PRESS RELEASE
-For Immediate Release-
January 7, 2013

Contact: Brian Gumm, 202-683-4812, bgumm@foreffectivegov.org

Center for Effective Government Announces Launch

Organization Was Formerly Known as OMB Watch

WASHINGTON, Jan. 7, 2013—Today, the leadership of OMB Watch announced that the organization has officially changed its name to the Center for Effective Government (www.foreffectivegov.org). The name change comes after careful deliberation and discussion and is designed to better reflect the goals and mission of the organization.

Katherine McFate, President and CEO said, "Center for Effective Government better reflects the overall goal of our work and the breadth of the issues we cover. It makes clear our commitment to promoting the idea that 'government matters' and that an effective, responsive, accountable government is fundamental to restoring public trust in democracy and to achieving a more just, sustainable, inclusive economy.”

McFate noted that 30 years ago when Gary Bass founded the organization, the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) was engaged in activities that threatened the nonprofit community and anti-poverty efforts. The organization did groundbreaking work to expose the power of OMB, and over the next three decades expanded its expertise to other areas of federal policy.

The Center for Effective Government will continue to offer expert analysis, in-depth reports, and news updates on the issues it has been known for in the past. Specifically, the organization will:

• Analyze federal tax and spending choices and advocate for progressive revenue options and transparency in federal spending;
• Defend and improve national standards and safeguards and the regulatory systems that produce and enforce them;
• Expose undue special interest influence in federal policymaking and advocate for open government reforms that ensure public officials put the public interest first; and
• Encourage more active citizen engagement in our democracy by ensuring people have access to easy-to-understand, contextualized, meaningful public information and understand how they can participate in public policy decision making processes.

"We believe our new name will help us better communicate the work we do and why it is important. We are eager to help all Americans better understand what government does and why public investments are critical to ensuring a decent quality of life for future generations of Americans."

Visit the Center for Effective Government online at www.foreffectivegov.org, on Facebook at www.facebook.com/foreffectivegov, and on Twitter at @ForEffectiveGov.

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The Center for Effective Government is dedicated to building an open, accountable government that invests in the common good, protects people and the environment, and advances the national priorities defined by an active, informed citizenry.