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Yesterday President Obama hailed the release of the open government plans by all Cabinet agencies. The President recognized that innovation flourishes in an open environment, where we work collaboratively to share new ideas and ingenuity from a wide array of contributors for the betterment of our nation.
These plans are the agencies’ strategic roadmap for making openness -- transparency, citizen participation, and collaboration -- part of the way that the federal government works. Aneesh Chopra and Norm Eisen posted the announcement yesterday. Today we want to tell you more about what you will find in these Open Government Plans that are nothing short of an historic effort by the Executive Branch to change the culture of Washington for the better by inviting the American people into a collaboration: government of, for, by and now with the people.
The plans are chock full of examples of concrete efforts -- not lip service -- to making open government happen in practice and creating genuine opportunity for meaningful and practical civic engagement.Transparency
Transparency is one of the core principles of democracy. By communicating what we do and how we do it, we can foster accountability and trust in government. This is why it is exciting that Housing and Urban Development is recording all public events and making them available online. The Department of Education is publishing Secretary Arne Duncan’s schedule for all to see. Social Security is unveiling new tools on its website to help people (including Spanish speakers) more easily find information and services on the web and, in the event they aren’t web-literate to schedule an in-office appointment.
The agencies have also been tasked with making the data and information they hold available online in open formats. The Department of Labor announced the release of its new Online Enforcement Database – making all workplace safety data searchable and available in one place and, perhaps more important, a schedule with accountable milestones for identifying and posting even more data. Health and Human Services is publishing a large-scale community health data set -- a wealth of easily accessible, downloadable information data on community health care costs, quality, access, and public health.
Department of Justice is building a “Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) Dashboard” to “shine a light” on the government’s compliance with FOIA. Not only will this visual report promote transparency, it should encourage Departments to compete to improve their FOIA compliance. Already two more Departments -- Health and Human Services and Department of Energy -- announced new FOIA programs in their plans to ensure that the public gets the information they request faster.
Participation
The agency open government plans also detail how government officials (without the need for legislation, regulation, or new budgets) are breaking down barriers between government and the public and inviting greater public participation in agency decisionmaking. For example, the Environmental Protection Agency is making citizen participation in its work the hallmark of its plan. Planned community engagement projects include everything from urban waters to solid waste and emergency response. U.S. Department of Agriculture is also ramping up its participation efforts in connection with the rules by which the nation plans its national forests. Department of Energy is creating the first ever open energy information platform that not only provisions government data about energy but invites the public to participate and share its data in an effort to create more informed energy usage and promote energy savings. The National Science Foundation’s flagship is to invest in studying citizen participation best practices and thereby help every agency do more participation better!
Collaboration
Working together within departments, across agencies and with private sector partners is a fundament of the open government initiative, which looks for strategies to generate creative thinking and new ideas to address complex problems. The White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP), where I am at home, created a new physical office space -- we’ve gotten rid of walls and cubes -- and work in a collaborative physical environment to foster collaboration within OSTP. Department of Housing and Urban Development has committed to a collaborative effort across federal, state, and local government to share information and thereby prevent the spread of homelessness. NASA has created the contributor license agreement, a special contract to encourage software developers to contribute to ongoing NASA projects and, in turn, have the benefit of access to NASA technologies. This is just one part of NASA’s participatory space exploration efforts that engage the public in the work and the fun of space activities. GSA is making a lot of this collaboration possible by supplying web-based collaboration platforms to every agency that wants one.
This is just a handful of the many and varied projects underway. Because each agency is doing its own plan, we will get the benefit of distributed innovation. One will try webcasting and another a data transparency initiative and then be able to learn from one another.
So please dig in! Adopt a plan. Read it. And tell us how we can do things better. In the process, we hope to reinvigorate a shared sense of civic virtue born out of a common love for this democracy.
To find a list of all the plans go to: http://www.whitehouse.gov/open/around
To read highlights of the plans go to: http://www.whitehouse.gov/open/documents/flagship-initiativesBeth Noveck is United States Deputy Chief Technology Officer and Director of the White House Open Government Initiative
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As you know, on February 9th the President created a new interagency Childhood Obesity Task Force. The task force is working right now on an action plan for solving the problem of childhood obesity in a generation. (You can see the full Presidential Memorandum creating the Task Force and requesting the action plan within 90 days here.)
We want to receive the best ideas from around the country about what this action plan should look like and what the most important steps are that we can all take to achieve this goal. That’s why we asked everyone to submit written comments a few weeks ago, and the response was overwhelming. We received over 2500 comments not just from researchers and experts but also from parents, teachers, and people from all walks of life who have a stake in our children’s future.
And now we want to hear from people in person. This Friday we’ve invited a broad array of experts, industry leaders, and people who work on these issues every day in their communities to come to a meeting at the White House to share with us their specific ideas about how to empower parents to make healthy choices for their children, provide healthy food at schools, improve access to healthy, affordable food in local communities, and get kids more physically active.
You can watch tomorrow’s discussion live on WhiteHouse.gov/live. We’ll be meeting from 1:30-5:00PM EDT and we’d love for you to listen in. We need everybody thinking about what we can do together to solve this problem.
Melody Barnes is Assistant to the President for Domestic Policy
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Yesterday, all cabinet agencies, and others including my home, the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy, reported to the American people detailed plans on how they would demonstrate the President’s vision for a Washington that works -- a government that is more transparent, participatory and collaborative.
We began this journey on the President’s first full day in office when he signed a Memorandum on Transparency and Open Government. By December, following an unprecedented dialogue with the American people in crafting recommendations, Peter Orszag, OMB Director, issued an Open Government Directive directing agencies to reflect the President’s vision in their own words.
The Directive demanded action measured in weeks, not years. It tasked me, along with my colleague, Federal CIO Vivek Kundra, with holding agencies accountable through the publication of an online dashboard. While today marks the final set of deliverables formally outlined in the Directive, Vivek and I view it as the beginning of our journey to instill these values into the culture of Washington.
Here’s our plan to do so:
First, Vivek and I, along with others in the White House, will assess agency Open Government plans against the criteria contained within the Open Government Directive and will publish our findings on the dashboard.
The results of this assessment will be released by no later than May 1st. Watch this blog for interim updates as we proceed with the evaluation.
Second, we also invite you to be a part of the feedback process to the agencies. We hope and trust that independent experts, stakeholders and the American people will review and comment on the plans, including how they can improve as they are revised moving forward Please share your thoughts on each agency’s Open Government Plan by visiting the agency websites and providing your comments. Each agency designed their plan to reflect its approach to openness and they and we will actively seek your input as we deliver on the President’s promise to change the way Washington works.
Third, we and our colleagues will review agency nominations for achievement of leading practices to celebrate outstanding efforts that will inspire others through a “race to the top” among government agencies in the practice of openness.
As background, a group of agency leaders within the Open Government Working Group, led by Todd Park, the Chief Technology Officer for the Department of Health and Human Services, after consultation with outside experts, developed an aspirational set of Open Government Leading Practices. They focused on four major categories:
- Leadership, Governance and Culture Change
- Transparency
- Participation and Collaboration
- Flagship Initiative
By April 19th, agencies will be eligible to nominate specific initiatives within their plan for recognition under Leading Practices. By May 1st, we will recognize agencies on the Open Government Dashboard.
Thanks, in advance, for your participation. You can always send us e-mail at opengov@ostp.gov.
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Earlier this week I had the opportunity to visit Orlando to see first-hand some of the sustainability initiatives the city has underway through the Green Works Orlando program. Green Works Orlando is a citywide plan to promote environmental conservation and stewardship, energy efficiency in homes and businesses, and outdoor green spaces. Like Orlando, cities across the country are doing exciting and innovative things to make their communities greener and more sustainable.
My first stop was at one of Orlando's six LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) certified fire stations. With a focus on energy efficiency and sustainability, the fire station has employed innovative techniques to save energy and conserve water. For example, the lighting and hot water are powered through rooftop solar panels, a cistern system collects rain water for use in the station's toilets, and native plant species, which require less water, are planted around the fire station -- including on the green roof.
Nancy Sutley visits Fire Station 1, one of Orlando's six LEED certified fire stations. April 5, 2010.
In the afternoon, I toured the Iron Bridge Regional Water Reclamation Facility, where the city is testing technology for an innovative process to reuse water. It also creates byproducts, such as clean sand and recovered metals, which can then possibly be sold in established markets. Additionally, the process generates a significant amount of heat energy, which can be captured and used to generate electricity.
Under President Obama's Executive Order 13514 on Federal Leadership in Environmental, Energy, and Economic Performance, we will improve energy efficiency, conserve water, reduce waste, use less petroleum in our vehicle fleets, and leverage Federal purchasing power to promote environmentally-responsible products and technologies.
Over the past 15 months, I've had the chance to travel coast to coast seeing first-hand how the United States is building a greener future. Communities across the nation are planting the seeds of a new prosperity -- one that is based on the promise of good, high-paying, American clean energy jobs. Together, with the hard work and innovation that have always defined Americans, we are on our way to a healthier, more prosperous future.
Nancy Sutley is the Chair of the White House Council on Environmental Quality
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Earlier today, President Obama and President Medvedev of Russia signed the New START treaty and its protocol. PDF versions of these documents are available here:
UPDATED with video:
playThe New START Treaty
A behind the scenes look at one year of negotiations between President Barack Obama and Russian President Dmitry Medvedev leading up to the signing of a strategic arms reduction pact.
1 of 31After signing these documents, both presidents gave remarks and answered questions. Read the full transcript, video will be posted here later today. An excerpt of President Obama's opening remarks is below:
Finally, this day demonstrates the determination of the United States and Russia -- the two nations that hold over 90 percent of the world’s nuclear weapons -- to pursue responsible global leadership. Together, we are keeping our commitments under the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, which must be the foundation for global non-proliferation.
While the New START treaty is an important first step forward, it is just one step on a longer journey. As I said last year in Prague, this treaty will set the stage for further cuts. And going forward, we hope to pursue discussions with Russia on reducing both our strategic and tactical weapons, including non-deployed weapons.
President Medvedev and I have also agreed to expand our discussions on missile defense. This will include regular exchanges of information about our threat assessments, as well as the completion of a joint assessment of emerging ballistic missiles. And as these assessments are completed, I look forward to launching a serious dialogue about Russian-American cooperation on missile defense.
But nuclear weapons are not simply an issue for the United States and Russia -- they threaten the common security of all nations. A nuclear weapon in the hands of a terrorist is a danger to people everywhere -- from Moscow to New York; from the cities of Europe to South Asia. So next week, 47 nations will come together in Washington to discuss concrete steps that can be taken to secure all vulnerable nuclear materials around the world in four years.
And the spread of nuclear weapons to more states is also an unacceptable risk to global security -- raising the specter of arms races from the Middle East to East Asia. Earlier this week, the United States formally changed our policy to make it clear that those [non]-nuclear weapons states that are in compliance with the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty and their non-proliferation obligations will not be threatened by America’s nuclear arsenal. This demonstrates, once more, America’s commitment to the NPT as a cornerstone of our security strategy. Those nations that follow the rules will find greater security and opportunity. Those nations that refuse to meet their obligations will be isolated, and denied the opportunity that comes with international recognition.
That includes accountability for those that break the rules -- otherwise the NPT is just words on a page. That’s why the United States and Russia are part of a coalition of nations insisting that the Islamic Republic of Iran face consequences, because they have continually failed to meet their obligations. We are working together at the United Nations Security Council to pass strong sanctions on Iran. And we will not tolerate actions that flout the NPT, risk an arms race in a vital region, and threaten the credibility of the international community and our collective security.
While these issues are a top priority, they are only one part of the U.S.-Russia relationship. Today, I again expressed my deepest condolences for the terrible loss of Russian life in recent terrorist attacks, and we will remain steadfast partners in combating violent extremism. We also discussed the potential to expand our cooperation on behalf of economic growth, trade and investment, as well as technological innovation, and I look forward to discussing these issues further when President Medvedev visits the United States later this year, because there is much we can do on behalf of our security and prosperity if we continue to work together.
When one surveys the many challenges that we face around the world, it’s easy to grow complacent, or to abandon the notion that progress can be shared. But I want to repeat what I said last year in Prague: When nations and peoples allow themselves to be defined by their differences, the gulf between them widens. When we fail to pursue peace, then it stays forever beyond our grasp.
Updated: For even more information, a series of fact sheets on individual aspects of the New START Treaty are included after the break.
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April 08, 2010
12:24 AM EST[UPDATE: The Treaty has been signed, read the text and its protocol.]
In a few hours, President Obama will arrive in Prague, Czech Republic, to sign the new strategic arms control agreement with Russia -- called the New START Treaty -- in a ceremony with President Medvedev of Russia. This comes just over a year after the President gave a speech in Prague where he stated a commitment to seek the peace and security of a world without nuclear weapons. He stated then that we may not reach this goal in his lifetime, but committed to take concrete steps toward that objective.
The treaty the President plans to sign is one important step forward. It will require the United States and Russia to reduce -- by 30 percent below the levels in a treaty signed in 2002 -- the number of nuclear warheads they have deployed on intercontinental ballistic missiles, submarine-based ballistic missiles, and bombers. It also provides various mechanisms to allow each side to monitor compliance with the treaty by the other country, including on-site inspections and exchanges of data about our respective nuclear arsenals. This kind of transparency promotes strategic stability between the two largest nuclear powers in the world.
Soon the treaty will go to the Senate, where it must receive support from two-thirds of the chamber before it can take effect. Even though the Senate has yet to see the treaty -- the text will be released to the public soon (The treaty and its protocol are now available.) – some issues are already being debated in Washington.
One issue relates to U.S. plans for missile defense. The Russian government made a “unilateral statement” in connection with the treaty signing that indicated that if there is a qualitative and quantitative build-up in the U.S. missile defense system, such a development would justify Russia’s withdrawal from the New START Treaty.
There is nothing particularly novel about this kind of unilateral statement. In the long history of arms control agreements between the United States and Russia (and before that the Soviet Union), dating back to the Nixon Administration, the two countries have frequently issued such statements at the end of a long treaty negotiation. Sometimes these statements would make public a political understanding between the parties. Other times they would represent one party’s view or interpretation of an issue; in many cases, the other party would respond to give its own view.
The Russian statement falls into the latter category. It is described as a “unilateral” statement for a reason – the Russian government made a statement about missile defense with which the United States did not, and does not, agree. If we had agreed to it, the issue would be put into the treaty text, or issued as a “joint” statement. In fact, the United States issued its own unilateral statement, indicating that it plans to continue to develop and deploy its missile defense systems in order to defend itself. Neither the Russian statement nor the U.S. statement is legally binding on the other party. But each side is making its intentions clear -- to the other party, and to the world.
It is worth noting that the Soviet government made a similar unilateral statement in 1991, when the predecessor START treaty was signed. At that time, the Soviet government said it would be justified in withdrawing from the START Treaty if the United States withdrew from the Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty (ABM Treaty). As it happened, in 2001 the United States did withdraw from the ABM Treaty. The Russian government objected, but did not withdraw from the START Treaty.
Finally, a word about withdrawal clauses in treaties. Some observers have expressed concern about a withdrawal clause in the New START Treaty; they are concerned that Russia would threaten to withdraw as a means of pressuring the United States not to continue to deploy its missile defenses. There is nothing unusual about withdrawal clauses in treaties. Most treaties that the United States enters into have one -- for the simple reason that we want an escape hatch if circumstances change that affect our national interests. In fact, most treaties have a simple withdrawal clause, allowing a country to exit the particular treaty for any reason or no reason. The withdrawal clause in the New START Treaty has a higher bar; it gives a party the right to withdraw if it decides that “extraordinary events” related to the treaty have “jeopardized its supreme interests.”
The Russian statement does no more than give the United States fair notice that it may decide to pull out of the New START Treaty if Russia believes our missile defense system affects strategic stability. We believe it doesn’t, and the President has made clear that he is committed to continuing to develop and deploy that system.
Brian McKeon is a senior adviser to the NSC and Deputy National Security Adviser to the Vice President. Prior to coming to work in the White House, he served as Chief Counsel for the Senate Foreign Relations Committee where he advised then-Senator Biden on the consideration of dozens of treaties.
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Student reporters and young people from schools across the country joined First Lady Michelle Obama in the State Dining Room of the White House for a Let’s Move! Town Hall hosted by C-SPAN’s Susan Swain. Let’s Move! is an initiative started by the First Lady to help raise a healthier generation of kids and solve the epidemic of childhood obesity within a generation.
First Lady Michelle Obama and Susan Swain of C-Span, right, listen to a question at the "Let's Move" Town Hall event in the State Dining Room of the White House. April 7, 2010. (Official White House Photo by Lawrence Jackson)
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For millions of Americans ages 55-64, retiring early also means giving up their health security. Fewer and fewer employers provide coverage for these early retirees. And purchasing coverage in the individual market is not a viable option for many in this group, either because it’s unaffordable or because they have a preexisting condition like high blood pressure or diabetes.
But thanks to the new health insurance reform law, help is on the way. Starting in about three months, a new retiree reinsurance program will bring support for needed employer-based coverage for retirees.
Tomorrow at 1:00 PM EDT, I’ll be discussing this topic during our second in a series of webchats about the new health reform law and you. We’ll also be answering your questions.
You can view the webcast at www.hhs.gov/live. Email your questions in advance to Healthreform@hhs.gov. We’ll answer as many questions as we can on the webcast, and address others on our website in the days ahead.
The retiree reinsurance program provides $5 billion in temporary financial assistance so that employer plans can continue to provide valuable coverage to certain retirees. It will make it easier for employers to give benefits to the workers who made their companies strong, and give retired workers the peace of mind that comes with quality health insurance. You can learn more about the reinsurance program for early retirees by checking out this fact sheet (pdf).
The retiree reinsurance program is just one of the many ways early retirees will benefit from health insurance reform. Reform also helps to control costs, improves the quality of care for everyone, and strengthens Medicare.
Join us tomorrow at www.hhs.gov/live to talk about this and other ways the new health insurance reform law will help seniors. Again, submit your questions to Healthreform@hhs.gov.
Kathleen Sebelius is Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services
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April 07, 2010
02:25 PM ESTSupporting military families is a top Obama Administration priority. April is Month of the Military Child and gives the nation the opportunity to recognize the character, strength and sacrifices of America's military children as well as the role they play in the armed forces community. Today, there are 1.7 million American children and youth under 18-years-old with a parent serving in the military and approximately 900,000 children and youth with one or both parents deployed multiple times. Learn more about the Month of the Military Child here.
Watch a video of First Lady Michelle Obama and Dr. Jill Biden talk about the important role military children play in the armed forces community:
Trooper Sander is Deputy Director of Policy to the First Lady.
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April 07, 2010
01:00 PM ESTToday, U.S. departments and agencies are releasing their Open Government Plans -- another historic milestone in President Obama's campaign to change Washington.
For too many years, Washington has resisted the oversight of the American public, resulting in difficulties in finding information, taxpayer dollars disappearing without a trace, and lobbyists wielding undue influence. For Americans, business as usual in Washington has reinforced the belief that the government benefits the special interests and the well-connected at the expense of the American people.
No more. Since coming to office, the President has launched a series of initiatives to let the sunshine in, including posting White House visitor records, disclosing lobbyist contacts regarding stimulus funds, and launching data.gov and recovery.gov. That's why independent groups recently gave the Administration an A grade for transparency.
Today we add to that body of accomplishments as the departments and agencies issue Open Government Plans pursuant to the Open Government Directive. The Plans will make operations and data more transparent, and expand opportunities for citizen participation, collaboration, and oversight. These steps will strengthen our democracy and promote accountability, efficiency and effectiveness across the government. Here are a few highlights:
- Department of Health and Human Services' Community Health Data Initiative: This initiative will provide to the public, free of charge and of any intellectual property constraint, a large-scale Community Health Data Set harvested from across HHS—this data set includes a wealth of easily accessible, downloadable data on community health care costs, quality, access, and public health, including a major contribution of Medicare-related data from CMS. The initiative is simultaneously working with a growing array of technology companies, researchers, public health advocates, consumer advocates, employers, media, providers, etc. to identify and deploy uses of the data that would be most effective at raising awareness of community health performance and helping to facilitate and inform improvement efforts. Such applications and programs could include interactive health maps, competitions, and social networking games that educate people about community health and enhanced web search results for health searches. By leveraging the power of transparency, participation, and collaboration, the Community Health Data Initiative seeks to help significantly improve the health of our communities. (Department of Health and Human Service's Open Government page)
- Department of Energy's Open Energy Information Initiative: As part of its efforts to promote clean energy technologies, DOE has launched Open Energy Information, a new open-source web platform that will make DOE resources and open energy data widely available to the public. The data and tools housed on the free, editable and evolving wiki-platform will be used by government officials, the private sector, project developers, the international community, and others to help deploy clean energy technologies across the country and around the world. The site currently houses more than 60 clean energy resources and data sets, including maps of worldwide solar and wind potential, information on climate zones, and best practices. Members of the American public and the energy community globally will have the opportunity to upload additional data to the site and download the information in easy-to-use formats. OpenEI.org will also play an important role providing technical resources, including U.S. lab tools, which can be used by developing countries as they move toward clean energy deployment. Over time, the plan is to expand this portal to include on-line training and technical expert networks. (Department of Energy Open Government page)
- Department of Veterans Affairs Innovation Initiative: The VA Innovation Initiative (VAi2) will invite VA employees, private sector entrepreneurs, and academic leaders to contribute the best ideas for innovations to increase Veteran access to VA services, reduce or control costs of delivering those services, enhance the performance of VA operations, and improve the quality of service Veterans and their families receive. The VA Innovation Initiative will identify, prioritize, fund, test, and deploy the most promising solutions to the VA's most important challenges. (Department of Veterans Affairs Open Government page)
- Department of Housing and Urban Development's Homelessness Prevention Resources Initiative: Many agencies and organizations struggle with the task of capturing information about the homeless. Even more difficult is the task of predicting when and where homelessness will strike. HUD believes that much can be done to avert homelessness before it happens by actively combining information from multiple Agencies and using it to identify communities that may be at a tipping point towards increased levels of homelessness. Aligning with HUD's strategic initiatives, the Department will take a proactive leadership role in the Administration's efforts to end homelessness. HUD will develop a set of tools and processes that can help predict communities that are at risk so that resources can be allocated to help avoid homelessness from occurring. The Department's effort is unique because it will seek to predict the future course of homelessness in a community, and allow HUD to proactively allocate the resources necessary to combat it. (Department of Housing and Urban Development's Open Government page)
These are just a few examples -- visit our Open Government Dashboard for links to others. Publishing these plans demonstrates once again this Administration's commitment to be the most open and transparent in history. Of course, much work remains to be done and we invite you to be a part of that by visiting the agency websites at name of agency/open and providing your comments on version 1.0 of the plans. That will help us and the agencies make the plans even better.
Norm Eisen is Special Counsel to the President for Ethics and Government Reform
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Yesterday, Agriculture Deputy Secretary Kathleen Merrigan and Assistant Secretary of the Navy for Energy, Installations and Environment Jackalyne Pfannenstiel kicked off the first of several energy forums in front of a packed room to look at ways to increase biofuels production and meet the Navy’s renewable energy needs. The forum comes as a result of the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) recently signed by the USDA and the Navy to encourage the development of advanced biofuels and other renewable energy systems.
As the President pointed out in his energy security remarks last week, “…the Pentagon isn’t seeking these alternative fuels just to protect our environment; they’re pursuing these homegrown energy sources to protect our national security. Our military leaders recognize the security imperative of increasing the use of alternative fuels, decreasing energy use, reducing our reliance on imported oil, making ourselves more energy-efficient.”
And as Deputy Secretary Merrigan explained, the military’s significant fuel demands can serve, “…as a catalyst to increase demand for biofuels and spur economic opportunities in rural communities throughout the country.”
Hawaii was selected as the location for the initial collaboration between USDA and the Navy because Hawaii's energy costs are among the highest in the nation and imported oil supplies 90 percent of the State's energy. Today’s forum is an important first step in developing homegrown solutions to the Navy and Hawaii’s significant energy challenges through biofuels.
For example, Maj. Gen Pawling (HIANG), Chief of Staff of the U.S. Pacific Command, spoke about the whole-of-government team they have put together to begin developing an enterprise model and strategy to eventually procure 25% of its jet fuel (20 million gallons/year) from locally grown and locally refined sources. Participants in this effort include USDA, Department of Energy, and State of Hawaii as well as several DoD offices, including the Office of the Secretary of Defense, Defense Energy Support Center, Navy and Air Force Energy Offices, DARPA, and more.
This local working group recognizes that recent technological advancements now make it feasible and cost effective to produce advanced biofuels that meet military specifications for jet fuel, with the Air Force just completing a successful test flight last month. So now they are turning their attention to the issue of supply. Through a $150 million investment by DARPA in an algae-derived jet fuel demonstration on Kauai, and active participation by private industry and the landowner, it is now feasible to have a plan for locally-derived biofuels.
These are exactly the kinds of initiatives we need – bringing together local, state and Federal officials; leveraging both the public and private sector – to find the creative and sustainable solutions to our economic and energy challenges that are mutually beneficial to the local community by creating clean energy jobs and industries; and our national security by helping to achieve our energy independence goals.
Since taking office, President Obama and his Administration have worked hard to accelerate the investment in and production of American biofuels and reduce our dependence on fossil fuels as part of the President’s comprehensive energy plan. But, to use an agricultural analogy, what businesses need to take root and to grow is certainty, the kind of certainty that would be provided by comprehensive energy and climate legislation that puts a price on carbon and incentivizes the development of the clean energy technologies that will power the 21st century economy.
Heather Zichal is Deputy Assistant to the President for Energy and Climate Change
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This afternoon, Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Kathleen Sebelius spoke at the National Press Club to discuss how health reform will increase health security. She explained that the Affordable Care Act will give Americans more control over their health care by reining in unfair insurance practices. The law includes the largest middle class tax cut for health care in American history and provides the biggest expansion in health care coverage since Medicare.
Secretary Sebelius explained that the new law “is not a magic pill that will cure all the problems in our health care system.” She described the reforms as “puzzle pieces,” with each reform being implemented after the next to strengthen the health insurance system without disrupting it.
She said that they have already began acting to enforce the law by working with states to create high risk pool programs that will help uninsured Americans with pre-existing conditions get coverage. The Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services has been restructured to prepare for the new responsibilities under health insurance reform, and later this week, HHS will open new Medicaid options to cover low-income adults.
Secretary Sebelius also pointed out that scam artists have been trying to capitalize on the new health care law by setting up 1-800 numbers and trying to sell fraudulent insurance policies. Today, Secretary Sebelius sent letters to State Commissioners and Attorney Generals to investigate and prosecute these scams.
Secretary Sebelius said that HHS will make sure that Americans can receive the full benefits of the new law by providing Americans with access to information, eliminating waste in order to make every dollar count, and noted that “we will never lose sight of why we pursued this legislation in the first place, fought so hard for it, and are celebrating it as such a historic accomplishment.” She explained that they are beginning to implement the reforms of the health care legislation effectively, stating that “Our work didn’t end when President Obama put down his pen. In some ways, it’s just begun.”
As always, find out what health reform means for you, and learn about the benefits kicking in this year in the Health Reform section of WhiteHouse.gov.
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On Thursday, April 1st, the White House Office of Public Engagement brought together organizations representing communities of color and women to discuss recent efforts to create jobs and restore our economy.
James Kvaal, Special Assistant to the President on Economic Policy, and David Hinson, National Director of the Minority Business Development Agency, provided updates about recent initiatives that have been proposed or enacted that will lead to economic opportunities for minority and women owned businesses.
The group discussed the Administration's job creation proposals. Two weeks ago, President Obama signed a measure cutting taxes for companies that hire unemployed workers. The Administration is working with Congress to continue last summer's successful summer jobs for youth program. The House also recently passed a bill funding 200,000 summer jobs, and the Senate will consider the measure when they return to Washington. President Obama is also working to create jobs for low-income families through the TANF emergency fund.
Administration officials meet with national groups to discuss impact of the Recovery Act and efforts to extend economic opportunities to a broader group of communities and businesses April 1, 2010. (by Jason Stern)
David Hinson conveyed the progress of outreach efforts to minority businesses, the $2.9 billion in grants and financing these businesses received last year and additional efforts to continue addressing the access-to-capital dilemma through Business to Business events, regional networking and increased awareness sessions at the federal and state level.
Nearly 30 organizations were present for the conversation including leading national grassroots organizations, policy think tanks, faith organizations, as well as women’s advocacy groups.
Our recent economic numbers represent real progress after just more than a year, but we know there is much more to be done. These sessions help inform organizations on the efforts being made and the impact Administration policies will have on communities across the country.
Michael Blake is an Associate Director of the White House Office of Public Engagement & Deputy Associate Director of the Office of Intergovernmental Affairs
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The President has said that learning science and math “… goes beyond the facts in a biology textbook or the questions on an algebra quiz. It's about the ability to understand our world.” He made these comments last year at the launch of the Administration’s Educate to Innovate campaign to improve science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) education.
At the 2010 White House Egg Roll yesterday, preschoolers and students had the opportunity to learn some science, with the South Lawn of the White House as their laboratory setting. Some dissected seeds, looked through a microscope, and thought about how plants grow. Some made simple box kites from paper bags, and thought about what makes a kite fly. All had fun exploring the world around them.
A young girl looks at flower parts under a microscope at the Make-your-own Garden Science exhibit at the Easter Egg Roll on the South Lawn of the White House, April 5, 2010. (Official White House Photo by Chuck Kennedy) April 5, 2010. (Official White House Photo by Chuck Kennedy)
These and other STEM activities were the result of a month of planning by OSTP and key partners in science and media, including:
- The American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS), which ran a wonderful “Science of Spring” activity section, allowing parents and children to dissect green been seeds, look at them under a microscope, take beans home to plant, and document their progress online. (You can plant your own seeds and post their progress on that site as well.)
- The Lawrence Hall of Science, which ran a kite-making activity in the Eggspress Yourself section, giving kids a chance to create something themselves and learn about wind energy and flight (while gaining a good excuse to run around). Volunteers helped students experiment with different designs and gave them tips to continue learning at home.
- Discovery Channel’s celebrity scientist-chefs Homaro "Omar" Cantu and Ben Roche, of the new show Future Food, who spent much of their day in the “Play with your Food” section showcasing food science and entertaining ways to make food more healthy. In one, they showed a way to carbonate fresh fruit to create a fun, healthy, eating option. You can check out their recipes yourself.
All in all, an egg-ceptional time was had by all.
Kumar Garg is a Policy Analyst in the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy
Volunteers from the Lawrence Hall of Science helped children build kites as one of the science activities during the 2010 White House Easter Egg Roll. (Photo by Steve Robinson) April 5, 2010. (by Steve Robinson)
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It was almost exactly a year ago today that the President gave a major speech in Prague outlining his vision for decreasing the threat of nuclear arms to the world, and starting the work so that some day in the future humanity will need not worry about the incomprehensible destruction of nuclear war:
Today the Department of Defense released the Nuclear Posture Review, reflecting the President's overarching view of U.S. nuclear strategy.
The President's statement:
One year ago yesterday in Prague, I outlined a comprehensive agenda to prevent the spread of nuclear weapons and to pursue the peace and security of a world without them. I look forward to advancing this agenda in Prague this week when I sign the new START Treaty with President Medvedev, committing the United States and Russia to substantial reductions in our nuclear arsenals.
Today, my Administration is taking a significant step forward by fulfilling another pledge that I made in Prague—to reduce the role of nuclear weapons in our national security strategy and focus on reducing the nuclear dangers of the 21st century, while sustaining a safe, secure and effective nuclear deterrent for the United States and our allies and partners as long as nuclear weapons exist.
The Nuclear Posture Review, led by the Department of Defense, recognizes that the greatest threat to U.S. and global security is no longer a nuclear exchange between nations, but nuclear terrorism by violent extremists and nuclear proliferation to an increasing number of states. Moreover, it recognizes that our national security and that of our allies and partners can be increasingly defended by America’s unsurpassed conventional military capabilities and strong missile defenses.
As a result, we are taking specific and concrete steps to reduce the role of nuclear weapons while preserving our military superiority, deterring aggression and safeguarding the security of the American people.
First, and for the first time, preventing nuclear proliferation and nuclear terrorism is now at the top of America’s nuclear agenda, which affirms the central importance of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty. We have aligned our policies and proposed major funding increases for programs to prevent the spread of nuclear weapons around the world. Our nuclear security summit next week will be an opportunity for 47 nations to commit to specific steps to pursue the goal of securing all vulnerable nuclear materials around the world within four years. And next month in New York, we will work with the wider world to strengthen the global non-proliferation regime to ensure that all nations uphold their responsibilities.
Second, we are further emphasizing the importance of nations meeting their NPT and nuclear non-proliferation obligations through our declaratory policy. The United States is declaring that we will not use or threaten to use nuclear weapons against non-nuclear weapons states that are party to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty and in compliance with their nuclear nonproliferation obligations. This enables us to sustain our nuclear deterrent for the narrower range of contingencies in which these weapons may still play a role, while providing an additional incentive for nations to meet their NPT obligations. Those nations that fail to meet their obligations will therefore find themselves more isolated, and will recognize that the pursuit of nuclear weapons will not make them more secure.
Finally, we are fulfilling our responsibilities as a nuclear power committed to the NPT. The United States will not conduct nuclear testing and will seek ratification of the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty. The United States will not develop new nuclear warheads or pursue new military missions or new capabilities for nuclear weapons.
As I stated last year in Prague, so long as nuclear weapons exist, we will maintain a safe, secure and effective arsenal that guarantees the defense of the United States, reassures allies and partners, and deters potential adversaries. To that end, we are seeking substantial investments to improve infrastructure, strengthen science and technology, and retain the human capital we need to sustain our stockpile, while also strengthening the conventional capabilities that are an important part of our deterrent. The nuclear strategy we’re announcing today therefore reaffirms America’s unwavering commitment to the security of our allies and partners, and advances American national security.
To stop the spread of nuclear weapons, prevent nuclear terrorism, and pursue the day when these weapons do not exist, we will work aggressively to advance every element of our comprehensive agenda—to reduce arsenals, to secure vulnerable nuclear materials, and to strengthen the NPT. These are the steps toward the more secure future that America seeks, and this is the work that we are advancing today.
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This morning, the President joined Christian leaders, and men and women from small-town churches and large congregations from across the country at an Easter Prayer Breakfast at the White House. He expressed his hopes of making the White House “a place where all people would feel welcome,” noting the recent Seder at the White House and the Iftar held with Muslim Americans to break the daily fast during Ramadan. Before the opening prayer, though, the President sent his condolences to the families of the workers who died in the explosion at the West Virginia mine yesterday:
Before I begin, I want to send my deepest condolences, our thoughts and prayers to the families and the friends of the workers who lost their lives after an explosion took place in a West Virginia mine yesterday. At this moment, there are still people missing. There are rescue teams that are searching tirelessly and courageously to find them.
I spoke with Governor Manchin of West Virginia last night and told him that the federal government stands ready to offer whatever assistance is needed in this rescue effort. So I would ask the faithful who’ve gathered here this morning to pray for the safe return of the missing, the men and women who put their lives on the line to save them, and the souls of those who have been lost in this tragic accident. May they rest in peace, and may their families find comfort in the hard days ahead.
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There has been a lot discussion about reports that some businesses are expecting some additional costs from health reform. The problem doesn’t lie with corporate accounting, it lies with those who have politicized that accounting, treating first quarter earnings from about a dozen companies as a way to judge the entire impact of health reform on America’s business.
The markets didn’t make that mistake. And today, a New York Times editorial elaborates on why the critics have it wrong.
As we've explained, the 2003 Medicare prescription drug bill included not only a subsidy to help companies pay for retiree prescription drug coverage, but also allowed them to deduct that subsidy from their taxes as if it was their own spending. Thus the headline of the editorial: "We Call That Double-Dipping." After health reform was signed, which kept the subsidy in tact but simply eliminated the ability to deduct the subsidy as well, affected companies posted earnings figures indicating they had taken big losses as a result of this change -- but as the editorial says:
Those look like staggering amounts until one understands that they don’t require any immediate cash payments and that the added taxes will be paid out slowly — over perhaps 30, 40 or more years, depending on a company’s retiree plan.
Wall Street certainly gave a collective yawn. Stock prices for the companies that made announcements barely budged (some went up), and analysts urged investors not to overreact because the accounting change would have a negligible impact on these companies’ valuation, or market capitalization.
As for the question of how this change will affect seniors, the editorial closes on this note:
The remaining tax subsidy is substantial and many companies and their workers value the retiree drug benefit, so defections may be small. If some retirees do lose their company drug benefits, they can buy government-subsidized coverage in Medicare that may be just or almost as good and will be getting better as health care reform progresses. Willing employers could also help subsidize their retirees’ drug coverage in Medicare.
That’s the least they should do in return for the generous tax benefits they have been receiving.
Dan Pfeiffer is White House Communications Director
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April 05, 2010
08:42 PM ESTOn June 24, 2009, President Obama signed into law the Car Allowance Rebate System (CARS, commonly known as 'Cash-For-Clunkers'), one of several stimulus programs whose purpose was to shift expenditures by households, businesses, and governments from future periods when the economy is likely to be stronger, to the present when the economy has an abundance of unemployed resources that can be put to work at low net economic cost.
Critics of the CARS program argued that it would have little ultimate effect because most of the purchases under the program would have happened soon anyway - they were merely 'pulled forward' from the following few months. In contrast, the CEA's September 10 economic analysis of the program argued that a substantial proportion of the CARS sales were pulled forward from a far more distant future, and thus represented an important increment to aggregate demand at just the time when such demand was sorely needed.
Download the data in this chart as a CSV file.With seven months of post-Clunkers sales data in hand (September 2009 through March 2010; see dark blue line in figure), now seems a good time for a reckoning.
The 'short-term pull-forward' view was perhaps most vigorously articulated by automotive industry website Edmunds.com. In late October, Edmunds.com made a widely-reported forecast for the pace of sales in the last quarter of the year: According to Edmunds, light motor vehicle sales in November and December would be only about 10.5 million at an annual rate (the dashed blue line in the figure). Edmunds furthermore argued that, had the CARS program not existed, the pace of sales would have been higher, about 10.8 million, during those two months (the dashed red line in the figure).
But according to the final data now in hand, the actual pace of sales in November and December was about 11.0 million units (the solid blue line in the figure substantially exceeds Edmunds' October 28 forecast). Last Thursday's announcement of a strong pace of sales in March also belies Edmunds' pessimistic trajectory. Indeed, over the seven months following the end of the CARS program in late August, the sales pace has averaged 10.7 million units at an annual rate, much higher than the 9.6 million pace in the three months that preceded the program, and considerably stronger than the forecasts made by private forecasters just before enactment of the CARS program.
A final source of evidence on size and timing of the 'pull forward' effect comes directly from the people who purchased a vehicle under the program. According to a survey conducted by the Department of Transportation as part of the program, the average timeframe over which new car purchasers said they would have otherwise sold, traded in, or disposed of their old vehicle was 2.87 years - far longer than the timeframe of a few months that the program's critics hypothesized. A plausible interpretation of the available data, in fact, is that many of the CARS sales were to the kinds of thrifty people who can afford to buy a new car but normally wait until the old one is thoroughly worn out. Stimulating spending by such people is very nearly the best possible countercylical fiscal policy in an economy suffering from temporarily low aggregate demand.Christina Romer is Chair of the Council of Economic Advisers
Christopher Carroll is a Senior Economist at the Council of Economic Advisers who focuses on Macroeconomics -
30,000 people from all 50 states and DC visited the South Lawn of the White House today for this year’s Easter Egg Roll. There was singing, dancing, reading and, of course, plenty of Easter egg rolling.
Take a look at the 2010 Easter Egg Roll photo gallery, thanks to the White House Photo Office, featuring some Easter Egg Roll classics and the current cast of Glee:playThe White House Easter Egg Roll
The annual Easter Egg Roll brings 30,000 people from all 50 states and the District of Columbia to the White House.
1 of 14Watch a video of the President and First Lady welcome thousands of children and their families to their backyard:
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