Congress approved a compromise bill just before its fall recess exempting state and local PACs from reporting requirements under the Stealth PAC law of 2000 and requiring data from reports to be made available on the Internet in a searchable format. President Bush signed the bill into law a week later.

OMB Watch filed comments October 11 2002 in a Federal Election Commission rulemaking that will define when communications with a federal candidate, campaign, or party, may turn an expenditure into an in-kind campaign contribution. Since corporations, including nonprofits, are prohibited from making contributions to federal candidates, this definition could impact any group that communicates with the public about issues and interacts with public officials or community leaders that are also federal candidates.