The Center for Effective Government (formerly OMB Watch) ceased operations as of March 2016. The majority of work and materials has been passed on to the Project On Government Oversight (POGO). This site is being maintained as an archive of materials produced.
WASHINGTON, Jan. 24, 2007—Adam Hughes, Fiscal Policy Director at OMB Watch, made the following statement in response to President George W. Bush's 2007 State of the Union address:
Last night, President Bush spent a small portion of his State of the Union address paying lip service to fiscal responsibility and balanced budgets — about the same amount of time he has committed during his presidency to actually being fiscally responsible. Nonetheless, the President made a number of vague pledges — to balance the annual federal budget, to institute long-term fixes to Medicare and Medicaid, and to "save" an otherwise incredibly stable and successful Social Security program — but provided scant details. The president urged Congress to support all of his broad proposals and to do so without raising any more revenue. Unfortunately, the president still does not understand that this approach just won't work, and given his track record, it is difficult to see his pledges last night as anything more than idle words.
WASHINGTON, Jan. 19, 2007—On Jan. 18, President Bush issued amendments to Executive Order (E.O.) 12866, which further centralize regulatory power in the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) and shift it away from the federal agencies given this power by legislative enactments.
WASHINGTON, Jan. 12, 2007—Public statements by some opponents of a provision in S. 1, the Senate ethics and lobby reform bill that would bring transparency to big money grassroots lobbying campaigns, have misled many nonprofits into believing the proposal is an effort to silence criticism of Congress and a plot by liberals to keep conservative viewpoints from being heard.
WASHINGTON, Jan. 11, 2007—OMB Watch today urged the White House Office of Management and Budget (OMB) to heed recommendations in a Jan. 11 National Research Council report that found OMB's Proposed Risk Assessment Bulletin was "fundamentally flawed."
WASHINGTON, Dec. 18, 2006—EPA finalized a rule today relaxing reporting requirements for the Toxics Release Inventory (TRI), the country's flagship database on toxic pollution. The agency has moved forward with these changes despite findings in an OMB Watch report, “Against the Public’s Will” (released Dec. 14), that the American public is overwhelmingly opposed to a reduction in reporting on toxics.
WASHINGTON, Dec. 14, 2006--The American public is overwhelmingly opposed to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) plans to cut back toxic chemical reporting under the Toxics Release Inventory (TRI), according to a report released today. OMB Watch produced the report, titled “Against the Public’s Will,” and documented opposition from 23 state governments and more than 120,000 average citizens, 60 members of Congress, 30 public health organizations, 40 labor organizations and 200 environmental and public interest organizations. EPA's proposals would relax reporting requirements in order to reduce a perceived paperwork burden for companies that release and dispose of toxic chemicals.
WASHINGTON, Dec. 14, 2006—According to recent news reports, the new administrator of the General Services Administration (GSA), Lurita Doan, has made some questionable decisions that will reduce contractor accountability and oversight at an agency needing much more of both. These decisions to undermine independent oversight and accountability mechanisms in the federal government are unwarranted and unacceptable.
WASHINGTON, Dec. 1, 2006 — A group of charities today called on Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson to meet to discuss a proposal to release certain funds frozen by the Office of Foreign Assets Control. The funds, donated for charitable purposes, have been seized from organizations Treasury says are associated with terrorism. However, according to the charities, humanitarian groups could use the donations to assist areas of the world affected by natural disasters, hunger and extreme poverty.
Washington, D.C., Oct. 10 - At a press club event today, government watchdog groups unveiled powerful new online tools developed to help the public track government spending and congressional conduct.
Tuesday, Oct. 10, 2006 at 9:30 a.m.
OMB Watch and The Center for Responsive Politics
Web-based Tools Allow Reporters to Track Federal Spending, Congressional Conflicts, Junkets and the Revolving Door
