Freddie Mac Hit With Record Breaking FEC Fine

Apr 19, 2006 by Guest Blogger

The Federal Election Commission has awarded a record $3.8 million fine to Freddie Mac, the government-chartered home mortgage company, for violations of campaign fundraising laws. The FEC believes that Freddie Mac, through its government relations firm, compensated a corporation for producing campaign fundraising events. Freddie Mac, for its part, contends that the retainer “was paid solely to compensate Epiphany for services unrelated to Mr. Delk’s fundraising events,” including “political and legislative advice.” Read more on this issue in Roll Call

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OMB Watcher: April 19, 2006

Apr 19, 2006 by Guest Blogger

Gearing Up For May Estate Tax Vote House Fails to Agree on Budget; Boehner Retreats

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More Policy Summaries

See background information on issues affecting nonprofit advocacy, with links to related news, analysis and more.

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Latest Watcher

Apr 18, 2006 by Guest Blogger

Be sure to check out the latest issue of our biweekly newsletter, The Watcher. Reg policy articles this time: Sunset Commission Proposal Would Put Gov't Programs on Chopping Block

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Gearing Up for a May Estate Tax Vote

As the May vote in the Senate to repeal the estate tax approaches, nonprofit advocacy groups around the country are stepping up their campaign to save the nation's most progressive tax and a vital source of revenue. OMB Watch urges individuals to email Senators today and let lawmakers know America favors preserving the estate tax and opposes repeal or back-door "reform" that would amount to repeal.

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House Fails to Agree on Budget; Boehner Retreats

After proposing a sparse budget on March 29 and following a intense and divisive few weeks of behind-the-scenes negotiations, House GOP leaders ultimately pulled the plug on the $2.8 trillion FY 2007 budget resolution late on April 6. House Majority Leader John Boehner (R-OH), who admittedly spent the week "popping Advil" in preparation for difficult negotiations with his colleagues, failed time and again to emerge from these talks with enough votes to pass the resolution--a significant setback in what was his first real test as the new Majority Leader.

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Grassroots Lobbying Issue Hits the FEC and the Courts

OMB Watch was among a varied group of nonprofit organizations that filed comments at the Federal Election Commission (FEC) urging it to quickly begin the process of rulemaking that would exempt grassroots lobbying from federal election regulation. At issue is a ban under the Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act of 2002 (BCRA) on "electioneering communications," broadcasts that refer to federal candidates within 60 days of a general election or 30 days of a primary.

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EPA Forced to Turn Over Documents on Controversial Mercury Program

A federal judge ordered the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) on April 13 to release documents related to an analysis of alternatives to its controversial power plant mercury 'cap and trade' program. After the agency rejected a July 2004 request for the documents under a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), Massachusetts Attorney General Thomas F. Reilly filed a lawsuit in March 2005 against EPA to obtain the information.

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In Ethics Reform, Congress Proposes Ways to 'Follow the Money'

In response to the ongoing corruption scandals unfolding in our nation's capitol, Congress has taken up efforts to pass lobby and ethics reform. Among the provisions proposed for inclusion in lobby reform legislation was one that simply seeks to uncover where taxpayer dollars are going, specifically money spent on government contracts and grants. Unfortunately, at this point the provision appears unlikely to be included in final legislation.

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Report, Legislation Drive Push to End Pseudo-Classification of Information

No government-wide policies or procedures currently exist to guide agencies through deciding what information should be withheld from the public due to its "sensitive but unclassified" nature. The federal agencies are also without uniform rules that govern who makes such designations and how such information is handled, according to a new report from the Government Accountability Office (GAO). Legislation introduced by Reps.

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