Continuing its study of classification procedures, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) released two reports, one focusing on the Department of Defense (DOD) and the other on the Department of Energy (DOE). The reports offer a stark contrast, bemoaning DOD's "lack of oversight and inconsistent implementation" of classification policies, while praising DOE's "systematic training, comprehensive guidance, and rigorous oversight."

The Senate will likely take another step this week toward establishing national security requirements for chemical facilities. The Senate Homeland Security and Government Affairs Committee is expected to mark up chemical security legislation during a business meeting this Wednesday, June 14. The frontrunner bill, co-sponsored by Sens. Susan Collins (R-ME) and Joseph Lieberman (D-CT), the Chair and ranking minority member, respectively, includes a number of important reporting requirements for chemical facilities.

Two bills may soon face off in the Senate on how best to provide the public with information on how the government spends taxpayer dollars.

An important legislative effort is gaining steam in the Senate that would shed light on government spending by making federal contracts and grants available to the public free of charge in a searchable, downloadable online format. This legislation comes out of a bipartisan effort led by Senators Tom Coburn (R-OK), Barack Obama (D-IL), Tom Carper (D-DE), and John McCain (R-AZ), who are now seeking endorsements for their bill (S. 2590). OMB Watch strongly supports this legislation and has been working closely with the cosponsors to help craft portions of the bill and ensure its enactment.