally, H.R. 1254 would establish criminal penalties,
including fines, for violations of its provisions.
Based on information from NARA, CBO estimates that
implementing H.R. 1254 would cost $1 million in 2008 and about
$5 million over the 2008-2012 period, assuming appropriation of
the necessary amounts. That estimate assumes NARA would spend
$1 million in 2008 to establish the proposed database and
$800,000 annually thereafter to update and maintain it. We also
estimate that any increases in federal spending for law
enforcement, court proceedings, or prison operations related to
criminal violations under H.R. 1254, which would be subject to
appropriation, would be insignificant.
Enacting the legislation could affect direct spending and
receipts, but we estimate that any impact would not be
significant. Because those prosecuted and convicted under H.R.
1254 could be subject to criminal fines, the federal government
might collect additional fines if the legislation is enacted.
Collections of such fines are recorded in the budget as
revenues, which are deposited in the Crime Victims Fund and
later spent. CBO expects that any additional receipts and
direct spending under H.R. 1254 would be negligible because of
the small number of cases involved.
H.R. 1254 contains no intergovernmental mandates as defined
in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act (UMRA) and would not affect
the budgets of state, local, or tribal governments.
H.R. 1254 would impose a private-sector mandate, as defined
in UMRA, on organizations established for the purpose of
raising funds for a Presidential library. The legislation would
require those organizations to submit quarterly reports to the
Administration and certain Congressional committees detailing
the sources and amounts of certain contributions they receive.
The reports would have to be submitted for a period of time as
determined by conditions in the legislation. The cost for such
organizations to report the mandated information would be
minimal. CBO estimates, therefore, that the direct cost of the
mandate would fall well below the annual threshold established
by UMRA for private-sector mandates ($131 million in 2007,
adjusted annually for inflation).
On March 9, 2007, CBO transmitted a cost estimate for H.R.
1254 as ordered reported by the House Committee on Oversight
and Government Reform on March 8, 2007. The two versions of the
legislation are substantively similar, and our estimates of
impacts on the federal budget and the private sector are the
same.
The CBO staff contacts for this estimate are Matthew
Pickford (for federal costs) and Paige Piper/Bach (for the
private-sector impact). This estimate was approved by Peter H.
Fontaine, Assistant Director for Budget Analysis.
VII. Changes in Existing Law Made by the Bill, as Reported
In compliance with paragraph 12 of rule XXVI of the
Standing Rules of the Senate, changes in existing law made by
H.R. 1254 as reported are shown as follows (existing law
proposed to be omitted is enclosed in brackets, new matter is
printed in italic, and existing law in which no change is
proposed is shown in roman):
UNITED STATES CODE
TITLE 44--PUBLIC PRINTING AND DOCUMENTS
* * * * * * *
CHAPTER 21--NATIONAL ARCHIVES AND RECORDS ADMINISTRATION
* * * * * * *
Sec. 2112. Presidential archival depository
* * * * * * *
(h)(1) Any Presidential library fundraising organization
shall submit on a quarterly basis, in accordance with paragraph
(2), information with respect to every contributor who--
(A) with respect to a Presidential archival
depository (including a depository of a President who
currently holds the Office of President) for which the
Archivist has not accepted, taken title to, or entered
into an agreement to use any land or facility for the
archival depository, gave the organization a
contribution or contributions (whether monetary or in-
kind) totaling $200 or more for the quarterly period;
or
(B) with respect to a Presidential archival
depository for which the Archivist has accepted, taken
title to, or entered into an agreement to use any land
or facility for the archival depository, gave the
organization a contribution or contributions (whether
monetary or in-kind) totaling $1,250 or more for the
quarterly period.
(2) For purposes of paragraph (1)--
(A) the entities to which information shall be
submitted under that paragraph are the Administration,
the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform of the
House of Representatives, and the Committee on Homeland
Security and Governmental Affairs of the Senate;
(B) the dates by which information shall be submitted
under that paragraph are April 15, July 15, October 15,
and January 15 of each year and of the following year
(for the fourth quarterly filing);
(C) the requirement to submit information under that
paragraph shall continue to apply to a Presidential
library fundraising organization during the lifetime of
the President whose archives benefit from such
fundraising.
(3) In this subsection:
(A) The term ``Presidential library fundraising
organization'' means an organization that is
established for the purpose of raiding funds for
creating, maintaining, expanding, or conducting
activities at--
(i) a Presidential archival depository; or
(ii) any facilities relating to a
Presidential archival depository.
(B) The term ``information'' means the following:
(i) The amount or value of each contribution
made by a contributor referred to in paragraph
(1) in the quarter covered by the submission.
(ii) The source of each such contribution,
and the address of the entity or individual
that is the source of the contribution.
(iii) If the source of such a contribution is
an individual, the occupation of the
individual.
(iv) the date of each such contribution.
(4) The Archivist shall make available to the public
through the Internet (or successor technology readily available
to the public) as soon as is practicable after each quarterly
filing any information that is submitted under paragraph (1).
The information shall be made available without a fee or other
access charge, in a searchable, sortable, and downloadable
database.
(5)(A) It shall be unlawful for any person who makes a
contribution described in paragraph (1) to knowingly and
willfully submit false material information or omit material
information with respect to the contribution to an organization
described in such paragraph.
(B) The penalties described in section 1001 of title 18,
United States Code, shall apply with respect to a violation of
subparagraph (A) in the same manner as a violation described in
such section.
(6)(A) It shall be unlawful for any Presidential library
fundraising organization to knowingly and willfully submit
false material information or omit material information under
paragraph (1).
(B) The penalties described in section 1001 of title 18,
United States Code, shall apply with respect to a violation of
subparagraph (A) in the same manner as a violation described in
such section.
(7)(A) It shall be unlawful for a person to knowingly and
willfully--
(i) make a contribution described in paragraph (1) in
the name of another person;
(ii) permit his or her name to be used to effect a
contribution described in paragraph (1); or
(iii) accept a contribution described in paragraph
(1) that is made by one person in the name of another
person.
(B) The penalties set forth in section 309(d) of the
Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 (2 U.S.C. 437g(d)) shall
apply to a violation of subparagraph (A) in the same manner as
if such violation were a violation of section 316(b)(3) of such
Act (2 U.S.C. 441b(b)(3)).
(8) The Archivist shall promulgate regulations for the
purpose of carrying out this subsection.
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