[Senate Hearing 110-]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
LEGISLATIVE BRANCH APPROPRIATIONS FOR FISCAL YEAR 2008
----------
THURSDAY, MAY 3, 2007
U.S. Senate,
Subcommittee of the Committee on Appropriations,
Washington, DC.
The subcommittee met at 10:05 a.m., in room SD-124, Dirksen
Senate Office Building, Hon. Mary L. Landrieu (chairman)
presiding.
Present: Senators Landrieu and Allard.
U.S. SENATE
Office of the Secretary
STATEMENT OF HON. NANCY ERICKSON, SECRETARY OF THE
SENATE
ACCOMPANIED BY:
SHEILA DWYER, ASSISTANT SECRETARY OF THE SENATE
CHRIS DOBY, FINANCIAL CLERK
STATEMENT OF SENATOR MARY L. LANDRIEU
Senator Landrieu. Good morning. The subcommittee will come
to order.
This morning we meet to take testimony on the fiscal year
2008 budget request for the Secretary of the Senate and the
Library of Congress (LOC). Nancy Erickson is with us this
morning, and the Librarian of Congress, Dr. Billington.
This is our fourth and final hearing of the 2008 budget
process. I am joined this morning by my ranking member, Senator
Allard, and I understand that Senator Alexander may join us
this morning.
We have two separate panels today. First, the Secretary of
the Senate, and I understand she may be joined by Sheila Dwyer,
the Assistant Secretary and the Financial Clerk of the Senate,
Chris Doby.
Mr. Doby, while we're on the subject of your shop and the
Disbursing Office, I asked my office manager if she could give
me a list of some of the people from the Disbursing Office
who've been helpful. She gave me a list too long to read this
morning, so I'm going to just submit it for the record and
thank you very much for the help of your wonderful staff. We
really appreciate it.
[The information follows:]
Chris Doby, Financial Clerk, Tim O'Keefe, Margaret Fibel,
Neil Elliott, Gerry Thrasher, Melissa Stewart, Paul Jochum,
LaKisha Haggerty, Ivan Shnider, Bob Millett, Kim Cone,
Ileanexis Deese, Ted Ruckner, Sean Malloy, Debbie Shnider, Gene
Barton, Linda Sothern, Martin Tanabe, Donna Nance, Rachel
Morris, Monica Billups, Cathy Strodel, Lauren Bliss, Dianna
Gilkerson, and Cynthia Handwork.
Senator Landrieu. I also want to thank all of your other
employees. Nancy, I think this is the first time you've
testified before this subcommittee as the Secretary. We're
pleased to have you this morning. We'll look forward to hearing
the details of your budget, which totals $25.5 million. This is
an increase of $2.5 million, or 11 percent above the current
year. So, we hope that you're prepared to justify the request
that you have submitted to us, because while it's not
exorbitant, it is higher than inflation and we look forward to
hearing from you about that.
I'd like to turn now to Senator Allard for his opening
remarks.
STATEMENT OF SENATOR WAYNE ALLARD
Senator Allard. Thank you, Madam Chairman. I'd like to put
my full statement in the record and proceed to the testimony
from the witnesses.
I'd like to personally welcome Secretary of the Senate,
Nancy Erickson, thank you for being here, and also, Dr.
Billington.
I will have a few questions on the Government Performance
and Results Act (GPRA) as a result of the inspector general
study on performance-based budgeting at the Library, and maybe
another question or two on the Library.
Madam Chairman, that's all I have. Just put my full
statement in the record if you would please.
Senator Landrieu. Without objection.
[The statement follows:]
Prepared Statement of Senator Wayne Allard
Thank you, Madam Chairman. Welcome Secretary of the Senate
Nancy Erickson, Assistant Secretary Sheila Dwyer, Senate
Financial Clerk Chris Doby, and their very able team.
Also, good morning to Librarian of Congress Dr. James
Billington and Chief Operating Office Jo Ann Jenkins.
Congratulations, Ms. Jenkins, on your appointment as the
Library's ``number 2,'' a well-earned appointment. I also note
the presence of the Library's top team and welcome them all
today.
Madam Chairman, I have a number of concerns about the
Library's request, when we get to the second panel. In
particular, while some improvements have been made by the
Library to come into compliance with the spirit and intent of
the Government Performance and Results Act, the Library's
Inspector General has found resistance within the Library to
improvements in their budget process.
We absolutely must ensure that the Library has a solid
performance-based budget. According to the IG's report,
``Performance-based budgeting enables policy makers to
determine if programs are contributing to their stated goals,
coordinating efforts with related initiatives elsewhere,
targeting those most in need of agency services, achieving
desired outcomes, and experiencing cost-beneficial results. The
success of performance-based budgeting can be measured by the
quality of the decision-making process, the transparency of
decision-making information, and the meaningfulness of the
information to key stakeholders.''
Madam Chairman, I will focus some of my questions on this
issue when we turn to questions.
Senator Landrieu. Please proceed.
Ms. Erickson. Thank you, Chairman Landrieu and Senator
Allard, for this opportunity to testify today before your
subcommittee on behalf of the Office of the Secretary and its
employees. I ask that my full statement, including our
department reports, be submitted for the record.
With me today is Sheila Dwyer, the Assistant Secretary, and
Chris Doby, our Financial Clerk, who I know has worked closely
with your subcommittee staff over the years. I'm also joined
today by many of our department heads.
Before turning to my formal remarks, I want to take a
moment to publicly thank my predecessor, Emily Reynolds, and
her Assistant Secretary, Mary Suit Jones, for their assistance
during my transition. Their graciousness has been a testament
to the strength of the traditions in the Office of the
Secretary.
BUDGET REQUEST
Our budget request for fiscal year 2008 is $25.5 million,
of which $23.5 million is salary costs, and $2 million is
operating costs. This increase from fiscal year 2007 of $2.446
million is comprised totally of cost-of-living and merit
increases, so that we can continue to attract and retain the
caliber of people the Senate deserves for its operations.
Notably, our request also factors in necessary funding for the
implementation and maintenance of the electronic supporting
systems in the Office of Public Records.
If enacted this year, Senate bill 1, the Ethics Reform
bill, and Senate bill 223, a bill that would require electronic
filing of Federal Election Campaign documents, will
significantly increase the volume of reports filed with the
Office of the Secretary.
Prior to taking the oath of office on January 4, many
people shared with me their high regard for the staff who work
for the Office of the Secretary. Their unsolicited comments
were a real tribute to the men and women who work in our 26
departments. After serving 4 months as Secretary of the Senate,
I can attest to the wealth of institutional knowledge and their
pride in serving the Senate every day. It is indeed a privilege
to work with this talented group of people.
Since 1789, the Office of the Secretary has traditionally
provided support for the Senate in three areas: legislative,
administrative, and financial. And, today I'd like to share
some of our staff's accomplishments in each area.
LEGISLATIVE DEPARTMENT
The state of our Legislative Department, the people who
support the Chamber's legislative functions, is strong. Our
legislative positions are fully staffed with a healthy mix of
experienced veterans and newer staff, each of whom have a good
amount of experience. Our legislative offices operate with an
emphasis on teaching, passing on institutional knowledge, and a
real concern for succession planning. Today, we employ much
more crosstraining than in the past. We work closely with our
partners in the Sergeant at Arms Office to practice our
continuity of operations planning to ensure that we can support
the Chamber under any circumstance.
Our legislative staff work with the Sergeant at Arms on
ATS, to improve the online amendment tracking system. Now,
Senate staff have access to not only offered amendments, but
also submitted amendments. The feedback from the Senate
community has been extremely positive.
PARLIAMENTARIAN
I'm pleased to report today that the Office of the
Parliamentarian intends to complete, by the end of this
Congress, a supplement to the Senate precedents. This will be
an enormous undertaking, but will be a valuable resource for
Members and their legislative staff.
CURATOR
With regard to administrative responsibility, the Senate
Curator's staff recently organized the Senate Commission on
Art's unveiling ceremony in the old Senate Chamber for Senator
Dole's leadership portrait, which was attended by many of
Senator Dole's former colleagues. We also celebrated the
completion of the mural commemorating the Connecticut
Compromise in an unveiling ceremony in the Senate reception
room, where we were honored by Senator Byrd's keynote remarks.
The Senate Commission on Art anticipates an unveiling ceremony
later this fall for Senator Daschle's leadership portrait.
Educating the public about the Senate's arts and historic
furnishings collection is a priority. This past year, the
Curator's staff, working with our Senate webmaster, worked
together to launch several interactive exhibits on Senate.gov.
SENATE HISTORIAN
With respect to publications, our Senate historian authored
a wonderful book entitled, ``200 Notable Days,'' which
highlights 200 colorful short stories about significant events
in the Senate's 218-year history. Just in time for new Member
orientation, the Senate Historical Office, with the assistance
of our Printing and Documents Department, published a ``New
Member's Guide to Traditions of the United States Senate''.
During my first visit in January to the Senate Library, I
had the pleasure of meeting a staff member who, single-
handedly, completed a 13-year project cataloging all of the
Senate's hearings dating back to 1889, an impressive
accomplishment, which provides legislative staff with online
access to the library's collection of over 36,000 Senate
hearings.
Senator Landrieu. Is that employee here in the room?
Could you stand up please? And we'll give you a round of
applause.
Ms. Erickson. In addition to managing a collection that
dates back from the Continental Congress, the library staff has
witnessed a 90-percent increase in information inquiries. The
library is significantly expanding the use of web technology to
meet the Senate's growing demand for accurate and timely
information. As the Senate's purveyor of information, our
Senate website, Senate.gov, received 70 million visits last
year, 20 million more than the previous year.
STATIONERY ROOM
Unlike the first Secretary of the Senate, Samuel Otis, we
do not provide quill pens anymore, but the Keeper of the
Stationery sells pre-flown flags. Last year's pilot program was
a success, and the program is now available to all Senate
offices. It allows Senate offices to fulfill constituent
requests for flags that have flown over the Capitol in a time-
sensitive manner.
We also appreciate the funding your subcommittee provided
us to complete the point-of-sale project in our Stationery
Room. The project modernized our 20-year-old computer system.
And, I'm pleased to report today that it was completed under
budget and ahead of schedule. We hope the system will allow us
to offer e-commerce options in Senate offices.
DISBURSING OFFICE
With respect to our financial duties, the Senate Disbursing
Office processes payroll for the nearly 6,500 people on the
Senate payroll every 2 weeks. In addition, it administers
health insurance, life insurance, and retirement programs for
Members and their staff. The office processed 158,000 vouchers
last year. The Disbursing Office also provided transition
assistance to staff who chose retirement or whose employment
was affected by the November elections.
Finally, our web-based financial management information
system, known as FMIS, was upgraded to allow offices to better
track cash and travel advances to make it easier for staff to
prepare travel expense reports. We will continue our effort to
improve FMIS, including the goal of implementing a paperless
voucher system.
PREPARED STATEMENT
I look forward to working with you and your staff in the
coming year and I appreciate your support for the Office of the
Secretary. I'd be happy to answer any questions you may have.
[The statement follows:]
Prepared Statement of Nancy Erickson
Madam Chairwoman, Senator Allard, and Members of the Subcommittee,
thank you for your invitation to present testimony in support of the
budget request of the Office of the Secretary of the Senate for fiscal
year 2008.
It is a pleasure to have this opportunity to draw attention to the
accomplishments of the dedicated and outstanding employees of the
Office of the Secretary. The annual reports which follow provide
detailed information about the work of the 26 departments of the
office, their recent achievements, and their plans for the upcoming
fiscal year.
My statement includes: Presenting the fiscal year 2008 budget
request; implementing mandated systems, financial management
information system (FMIS) and legislative information system (LIS);
continuity of operations planning; and maintaining and improving
current and historic legislative, financial and administrative
services.
presenting the fiscal year 2008 budget request
I am requesting a total fiscal year 2008 budget of $25,500,000. The
request includes $23,500,000 in salary costs and $2,000,000 for the
operating budget of the Office of the Secretary. The salary budget
represents an increase of $2,446,000 over the fiscal year 2007
Continuing Resolution funds, which were held at fiscal year 2006
levels. The increase is a result of the costs associated with annual
salaries and merit increases in fiscal year 2007 not previously funded
($1,112,000), the costs associated with the annual Cost of Living
Adjustment for fiscal year 2008 ($650,000), and funding for merit
increases and other staffing ($684,000). The operating budget
represents an increase of $20,000 from fiscal year 2007.
The net effect of my total budget request for 2008 is an increase
of $2,466,000. Our request is consistent with the amounts requested and
received in recent years through the Legislative Branch Appropriations
process, aside from last fiscal year when funding as a result of the
Continuing Resolution was held to the previous year's level. This
request will enable us to continue to attract and retain talented and
dedicated individuals to serve the needs of the United States Senate.
OFFICE OF THE SECRETARY APPORTIONMENT SCHEDULE
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Amount
available Budget
Items fiscal year estimates Difference
2007, Public fiscal year
Law 110-5 2008
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Departmental operating budget:
Executive office............................................ $630,000 $550,000 -$80,000
Administrative services..................................... $1,290,000 $1,390,000 +$100,000
Legislative services........................................ $60,000 $60,000 ..............
-----------------------------------------------
Total operating budget.................................... $1,980,000 $2,000,000 +$20,000
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
implementing mandated systems
Two systems critical to our operation are mandated by law, and I
would like to spend a few moments on each to highlight recent progress,
and to thank the committee for your ongoing support of both.
Financial Management Information System (FMIS)
The Financial Management Information System, or FMIS, is used by
approximately 140 Senate offices. Consistent with our five year
strategic plan, the Disbursing Office continues to modernize processes
and applications to meet the continued demand by Senate offices for
efficiency, accountability and ease of use. Our goals are to move to an
integrated, paperless voucher system, improve the Web FMIS system, and
make payroll and accounting system improvements.
During fiscal year 2006 and the first half of fiscal year 2007,
specific progress made on the FMIS project included:
--Web FMIS was upgraded twice, once in January 2006 and again in
December 2006. This system is used by office managers and
committee clerks to create vouchers and manage office funds, by
the Disbursing Office to review vouchers and by the Senate
Committee on Rules and Administration to sanction vouchers.
These two releases provided both technical and functional
changes. Most significant of these is the integration of the
travel advance and cash advance tracking functionality of the
standalone Funds Advance Tracking System (FATS). As a result of
this change, an office manager knows before coming to the
Disbursing Office front counter whether a travel advance can be
issued. The system changes support the underlying rules
associated with travel advances that were issued by the Senate
Committee on Rules and Administration in December 2006. As a
result of the integration of the advance functions into Web
FMIS, the standalone FATS system was shut down during the first
week of March.
--The Senate Automated Vendor Inquiry (SAVI) System was upgraded in
December 2006. It is used by Senate staff to create expense
summary reports (ESRs) online and to check the status of
reimbursements. It is integrated with Web FMIS so that vouchers
are created in Web FMIS from ``imported'' ESRs without re-
typing the expense and itinerary data shown on the ESR. SAVI
release 4.0 addressed requests from SAVI users to reduce the
number of pages for an average travel ESR from 3 to 2 by
collapsing any sections in which there are no expenses.
--ADPICS was upgraded twice, once in March 2006 and again in October
2006. Used primarily by the Sergeant at Arms (SAA) finance
staff, it is a mainframe system that provides integrated
procurement, receiving and voucher preparation functions that
are not included in Web FMIS. In response to requests from the
SAA finance staff, functional and ``ease-of-use'' changes to
ADPICS were made to approximately 40 ADPICS and FAMIS screens.
These included adding fields on specific screens, modifying
calculations, modifying query results, and facilitating
``round-trip'' linking from one screen to another and then back
to the original.
--The computing infrastructure for FMIS is provided by the SAA. Each
year the SAA staff upgrades the infrastructure hardware and
software. Two major upgrades were accomplished during the last
year. The first, upgrading the FMIS database software, DB2 from
version 7 to version 8, was done in three ``steps'', the last
of which was completed in August 2006. The second, installing a
new mainframe, first at the Alternate Computer Facility (ACF)
and then at the Primary Computing Facility in the Postal Square
Building (PCF), was completed in December 2006. For each
activity, the Disbursing Office staff tested the changes in the
FMIS testing environment and then validated the changes in the
production environment.
--Disaster operation services for FMIS are provided at the ACF. In
October 2006, the SAA conducted a day-long disaster recovery
test of the Senate's computing facilities, including FMIS
functions. The test involved switching the Senate's network
from accessing systems at the PCF, to the ACF, our backup
location, and powering down the PCF. The Disbursing Office
staff successfully tested all critical online components of
FMIS, including Payroll, ADPICS, FAMIS, SAVI, Web FMIS, and
Checkwriter. Two components were not tested: printing documents
from ADPICS for SAA finance, which required hardware that was
not yet at the ACF; and running the overnight batch processes.
During the remainder of fiscal year 2007 the following FMIS
activities are anticipated:
--Implementing additional system and reporting enhancements for the
SAA.
--Implementing a new release of Web FMIS that:
--Integrates additional functionality from the FATS system to track
election moratorium periods that informs an office manager
when a voucher includes travel related expenses that are
not allowable during the 60 days prior to an election;
--Enhances the pages used by the Senate Committee on Rules and
Administration Audit staff to review and sanction vouchers
to use newer technology and make functional changes to
support imaging and electronic signature functions;
--Enhances the Office Budget page to simplify creation of a budget;
and
--Allows ``importing'' of data from the Bank of America credit card
program in order to simplify voucher creation.
--Completing analysis of the appropriate hardware/software
acquisition strategy for electronic signatures, and imaging of
supporting documentation, and beginning acquisition.
--Implementing online distribution of payroll system reports.
--Implementing e-mail notification to vendors of payments made via
direct deposit.
--Upgrading the Hyperion Financial Management (HFM) system, the
software to be used for creating financial statements should
the Senate decide to issue such statements.
--Testing and verifying an upgrade of the mainframe operating system
to Z/OS version 1.7
--Participating in the yearly disaster recovery test.
During fiscal year 2008 the following FMIS activities are
anticipated:
--Eliminating the Social Security number (SSN) as the key field in
the payroll system and all Senate systems receiving data from
the payroll system (e.g., FMIS employee vendor numbers).
--Converting all data in FMIS using employee vendor number based on
SSN to new employee vendor number.
--Conducting a pilot of the technology for paperless payment. This
assumes identification of satisfactory hardware and software
for electronic signatures and imaging of supporting
documentation, and resolution of related policy and process
issues.
A more detailed report on FMIS is included in the departmental
report of the Disbursing Office which follows.
capitol visitor center
While the Architect of the Capitol directly oversees this massive
and impressive project, I would like to briefly mention the ongoing
involvement of the Secretary's office in this endeavor. My colleague,
the Clerk of the House, and I continue to facilitate weekly meetings
with senior staff of the joint leadership of Congress to address issues
that might impact the status of the project or the operation of
Congress in general.
Although the construction creates numerous temporary inconveniences
to Senators, staff and visitors, completion of the CVC will bring
substantial improvements in enhanced security and visitor amenities,
and its educational benefits for our visitors will be tremendous.
continuity of operations and emergency preparedness planning
Background
The Office of the Secretary maintains a COOP program to ensure that
the Senate can fulfill its Constitutional obligations under any
circumstances. Plans are in place to support Senate floor operations
both on and off Capitol Hill, and to permit each department within the
Office of the Secretary to perform its essential functions during and
after an emergency.
COOP planning in the Office of the Secretary began in late 2000.
Since that time, the Office has successfully implemented COOP plans
during the anthrax and ricin incidents, and has conducted more than
thirty drills and exercises to test and refine our plans. In
conjunction with the SAA, USCP, and the Offices of the Attending
Physician (OAP) and the AOC, the Office of the Secretary has
established and exercised Emergency Operations Centers, Briefing
Centers, the Leadership Coordination Center and Alternate Senate
Chambers, both on and off Capitol Hill.
In addition, the office has identified equipment, supplies and
other items critical to the conduct of essential functions, and has
assembled ``fly-away kits'' for the Senate Chamber, and for each
Department of the Office of the Secretary. Multiple copies of each fly-
away kit have been produced; some are stored in offices, and back-up
kits are stored nearby but off the main campus, as well as at other
sites outside the District of Columbia. This approach will enable the
Office of the Secretary to resume essential operations in 12 to 24
hours, even if the staff cannot retrieve anything from their offices.
Today, the Office of the Secretary is prepared to do the following
in the event of emergency:
--support Senate floor operations in an Alternate Senate Chamber
within 12 hours on campus, and within 24 to 72 hours off
campus, depending upon location;
--support an emergency legislative session at a Briefing Center, if
required;
--support Briefing Center Operations at any of three designated
locations within one hour;
--activate an Emergency Operations Center at Postal Square or another
near-campus site within one hour; and
--activate an Emergency Operations Center at another site within the
National Capital Region within three hours.
Activities in the Past Year
During the past year, the Office of the Secretary continued to
update, refine and exercise emergency preparedness plans and
operations. Specific activities included the following:
--Updated plans for use of the Leadership Coordination Center, to
support Leadership response to an incident, and the Office of
the Secretary's Emergency Operations Center.
--Worked with the Sergeant at Arms on development of a joint program
to facilitate writing, maintaining and implementing COOP plans.
--Worked with the SAA, the OAP, and the AOC on contingency plans for
a pandemic influenza outbreak.
--Conducted and participated in 10 emergency preparedness drills and
exercises.
The central mission of the Office of the Secretary is to provide
the legislative, financial and administrative support required for the
conduct of Senate business. Our emergency preparedness programs are
designed to ensure that the Senate can carry out its Constitutional
functions under any circumstances. These programs are critical to our
mission and are a permanent, integral part of our operations.
legislative offices
The Legislative Department of the Office of the Secretary of the
Senate provides the support essential to Senators to carry out their
daily chamber activities and the constitutional responsibilities of the
Senate. The department consists of eight offices--the Bill Clerk,
Captioning Services, Daily Digest, Enrolling Clerk, Executive Clerk,
Journal Clerk, Legislative Clerk, and the Official Reporters of
Debates, which are supervised by the Secretary through the Director of
Legislative Services. The Parliamentarian's office is also part of the
Legislative Department of the Secretary of the Senate.
Each of the nine offices within the Legislative Department is
supervised by experienced veterans of the Secretary's office. The
average length of service of legislative supervisors in the Office of
the Secretary of the Senate is 18 years. The experience of these senior
professional staff is a great asset for the Senate. In order to ensure
well-rounded expertise, the legislative team cross-trains extensively
among their specialties.
1. bill clerk
The Office of the Bill Clerk collects and records data on the
legislative activity of the Senate, which becomes the historical record
of official Senate business. The Bill Clerk's office keeps this
information in its handwritten files and ledgers and also enters it
into the Senate's automated retrieval system so that it is available to
all House and Senate offices via the Legislative Information System
(LIS). The Bill Clerk records actions of the Senate with regard to
bills, resolutions, reports, amendments, cosponsors, public law
numbers, and recorded votes. The Bill Clerk is responsible for
preparing for print all measures introduced, received, submitted, and
reported in the Senate. The Bill Clerk also assigns numbers to all
Senate bills and resolutions. All the information received in this
office comes directly from the Senate floor in written form within
moments of the action involved, so the Bill Clerk's office is generally
regarded as the most timely and most accurate source of legislative
information.
Legislative Activity
The Bill Clerk's office processed into the database more than 1,500
additional legislative items and 50 additional roll call votes than the
previous session. Of most significant note, the number of Senate
Resolutions submitted increased dramatically to reach 634, the highest
number submitted in any one Congress.
For comparative purposes, below is a summary of the second sessions
of the 108th and 109th Congresses, followed by a cumulative summary of
final numbers from each Congress:
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
108th 109th
Congress, Congress, 108th 109th
2nd Session 2nd Session Congress Congress
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Senate Bills............................................ 1,032 1,953 3,035 4,122
Senate Joint Resolutions................................ 16 14 42 41
Senate Concurrent Resolutions........................... 66 48 152 123
Senate Resolutions...................................... 204 287 487 634
Amendments Submitted.................................... 1,857 2,544 4,088 5,239
House Bills............................................. 322 325 604 611
House Joint Resolutions................................. 12 8 32 19
House Concurrent Resolutions............................ 87 77 165 165
Measures Reported....................................... 317 233 659 519
Written Reports......................................... 208 157 428 369
-------------------------------------------------------
Total Legislation................................. 4,121 5,646 9,692 11,842
Roll Call Votes......................................... 216 279 675 645
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Assistance with the Government Printing Office
The Bill Clerk's office maintains a good working relationship with
the Government Printing Office (GPO) and seeks to provide the best
service possible to meet the needs of the Senate. GPO continues to
respond in a timely manner to the Secretary's request, through the Bill
Clerk's office, for the printing of bills and reports, including the
expedited printing of priority matters for the Senate chamber. To date,
at the request of the Secretary through the Bill Clerk, GPO expedited
the printing of over 100 measures for consideration by the Senate
during the 109th Congress.
2. office of captioning services
The Office of Captioning Services provides realtime captioning of
Senate floor proceedings for the deaf and hard-of-hearing and
unofficial electronic transcripts of Senate floor proceedings to Senate
offices via the Senate Intranet.
Accuracy continues to be the top priority of the office. Overall
caption quality is monitored through daily Translation Data Reports,
monitoring of captions in realtime, and review of caption files on the
Senate Intranet. Dedication to this process has produced an overall
average office accuracy rate above 99 percent this past year, the 13th
year in a row the office has achieved this feat.
Continuity of Operations Planning (COOP) and preparation throughout
2006 also was a priority to ensure that staff are prepared and
confident about the ability to relocate and successfully caption from a
remote location in the event of an emergency.
The office continues to prepare and plan for its relocation to the
Senate expansion space in the Capitol Visitor Center (CVC), where it
will be housed with the Senate Recording Studio.
3. senate daily digest
The Senate Daily Digest serves seven principal functions:
--To render a brief, concise and easy-to-read accounting of all
official actions taken by the Senate in the Congressional
Record section known as the Daily Digest.
--To compile an accounting of all meetings of Senate committees,
subcommittees, joint committees and committees of conference.
--To enter all Senate and Joint committee scheduling data into the
Senate's Web-based scheduling application system. Committee
scheduling information is also prepared for publication in the
Daily Digest in three formats: Day-Ahead Schedule;
Congressional Program for the Week Ahead; and the extended
schedule which appears in the Extensions of Remarks section of
the Congressional Record.
--To enter into LIS all official actions taken by Senate committees
on legislation, nominations, and treaties.
--To publish in the Daily Digest a listing of all legislation which
has become public law.
--To publish on the first legislative day of each month in the Daily
Digest a ``Resume of Congressional Activity'' which includes
all Congressional statistical information, including days and
time in session; measures introduced, reported and passed; and
roll call votes. (See Chart--Resume of Congressional Activity)
--To assist the House Daily Digest Editor in the preparation at the
end of each session of Congress a history of public bills
enacted into law and a final resume of congressional
statistical activity.
Committee Activity
Senate committees held 916 meetings during the second session of
the 109th Congress, 153 more than were held during the second session
of the 108th Congress.
All hearings and business meetings (including joint meetings and
conferences) are scheduled through the Office of the Senate Daily
Digest, published in the Congressional Record and entered in LIS.
Meeting outcomes are also published by the Daily Digest in the
Congressional Record each day.
Chamber Activity
The Senate was in session 138 days, for a total of 1,027 hours and
48 minutes, and conducted one live quorum call and 279 roll call votes.
(See 20-Year Comparison of Senate Legislative Activity)
Computer Activities
The Digest continues the practice of sending a disc containing the
complete publication along with a duplicate hard copy to GPO at the end
of the day. GPO receives the Digest copy by electronic transfer, which
promotes the timeliness of publishing the Congressional Record. The
office continues to feel comfortable with this procedure, both to allow
the Digest Editor to physically view what is being transmitted to GPO,
and to allow GPO staff to have a comparable final product to cross
reference.
The Digest office will soon implement a new procedure for preparing
copy. Information System staff has worked closely with the Daily Digest
staff to develop a Daily Digest Authoring System. The system will
streamline the process for creating, editing, and managing files for
the publication of the Daily Digest, and the publishing of the
Congressional Record. Also, Digest staff continue to work closely with
computer staff to refine the LIS/DMS system, including further refining
the Senate Committee Scheduling application.
Government Printing Office
The Daily Digest continues to work with GPO on issues related to
the printing of the Digest and is pleased to report that editing
corrections, especially the insertion of page reference numbers, and
transcript errors are infrequent. Discussions with GPO continue
regarding the inclusion of online corrections.
Office Summation
The Daily Digest consults on a daily basis with the Senate
Parliamentarians, the Official Reporters of Debates, and the
Legislative, Executive, Journal, and Bill Clerks, as well as the staffs
of the policy committees and other committee staffs, and is grateful
for the continued support from these offices.
DATA ON LEGISLATIVE ACTIVITY--SECOND SESSION, 109TH CONGRESS
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Senate House Total
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Days in Session................................................. 138 101 ..............
Time in Session................................................. 1,027 hrs 48" 850 hrs, 19" ..............
Congressional Record:
Pages of proceedings........................................ S11849 H9202 ..............
Extension of remarks........................................ .............. E2187 ..............
Public bills enacted into law................................... 73 175 248
Private bills enacted into law.................................. 1 .............. 1
Bills in conference............................................. 1 4 5
Measures passed, total.......................................... 635 710 1,345
Senate bills................................................ 142 87 ..............
House bills................................................. 211 319 ..............
Senate joint resolutions.................................... 2 2 ..............
House joint resolutions..................................... 8 8 ..............
Senate concurrent resolutions............................... 20 8 ..............
House concurrent resolutions................................ 41 77 ..............
Simple resolutions.......................................... 211 209 ..............
Measures reported, total \1\.................................... 231 345 576
Senate bills................................................ 160 10 ..............
House bills................................................. 57 223 ..............
Senate joint resolutions.................................... 3 .............. ..............
House joint resolutions..................................... .............. 1 ..............
Senate concurrent resolutions............................... 4 .............. ..............
House concurrent resolutions................................ .............. 9 ..............
Simple resolutions.......................................... 7 102 ..............
Special reports................................................. 9 12 ..............
Conference reports.............................................. 1 9 ..............
Measures pending on calendar.................................... 303 159 ..............
Measures introduced, total...................................... 2,302 2,451 4,753
Bills....................................................... 1,953 1,785 ..............
Joint resolutions........................................... 14 27 ..............
Concurrent resolutions...................................... 48 174 ..............
Simple resolutions.......................................... 287 465 ..............
Quorum calls.................................................... 1 2 ..............
Yea-and-nay votes............................................... 279 287 ..............
Recorded votes.................................................. .............. 252 ..............
Bills vetoed.................................................... .............. 1 ..............
Vetoes overridden............................................... .............. .............. ..............
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
\1\ These figures include all measures reported, even if there was no accompanying report. A total of 155
reports have been filed in the Senate, a total of 366 reports have been filed in the House.
NOMINATIONS--RESUME
[Disposition of Executive Nominations (109-2) From: 01/03/2006 to 12/31/
2006]
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Civilian Nominations, totaling 618 (including 148
nominations carried over from the First Session),
disposed of as follows:
Confirmed..................................... 415
Withdrawn..................................... 21
Returned to White House....................... 182
Other Civilian Nominations, totaling 3266
(including 780 nominations carried over from the
First Session), disposed of as follows:
Confirmed..................................... 3,263
Withdrawn..................................... 1
Returned to White House....................... 2
Air Force Nominations, totaling 7830 (including
100 nominations carried over from the First
Session), disposed of as follows:
Confirmed..................................... 7,829
Returned to White House....................... 1
Army Nominations, totaling 9785 (including 608
nominations carried over from the First Session),
disposed of as follows:
Confirmed..................................... 9,772
Returned to White House....................... 13
Navy Nominations, totaling 7036 (including 21
nominations carried over from the First Session),
disposed of as follows:
Confirmed..................................... 7,035
Returned to White House....................... 1
Marine Corps Nominations, totaling 1293 (including
2 nominations carried over from the First
Session), disposed of as follows:
Confirmed..................................... 1,289
Returned to White House....................... 4
Summary:
Total Nominations carried over from the First 1,659
Session......................................
Total Nominations Received this Session....... 28,169
Total Confirmed............................... 29,603
Total Unconfirmed............................. ....................
Total Withdrawn............................... 22
Total Returned to the White House............. 203
------------------------------------------------------------------------
20-YEAR COMPARISON OF SENATE LEGISLATIVE ACTIVITY
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Senate Convened..................................... 1/6 1/25 1/3 1/23 1/3 1/3 1/5 1/25 1/4 1/3
Senate Adjourned.................................... 12/22 10/21 11/21 10/28 1/3/92 10/9 11/26 12/01 1/3/96 10/4
Days in Session..................................... 170 137 136 138 158 129 153 138 211 132
Hours in Session.................................... 1,21452" 1,12648" 1,00319" 1,25014" 1,20044" 1,09109" 1,26941" 1,24333" 1,83910" 1,03645"
Average Hours per Day............................... 7.1 8.2 7.4 9.1 7.6 8.5 8.3 9.0 8.7 7.8
Total Measures Passed............................... 616 814 605 716 626 651 473 465 346 476
Roll Call Votes..................................... 420 379 312 326 280 270 395 329 613 306
Quorum Calls........................................ 36 26 11 3 3 5 2 6 3 2
Public Laws......................................... 240 473 240 244 243 347 210 255 88 245
Treaties Ratified................................... 3 15 9 15 15 32 20 8 10 28
Nominations Confirmed............................... 46,404 42,317 45,585 42,493 45,369 30,619 38,676 37,446 40,535 33,176
Average Voting Attendance........................... 94.03 91.58 98.0 97.47 97.16 95.4 97.6 97.02 98.07 98.22
Sessions Convened Before 12 Noon.................... 131 120 95 116 126 112 128 120 184 113
Sessions Convened at 12 Noon........................ 12 12 14 4 9 ............ 6 9 2 15
Sessions Convened after 12 Noon..................... 25 5 27 17 23 10 15 17 12 7
Sessions Continued after 6 p.m...................... 97 37 88 100 102 91 100 100 158 88
Sessions Continued after 12 Midnight................ 6 7 9 13 6 4 9 7 3 1
Saturday Sessions................................... 3 ............ 1 3 2 2 2 3 5 1
Sunday Sessions..................................... 1 ............ ............ 2 ............ ............ ............ ............ 3 ............
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
20-YEAR COMPARISON OF SENATE LEGISLATIVE ACTIVITY--Continued
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Senate Convened..................................... 1/3 1/27 1/6 1/24 1/3 1/23 1/7 1/20 1/4 1/3
Senate Adjourned.................................... 11/13 10/21 11/19 12/15 12/20 11/20 12/9 12/8 12/22 12/9
Days in Session..................................... 153 143 162 141 173 149 167 133 159 138
Hours in Session.................................... 1,09307" 1,09505" 1,18357" 1,01751" 1,23615" 1,04223" 1,45405" 1,03131" 1,22226" 1,02748"
Average Hours per Day............................... 7.1 7.7 7.3 7.2 7.1 7.0 8.7 7.7 7.7 7.4
Total Measures Passed............................... 386 506 549 696 425 523 590 663 624 635
Roll Call Votes..................................... 298 314 374 298 380 253 459 216 366 279
Quorum Calls........................................ 6 4 7 6 3 2 3 1 3 1
Public Laws......................................... 153 241 170 410 136 241 198 300 169 248
Treaties Ratified................................... 15 53 13 39 3 17 11 15 6 14
Nominations Confirmed............................... 25,576 20,302 22,468 22,512 25,091 23,633 21,580 24,420 25,942 29,603
Average Voting Attendance........................... 98.68 97.47 98.02 96.99 98.29 96.36 96.07 95.54 97.41 97.13
Sessions Convened Before 12 Noon.................... 115 109 118 107 140 119 133 104 121 110
Sessions Convened at 12 Noon........................ 12 31 17 25 10 12 4 9 1 4
Sessions Convened after 12 Noon..................... 7 2 19 24 21 23 23 21 36 24
Sessions Continued after 6 p.m...................... 96 93 113 94 108 103 134 129 120 129
Sessions Continued after 12 Midnight................ ............ ............ ............ ............ 2 3 8 2 3 3
Saturday Sessions................................... 1 1 3 1 3 ............ 1 2 2 2
Sunday Sessions..................................... 1 ............ ............ 1 ............ ............ 1 1 2 ............
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Prepared by the Senate Daily Digest--Office of the Secretary.
4. enrolling clerk
The Enrolling Clerk prepares, proofreads, corrects, and prints all
Senate-passed legislation prior to its transmittal to the House of
Representatives, the National Archives, the Secretary of State, the
United States Claims Court, and the White House.
During 2006, 99 enrolled bills (transmitted to the President), 2
enrolled joint resolutions (transmitted to the President) and 9
concurrent resolutions (transmitted to Archives) were prepared,
proofread, corrected, and printed on parchment for official enrollment.
In addition, the office processed a total of 571 additional pieces of
legislation that were passed or agreed to by the Senate.
Throughout 2006 the enrolling clerks met with personnel of the LIS
Project Office to integrate and test the LEXA application for
processing bills for printing. The LEXA training manual was updated in
early February 2006; and, as of January 2007, the enrolling clerks are
now incorporating the new legislative drafting tool. Senate Enrolling
will embark in this new challenge to continue to help incorporate these
changes into the process to further its primary mission of providing
the most timely and accurate product for the Senate.
5. executive clerk
The Executive Clerk prepares an accurate record of actions taken by
the Senate during executive sessions (proceedings on nominations and
treaties) which is published as the Journal of the Executive
Proceedings of the Senate at the end of each session of Congress. The
Executive Clerk also prepared the Executive Calendar daily as well as
all nominations and treaty resolutions for transmittal to the
President. Additionally, the Executive Clerk's office processes all
executive communications, presidential messages and petitions and
memorials.
Nominations
During the second session of the 109th Congress, there were 1,049
nomination messages sent to the Senate by the President, transmitting
28,169 nominations to positions requiring Senate confirmation and 22
messages withdrawing nominations sent to the Senate during the second
session of the 109th Congress. Of the total nominations transmitted,
370 were for civilian positions other than lists in the Foreign
Service, Coast Guard, NOAA, and Public Health Service. In addition,
there were 2,486 nominees in the ``civilian list'' categories named
above. Military nominations received this session totaled 25,213
(7,730--Air Force; 9,177--Army; 7,015--Navy and 1,291--Marine Corps).
The Senate confirmed 29,603 nominations this session. Pursuant to the
provisions of paragraph six of Senate Rule XXXI, 203 nominations were
returned to the President during the second session of the 109th
Congress.
Treaties
There were 14 treaties transmitted to the Senate by the President
during the second session of the 109th Congress for its advice and
consent to ratification, which were ordered printed as treaty documents
for the use of the Senate (Treaty Doc. 109-9 through 109-22). The
Senate gave its advice and consent to 14 treaties with various
conditions, declarations, understandings and provisos to the
resolutions of advice and consent to ratification.
Executive Reports and Roll Call Votes
There were 11 executive reports relating to treaties ordered
printed for the use of the Senate during the second session of the
109th Congress (Executive Report 109-9 through 109-19). The Senate
conducted 29 roll call votes in executive session, all on or in
relation to nominations and treaties.
Executive Communications
For the second session of the 109th Congress, 4,186 executive
communications, 192 petitions and memorials and 23 Presidential
messages were received and processed.
LIS Update
The Executive Clerk consulted with the computer staff during the
year to improve the LIS processing of nominations, treaties, executive
communications, presidential messages and petitions and memorials.
6. journal clerk
The Journal Clerk takes notes of the daily legislative proceedings
of the Senate in the ``Minute Book'' and prepares a history of bills
and resolutions for the printed Journal of the Proceedings of the
Senate, or Senate Journal, as required by Article I, Section V of the
Constitution. The Senate Journal is published each calendar year, and
in 2006, the Journal Clerk completed the production of the 1,090 page
2005 edition.
The Journal staff take 90-minute turns at the rostrum in the Senate
chamber, noting by hand for inclusion in the Minute Book (i) all orders
(entered into by the Senate through unanimous consent agreements), (ii)
legislative messages received from the President of the United States,
(iii) messages from the House of Representatives, (iv) legislative
actions as taken by the Senate (including motions made by Senators,
points of order raised, and roll call votes taken), (v) amendments
submitted and proposed for consideration, (vi) bills and joint
resolutions introduced, and (vii) concurrent and Senate resolutions as
submitted. These notes of the proceedings are then compiled in
electronic form for eventual publication at the end of each calendar
year of the Senate Journal.
The LIS Senate Journal Authoring System continues to be updated as
needed to further assist in the efficiency of production. The 2006
Senate Journal is expected to be sent to GPO for printing at the end of
April.
7. legislative clerk
The Legislative Clerk sits at the Secretary's desk in the Senate
Chamber and reads aloud bills, amendments, the Senate Journal,
Presidential messages, and other such materials when so directed by the
Presiding Officer of the Senate. The Legislative Clerk calls the roll
of members to establish the presence of a quorum and to record and
tally all yea and nay votes. The office prepares the Senate Calendar of
Business, published each day that the Senate is in session, and
prepares additional publications relating to Senate class membership
and committee and subcommittee assignments. The Legislative Clerk
maintains the official copy of all measures pending before the Senate
and must incorporate into those measures any amendments that are agreed
to. This office retains custody of official messages received from the
House of Representatives and conference reports awaiting action by the
Senate. The office is responsible for verifying the accuracy of
information entered into LIS by the various offices of the Secretary.
Summary of Activity
The second session of the 109th Congress completed its legislative
business and adjourned on December 9, 2006. During 2006, the Senate was
in session 138 days and conducted 279 roll call votes. There were 231
measures reported from committees and 635 total measures passed. In
addition, there were 2,545 amendments processed.
Cross-Training
Recognizing the importance of planning for the continuity of Senate
business, under both normal and possibly extenuating circumstances,
cross-training continues to be strongly emphasized among the
Secretary's legislative staff. To ensure additional staff are trained
to perform the basic floor responsibilities of the Legislative Clerk,
as well as the various other floor-related responsibilities of the
Secretary, approximately 50 percent of the legislative staff are
currently involved or have recently been involved in cross-training.
Amendment Tracking System Feedback
The Senate's Web-based application that allows users to access
images of Senate amendments proposed to legislation is called the
Amendment Tracking System (ATS). Developed in 1997 to provide the
Senate with online access to amendments, ATS provides legislative staff
with scanned images of the amendments, and descriptive information
about them, including their purpose, sponsor, cosponsors, submitted
date, proposed date, and status.
In September of 2005, the scope of information available on ATS was
expanded to include submitted amendments, those amendments that have
been submitted but have not been proposed on the Senate floor. Staff
members now have the option to view all, just submitted, or just
proposed amendments. ATS also expanded the size of amendment images
from 25 to 50 pages, so users are now able to see up to 50 pages of a
submitted or proposed amendment.
After utilizing the expanded version of the ATS for a full year,
reaction from the Senate community continues to be extremely positive.
8. official reporters of debates
The Official Reporters of Debates prepare and edit a substantially
verbatim report of the proceedings of the Senate for publication in the
Congressional Record, and serve as liaison for all Senate personnel on
matters relating to the content of the Record. The transcript of
proceedings, submitted statements and legislation are transmitted in
hard copy and electronically throughout the day to GPO.
The office works diligently to assure that the electronic
submissions to GPO are timely and efficient. The Official Reporters
encourage offices to make submissions to the Record by electronic
means, which results in both a tremendous cost saving to the Senate and
minimizes keyboard errors. The office provides formatting guidelines to
Senate offices which has facilitated an accurate and timely printing of
each day's Congressional Record.
9. parliamentarian
The Parliamentarian's Office continues to perform its essential
institutional responsibilities to act as a neutral arbiter among all
parties with an interest in the legislative process. These
responsibilities include advising the Chair, Senators and their staff,
as well as committee staff, House members and their staffs,
administration officials, the media and members of the general public,
on all matters requiring an interpretation of the Standing Rules of the
Senate, the precedents of the Senate, unanimous consent agreements, as
well as provisions of public law affecting the proceedings of the
Senate.
The Parliamentarians work in close cooperation with the Senate
leadership and their floor staffs in coordinating all of the business
on the Senate floor. The Parliamentarian or one of his assistants is
always present on the Senate floor when the Senate is in session,
standing ready to assist the Presiding Officer in his or her official
duties, as well as to assist any other Senator on procedural matters.
The Parliamentarians work closely with the staff of the Vice President
of the United States and the Vice President himself whenever he
performs his duties as President of the Senate.
The Parliamentarians monitor all proceedings on the floor of the
Senate, advise the Presiding Officer on the competing rights of the
Senators on the floor, and advise all Senators as to what is
appropriate in debate. The Parliamentarians keep track of the
amendments offered to the legislation pending on the Senate floor, and
monitor them for points of order. In this respect, the Parliamentarians
reviewed more than 1,000 amendments during 2006 to determine if they
met various procedural requirements (such as germaneness). The
Parliamentarians also reviewed thousands of pages of conference reports
to determine what provisions could appropriately be included therein.
The Office of the Parliamentarian is responsible for the referral
to the appropriate committees of all legislation introduced in the
Senate, all legislation received from the House, as well as all
communications received from the executive branch, state and local
governments, and private citizens. In order to perform this
responsibility, the Parliamentarians do extensive legal and legislative
research. During 2006, the Parliamentarian and his assistants referred
2,245 measures and 4,403 communications to the appropriate Senate
committees. The office worked extensively with Senators and their
staffs to advise them of the jurisdictional consequences of particular
drafts of legislation, and evaluated the jurisdictional effect of
proposed modifications in drafting. The office continues to address the
jurisdictional questions posed by the creation of the new Department of
Homeland Security, by the adoption of S. Res. 445 reorganizing
intelligence and homeland security jurisdiction of the Senate's
committees, and by the enactment of the Intelligence Reform and
Terrorism Prevention Act of 2004. The Parliamentarians have made dozens
of decisions about the committee referrals of nominations for new
positions created in this department, nominations for positions which
existed before this department was created but whose responsibilities
have changed, and hundreds of legislative proposals concerning the
department's responsibilities.
Additionally, in the last six years, rules relating to legislation
on appropriations bills, and the scope of conference reports on all
bills were reinstated. As a result, the Parliamentarians have been
asked to review hundreds of Senate amendments and now have the
responsibility of potentially reviewing every provision of every
conference report considered by both Houses of Congress.
In 2006, as in all election years, the Parliamentarians received
all of the certificates of election of Senators elected or reelected to
the Senate, and reviewed them for sufficiency and accuracy, returning
those that were defective and reviewing their replacements.
financial operations: disbursing office
disbursing office organization
The mission of the Senate Disbursing Office is to provide efficient
and effective central financial and human resource data management,
information and advice to the distributed, individually managed offices
of the United States Senate, and to Members and employees of the
Senate. To accomplish this mission, the Senate Disbursing Office
manages the collection of information from the distributed accounting
locations within the Senate to formulate and consolidate the agency
level budget, disburse the payroll, pay the Senate's bills, prepare
auditable financial statements, and provide appropriate counseling and
advice. The Senate Disbursing office collects information from Members
and employees that is necessary to maintain and administer the
retirement, health insurance, life insurance, and other central human
resource programs and provides responsive, personal attention to
Members and employees on an unbiased and confidential basis. The Senate
Disbursing Office also manages the distribution of central financial
and human resource information to the individual Member offices,
committees, administrative and leadership offices in the Senate while
maintaining the confidentiality of information for Members and Senate
employees.
To support the mission of the Senate Disbursing Office, the
organization is structured to enhance its ability to provide quality
work, maintain a high level of customer service, promote good internal
controls, efficiency and teamwork, and provide for the appropriate
levels of supervision and management. The long-term financial needs of
the Senate are best served by an organization staffed with highly
trained professionals who possess a high degree of institutional
knowledge, sound judgment, and interpersonal skills that reflect the
unique nature of the United States Senate.
deputy for benefits and financial services
The principal responsibility of this position is to provide
expertise and oversight on federal retirement, benefits, payroll, and
financial services processes. Coordination of the interaction between
the Financial Services (Front Office), Employee Benefits, and Payroll
Sections is also a major responsibility of the position, in addition to
the planning and project management of new computer systems and
programs. The Deputy for Benefits and Financial Services ensures that
job processes are efficient and up to date, modifies computer support
systems, as necessary, implements regulatory and legislated changes,
and designs and produces up-to-date forms for use in all three
sections.
After year-end processing of payroll for the calendar year 2005,
minor enhancements to the cost of living allowance (COLA) process were
smoothly completed. W-2's were issued promptly and made immediately
available on the Document Imaging System (DIS). During the year, other
minor changes were made to the Human Resources Management System (HRMS)
to promote greater efficiency.
DIS, which contains electronic images of employee personnel
folders, documents, records, W-2 statements, as well as other pay and
service history records, has proven to be a valuable resource for the
Disbursing Office. As DIS began nearing its storage capacity, research
was conducted and projections were made on future uses and capacity
requirements. New SQL servers were requisitioned and installed. In
addition to transferring data from old to new, including replication
for the Alternate Computing Facility (ACF), testing of the new server
has begun, and it is expected to be fully operational later this month.
This upgrade will allow us the ability to expand the scope of our
document imaging and to bring it into full compliance with COOP
guidelines.
The Senate Service Facility (SSF) was completed in February.
Revolving vertical file cabinets were installed in the Disbursing
Office's enclosed, secure and environmentally controlled area. In
addition, a dedicated, secure ``cage'' was provided for organized and
elevated box storage. Access was granted and security codes were
authorized to those in need of access. All Disbursing Office files and
employee personnel folders in the offsite warehouses were transported
to the SSF. Employee personnel folders were then transferred from the
70 outdated file cabinets into the state-of-the-art revolving vertical
cabinets. This required a great deal of planning and organization to
integrate the personnel folders from many groupings into one
alphabetical run for ease of access and organization. During the
summer, 18,000 of the older employee personnel folders maintained on-
site in the Disbursing Office were purged. These folders were
transported to the SSF and interfiled with those folders already
located there. This alleviated overcrowding of the Disbursing Office
files and has made the older folders readily accessible.
As a result of legislation passed in 2004, the new pre-tax Federal
Employees Dental and Vision Insurance Program (FEDVIP) was implemented
in 2006. In preparation for implementation, disbursing staff attended
agency-wide meetings and seminars. The Office of Personnel Management
(OPM) provides guidance for this program which is administered by a
third-party administrator. Programming specifications were determined
for compliance with the program's parameters and its regulations, and
provided to the SAA Computer Center for development. The Disbursing
Office provided testing and trouble-shooting for the new programming.
Preparations for the first annual FEDVIP Open Season (OS) were made,
including training, education and distribution of materials. The
initial FEDVIP OS coincided with the Federal Employees Health Benefits
(FEHB) and Flexible Spending Accounts (FSA) OS, and enrollments were
effective 12-31-2006. This new program will be monitored with
programming and procedures modified as needed.
Updates and revision of many Disbursing Office forms were
completed, and many were made available electronically through Webster.
The Disbursing Office also worked with the SAA Computer Center to
provide internal electronic storage and retrieval of reports and to
eliminate the need for paper production and distribution of those
reports.
In addition, the Disbursing Office administers the retirement and
benefits programs for the Senate Employees' Child Care Center (SECCC).
In 2006 electronic imaging and storage of employee folders and
documents for SECCC staff was completed as well as the creation of
electronic retirement records.
At the request of the Senate Committee Rules and Administration,
the Disbursing Office worked to edit and update relevant portions of
the Senate Handbook. In addition, Senator-elect information and
guidance was also reviewed and updated for the orientation handbook.
front office--administrative and financial services
The Front Office is the main service area of all general Senate
business and financial activity. The Front office maintains the
Senate's internal accountability of funds used in daily operations.
Reconciliation of such funds is executed on a daily basis. The Front
office provides training to newly authorized payroll contacts along
with continuing guidance to all contacts in the execution of business
operations. It is the receiving point for most incoming expense
vouchers, payroll actions, and employee benefits related forms, and is
the initial verification point to ensure that paperwork received in the
Disbursing Office conforms to all applicable Senate rules, regulations,
and statutes. The Front Office is the first line of service provided to
Senate Members, Officers, and employees. All new Senate employees
(permanent and temporary) who will work in the Capitol Hill Senate
offices are administered the required oath of office and personnel
affidavit. Staff is also provided verbal and written detailed
information regarding pay and benefits. Authorization is certified to
new and state employees for issuance of Senate identification cards.
Advances are issued to Senate staff authorized for official Senate
travel. Cash and check advances are entered and reconciled in the Funds
Advance Tracking System (FATS). Repayment of travel advances is
executed after processing of certified expenses is complete. Travelers
checks are available on a non-profit basis to assist the traveler.
Numerous inquiries are handled daily, ranging from pay, benefits,
taxes, voucher processing, reporting, laws, and Senate regulations, and
must always be answered accurately and fully to provide the highest
degree of customer service. Cash and checks received from Senate
entities as part of their daily business are handled through the Front
office and become part of the Senate's accountability of federally
appropriated funds and are then processed through the Senate's general
ledger system.
General Activities
Processed approximately 2,300 cash advances, totaling approximately
$1.1 million and initialized 800 check/direct deposit advances,
totaling approximately $620,000.
Received and processed more than 25,000 checks, totaling over
$2,500,000.
Administered Oath and Personnel Affidavits to more than 2,700 new
Senate staff and advised them of their benefits.
Maintained brochures for 12 Federal health carriers and distributed
approximately 4,000 brochures to new and existing staff during the
annual FEHB OS.
Provided 20 training sessions to new administrative managers.
In December, the advance functionality module of Web FMIS was
implemented to replace the legacy FATS system for issuance and
repayment of travel advances. This implementation required the ongoing
dual run of both systems until testing was successfully completed in
March of this year.
The Front office continues its daily reconciliation of operations
and strengthened internal office controls. New locks for cash drawers
were ordered and scheduled for installation. This will allow for better
central control of the cash accountability. Training and guidance to
new administrative managers and business contacts continued, as did the
incorporation of updates of the scanning and imaging project into daily
operations. A major emphasis was placed on assisting employees in
maximizing their Thrift Savings Plan (TSP) contributions and making
them aware of the TSP catch-up program. The Front office continued to
provide the Senate community with prompt, courteous, and informative
advice regarding Disbursing Office operations.
payroll section
The Payroll Section maintains the Human Resources Management System
(HRMS) and is responsible for processing, verifying, and warehousing
all payroll information submitted to the Disbursing Office by Senators,
Chairmen and other appointing officials for their staffs, including
appointments of employees, salary changes, title changes, transfers and
terminations. It is also responsible for input of all enrollments and
elections submitted by Members and employees that affect their pay
(e.g. retirement and benefits elections, tax withholding, TSP
participation, allotments from pay, address changes, direct deposit
elections, levies and garnishments) and for the issuance of accurate
salary payments to Members and employees. The Payroll Section jointly
maintains the Automated Clearing House (ACH) FedLine facilities with
the Accounts Payable Section for the normal transmittal of payroll
deposits to the Federal Reserve. Payroll Expenditure, Projection and
Allowance reports are distributed to all Senate offices. Issuance of
the proper withholding and agency contributions reports to the
Accounting Department is handled by Payroll as is transmission of the
proper TSP information to the National Finance Center. In addition, the
Payroll Section maintains earnings records for distribution to the
Social Security Administration and employees' taxable earnings records
for W-2 statements. The Payroll Section is also responsible for the
payroll expenditure data portion of the Report of the Secretary of the
Senate. The Payroll Section calculates, reconciles and bills the SECCC
(Child Care Center) for their staff Employee Contributions and forwards
payment of those contributions to the Accounting Section. The Payroll
Section provides guidance and counseling to staff and administrative
managers on issues of pay, salaries, allowances and projections.
General Activities
The Payroll Section processed a January 1, 2006 cost of living
increase of 3.44 percent. The Payroll Section maintained the normal
schedule of processing TSP election forms. Employees took full
advantage of the increase of TSP deductions making the most of the new
$15,000 maximum. For those employees over 50, the TSP catch-up program
provided an opportunity to make additional contributions in excess of
the standard limitations.
Payroll Allowance, Expenditure and Projection reports are provided
to all Senate offices on a monthly basis. A desire to provide these
reports in an electronic format was identified. Brainstorming sessions
were held within the Disbursing Office to determine possible paths for
this project. Initial contacts between the Disbursing Office, SAA
Computer Center and the appropriate contractor were made and early
stage meetings have been held to identify requirements, possible
strategies and means to provide the electronic reports. The goal is to
make these reports available electronically in 2007.
The Payroll Section provides administration of the Student Loan
Repayment Program (SLRP). In response to the high volume of calls and
e-mails, an exclusive SLP e-mail account has been established. This
tool will speed responses to inquiries from offices and employees. In
addition, meetings were held with office administrators to provide
clarification about and to ensure compliance with Public Law 107-68
that governs the Senate SLP.
In November the Payroll Section gained access to the U.S. Treasury
Pacer System, which allows us to resolve SLP lender issues and employee
inquiries in an accurate and efficient manner by presenting physical
evidence of payments negotiated. Disbursing continues to review
internal processes and controls, seeking ways to improve efficiency and
performance. In 2006, the office developed a database to provide better
tracking and reporting for the SLP activities.
In September the Payroll Section began to receive TSP reports,
receipts, loans and error lists via TSP's Web-based secure system. This
enabled us to handle all of these functions in a timely manner.
Previously TSP correspondence was sent by mail and was subject to mail
delays and loss.
The Payroll Section was involved in the preparations and
programming specifications for implementation of FEDVIPS. Flexible
Spending Accounts, and Long Term Care Insurance processing continues.
The office continues to refine and improve processes in working with
third party administrators.
The 2006 elections presented the Payroll Section with the need to
prepare for the opening and closing of ten personal offices in addition
to leadership changes. Disbursing Office staff looked into the
specifics of S. Res. 478 to determine its impact on outgoing staff and
to ensure that procedures allowed for the proper administration of the
resolution.
The Payroll Section again participated in disaster recovery
testing. This year's test, conducted in October, entailed using the ACF
processing equipment to operate the payroll/personnel system from the
Hart Building while SAA programmers ran trial payrolls from dial up
sources. Part of the test was for members of SAA Production Services to
produce the payroll output from printers located at the ACF. The
Payroll/Personnel Systems test proved that it could be run from
multiple locations at the same time.
employee benefits section
The primary responsibilities of the Employee Benefits Section (EBS)
are administration of health insurance, life insurance and all
retirement programs for Members and employees of the Senate. This
includes counseling, processing of paperwork, research, dissemination
of information and interpretation of retirement and benefits laws and
regulations. EBS staff is also expected to have a working knowledge of
FSAs, the Long Term Care Insurance (LTCI) Program and FEDVIPS. In
addition, the sectional work includes research and verification of all
prior federal service and prior Senate service for new and returning
appointees. EBS provides this information for payroll input and when
Official Personnel Folders and Transcripts of Service from other
federal agencies are received, verifies the accuracy of the information
provided and reconciles as necessary. Senate Transcripts of Service,
including all official retirement and benefits documentation, are
provided to other federal agencies when Senate Members and staff are
hired elsewhere in the government. EBS is responsible for the
administration and tracking of employees placed in Leave Without Pay
(LWOP) to perform military service and the occasional civilian
appointment to an international organization. EBS also handles most of
the stationery and forms inventory ordering and maintenance for the
Disbursing Office. EBS processes employment verifications for loans,
the Bar Exam, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), OPM, and
Department of Defense (DOD), among others. Unemployment claim forms are
completed, and employees are counseled on their eligibility. Department
of Labor billings for unemployment compensation paid to Senate
employees are reviewed in EBS and submitted by voucher to the
Accounting Section for payment, as are the employee fees associated
with FSAs. Designations of Beneficiary for Federal Employees' Group
Life Insurance (FEGLI), Civil Service Retirement System (CSRS), Federal
Employees Retirement System (FERS), and unpaid compensation are filed
and checked by EBS.
General Activities
EBS assisted with the transition of Senator Corzine and his staff
as he resigned his Senate seat to become Governor of New Jersey, as
well as the transition of Senator Menendez and his staff to the Senate
from his seat in the House. EBS also provided counseling to all
outgoing Senators, and provided their outgoing staff with office talks
and individual counseling. Additionally, EBS provided counseling to
committee and leadership staff affected by leadership changes.
EBS conducted agency-wide seminars on CSRS and FERS and hosted a
seminar with the D.C. Department of Employment Services in December for
all potentially outgoing staff. This seminar was very helpful to staff
in providing pointers and references in applying for new employment.
EBS staff attended interagency meetings on the development and
understanding of the new FEDVIP program and the Benefeds Portal that
will combine third-party administration of FSA, LTCI and the new FEDVIP
programs. EBS also attended government-wide TSP meetings to keep
abreast of new regulations and procedures.
Approximately 500 employees changed plans during the annual FEHB
OS. These changes were processed and reported to carriers very quickly.
This year we were again able to offer Senate employees access to the
online ``Checkbook Guide to Health Plans'' to research and compare FEHB
plans. This tool will remain available to staff throughout the year.
Once again, the Disbursing Office hosted a FEHB OS Health Fair, with
over 1,200 employees attending. Senate enrollment in the new Dental and
Vision Insurance plans was over 1,600.
There has been significant coordination with the SAA Computer
Center to effect computer enhancements and provide additional automated
forms to the EBS database. This has provided greater efficiency and
increased accuracy of information. In addition, EBS created several
``fillable forms'' for use by EBS staff.
EBS is in the process of building a sectional electronic
``library'' of scanned documents on our shared directory. This library
of samples, documentation, rulings and other benefits will help to
teach new personnel to ensure consistent EBS output. The library will
also be a valuable COOP resource.
disbursing office financial management
Headed by the Deputy for Financial Management, the mission of
Disbursing Office Financial Management (DOFM) is to coordinate all
central financial policies, procedures, and activities, to process and
pay expense vouchers within reasonable time frames, to work toward
producing an auditable consolidated financial statement for the Senate
and to provide professional customer service, training and confidential
financial guidance to all Senate accounting locations. In addition, the
Financial Management group is responsible for the compilation of the
annual operating budget of the United States Senate for presentation to
the Committee on Appropriations as well as for the formulation,
presentation and execution of the budget for the Senate. On a
semiannual basis, this group is also responsible for the compilation,
validation and completion of the Report of the Secretary of the Senate.
Disbursing Office Financial Management is segmented into three
functional departments: Accounting, Accounts Payable, and Budget. The
Accounts Payable Department is subdivided into three sections: Audit,
Disbursement and Vendor/SAVI. The Deputy coordinates the activities of
the three functional departments, establishes central financial
policies and procedures, acts as the primary liaison to the HR
Administrator, and carries out the directives of the Financial Clerk
and the Secretary of the Senate.
accounting department
During fiscal year 2006, the Accounting Department approved in
excess of 53,000 expense reimbursement vouchers, processed 1,300
deposits for items ranging from receipts received by the Senate
operations, such as the Senate's revolving funds, to cancelled
subscription refunds from Member offices. General ledger maintenance
also prompted the entry of thousands of adjustment entries that include
the entry of all appropriation and allowance funding limitation
transactions, all accounting cycle closing entries, and all non-voucher
reimbursement transactions such as payroll adjustments, COLA budget
uploads, stop payment requests, travel advances and repayments, and
limited payability reimbursements. The department began scanning all
documentation for journal vouchers, deposits, accounting memos, and
letters of certification to facilitate both storage concerns and COOP
backup.
This year the Accounting Department assisted in the validation of
various system upgrades and modifications, including the testing
required to implement Db2 version 8 Compatibility and New Features
modes, and an upgrade to the mainframe operating system to Z/OS. During
January 2006, the Accounting Department with contract support completed
the 2005 year-end process to close and reset revenue, expense, and
budgetary general ledger accounts to zero. The new CD log was developed
and extensive regression testing was required. The log is now fully
functional. Document purge and rollover were turned over to the IT
group as the department geared up for 2006 fiscal year-end closing
activities.
The Department of the Treasury's monthly financial reporting
requirements include a Statement of Accountability that details all
increases and decreases to the accountability of the Secretary of the
Senate, such as checks issued during the month and deposits received,
as well as a detailed listing of cash on hand. Also, reported to the
Department of the Treasury on a monthly basis is the Statement of
Transactions According to Appropriations, Fund and Receipt Accounts, a
summary all activity of all monies disbursed by the Secretary of the
Senate through the Financial Clerk of the Senate. All activity by
appropriation account is reconciled with the Department of the Treasury
on a monthly and annual basis. The annual reconciliation of the
Treasury Combined Statement is also used in the reporting to the Office
of Management and Budget (OMB) as part of the submission of the annual
operating budget of the Senate.
This year, the Accounting Department transmitted all federal tax
payments for federal, Social Security, and Medicare taxes withheld from
payroll expenditures, as well as the Senate's matching contribution for
Social Security, and Medicare to the Federal Reserve Bank. The
Department also performed quarterly reporting to the Internal Revenue
Service (IRS) and annual reporting and reconciliation to the IRS and
the Social Security Administration. Payments for employee withholdings
for state income taxes were reported and paid on a quarterly basis to
each state with applicable state income taxes withheld. Monthly
reconciliations were performed with the National Finance Center
regarding the employee withholdings and agency matching contributions
for the TSP.
There are also internal reporting requirements such as the monthly
ledger statements for all Member offices and all other offices with
payroll and non-payroll expenditures. These ledger statements detail
all of the financial activity for the appropriate accounting period
with regard to official expenditures in detail and summary form. It is
the responsibility of the Accounting Department to review and verify
the accuracy of the statements before Senate-wide distribution.
The Accounting Department, in conjunction with the Deputy for
Financial Management, continues to work closely with the SAA Finance
Department in completing the corrective actions that were identified
during our Pro-forma financial statements auditability assessment.
Based on the results of this exercise, 23 corrective actions were
suggested including an action plan and proposed schedule to have them
corrected. Some of the actions were rather simple to implement while
others will take significantly longer. Of the 23 corrective actions
noted, 18 have been completed and 5 are still in process.
Accounting also has a budget division whose primary responsibility
is compiling the annual operating budget of the United States Senate
for presentation to the Committee on Appropriations. The Budget
division is responsible for the preparation, issuance and distribution
of the budget justification worksheets (BJW). In fiscal year 2006, the
budget justification worksheets were mailed to the Senate accounting
locations and processed in December. The budget baseline estimates for
fiscal year 2007 were reported to OMB by mid-January, via the upgraded
MAX database.
During January, the Senate Budget Analyst is responsible for the
preparation of 1099's and the prompt submission of forms to the IRS
before the end of the month.
accounts payable
Vendor/Senate Automated Vendor Inquiry Section
The Vendor/Senate Automated Vendor Inquiry (SAVI) Section maintains
the accuracy and integrity of the Senate's central vendor (payee) file
for the prompt completion of new vendor file requests and service
requests related to the Disbursing office's Web-based payment tracking
system known as SAVI. This section also assists the IT Department
performing periodic testing and monitoring the performance of the SAVI
system.
Currently, more than 14,400 vendor records are stored in the vendor
file. Daily requests for new vendor addresses or updates to existing
vendor information are processed within 24 hours of being received. In
2004, the A/P Department began paying vendors electronically via the
ACH. Besides updating mailing addresses, the Vendor/SAVI section
facilitates the use of ACH by switching the method of payment requested
by the vendor from check to direct deposit. Whenever a new remittance
address is added to the vendor file, a standard letter is mailed to
vendors requesting tax and banking information. If a vendor responds to
our letter and indicates they would like to receive ACH payments in the
future, the method of payment is changed. Currently, more than 1,800
vendors and over half of the home state office landlords are being paid
via ACH.
SAVI is the Disbursing office's Web-based payment tracking system.
Senate employees can electronically create, save, and file expense
reimbursement forms, track their progress, and get detailed information
on payments. The most common service requests are requests for system
user ids, system passwords and to activate deactivated accounts.
Employees may also request an alternative expense payment method. An
employee can choose to have their payroll set up for direct deposit or
paper check, but can have their expenses reimbursed by a method
different from their salary payment method.
The Vendor/SAVI section works closely with the A/P Disbursements
group resolving returned ACH payments. ACH payments are returned
periodically for a variety of reasons, including incorrect account
numbers, incorrect ABA routing numbers, and, in rare instances, a
nonparticipating financial institution.
The Vendor/SAVI section electronically scans and stores all
supporting documentation of existing vendor records and new vendor file
requests. Currently electronic records for over 9,000 vendors have been
verified against paper records and the paper files certified for
destruction. In the near future, this section will assist the IT
Department in testing an automatic e-mail notification system which
will alert vendors when an EFT payment has been made and will provide
pertinent payment information.
During 2006, the Vendor/SAVI section processed over 2,400 vendor
file requests, completed nearly 1,800 SAVI service requests, mailed
over 1,100 vendor information letters, and converted over 500 vendors
to direct deposit.
The SAVI web-based system was upgraded in 2006 to version 4.0, and
the section participated in testing of new features and functionality.
Disbursements Department
The department received and processed over 158,000 expense claims.
The department also wrote more than 34,000 expense checks and
approximately 57,500 direct deposit reimbursements were transmitted via
ACH. The department has experienced a slight increase of roughly 5.7
percent in the number of checks written and a slight increase of 2
percent in the number of ACH payments. The department's goal is to
reduce the number of checks and increase the number of ACH payments
sent out. The department suffered no performance loss, ensuring that
all vendors and employees continued to receive timely and accurate
payments. ACH and check printing capabilities were established at the
ACF. The ACF is stocked so COOP initiatives can be carried out. A new
version of Checkwriter was installed as part of the release of Web FMIS
version 11.
After vouchers are paid, they are sorted and filed by document
number. Vouchers are grouped in 6-month ``clusters'' to accommodate
their retrieval for the semi-annual Report of the Secretary of the
Senate. Currently, files are maintained for the current period and two
prior periods in-house as space is limited. Previously, older documents
were stored in the department's warehouse, but were successfully
transferred to the SSF in February 2006.
A major function of the department is to prepare adjustment
documents. Adjustments are varied and include the following:
preparation of foreign travel advances and vouchers, reimbursements for
expenses incurred by Senate leadership, re-issuance of items held as
accounts receivable collections, re-issuance of payments for which non-
receipt is claimed, and various supplemental adjustments received from
the Payroll Department. Such adjustments are usually disbursed by
check, but an increasing number are now handled electronically through
the ACH. Paper payroll check registers were replaced by an electronic
version using Reveal software. A spreadsheet was also created to track
cases of non-receipt of salary checks, including stop payment requests
and reissuance.
During 2006, while small in number, some ACH returns occurred. All
rejected items are logged into an ACH Reports folder. They are
classified as either Payroll or Accounts Payable, and the actual daily
reports are also scanned into the folder. Once logged in, the payroll
items are forwarded to the Payroll Department, and the non-payroll
items are forwarded to Vendor/SAVI for appropriate corrective action.
The Accounts Payable Disbursements Department prepares mailing
labels for the distribution of the monthly ledgers to the 140
accounting locations throughout the Senate. Although the ledgers are
sorted and sent out by Accounting, the Disbursements Group maintains
the file of how and where the statements are to be delivered. The main
objective of this process is to have each office receive their ledger
statements for the month just ended by the 10th of the following month.
The Department also prepares the forms required by the Department
of Treasury for stop payments. Stop payments are requested by employees
who have not received salary or expense reimbursements, and vendors
claiming non-receipt of expense checks. During this year, the A/P
Disbursement Supervisor and the Accounts Payable Manager continued
using the Department of Treasury--Financial Management Service (FMS)
online stop pay and check retrieval process known as PACER. The PACER
system allows us to electronically submit stop-payment requests and
provides online access to digital images of negotiated checks for
viewing and printing. Once a check is viewed, it is printed and may be
scanned. Scanned images are then forwarded to the appropriate
accounting locations via e-mail. During 2006, over 500 requests were
received for check copies.
The Disbursements Department continues the use of laser checks. The
tractor-fed check writer system has been dismantled and a new, improved
system was developed and implemented. The folder/inserter was purchased
and has been installed. New hardware and further Checkwriter upgrades
were implemented in 2006. The result was a user friendly system which
has the additional benefits of greater security and a higher degree of
accuracy.
Audit Department
The Accounts Payable Audit Section is responsible for auditing
vouchers and answering questions regarding voucher preparation and the
permissibility of expenses and advances. This section provides advice
and recommendations on the discretionary use of funds to the various
accounting locations, identifies duplicate payments submitted by
offices, monitors payments related to contracts, trains new
administrative managers and chief clerks about Senate financial
practices and the Senate's Financial Management Information System, and
assists in the production of the Report of the Secretary of the Senate.
A major function of the section is monitoring the Fund Advances for
travel and petty cash. FATS was used to ensure that advances were
charged correctly, vouchers repaying such advances were entered, and
balances were adjusted for reuse of the advance funds. An ``aging''
process was also performed to ensure that travel advances are repaid in
the time specified by the travel advance regulations. Travel advances
may be repaid via regular voucher processing, or may be canceled if the
corresponding travel is not taken and the funds are returned.
Late in 2006, a new advance module was placed into service for
issuing and tracking advances. The module is part of Web FMIS version
11 and is the first of a two-phase project. The first phase has been
completed and accommodates issuance, tracking, and repayment of
advances. The second phase will accommodate entry and editing of
election dates and Senator-elect vouchers. There is no conceptual
difference in the way advances are issued and repaid, only the
methodology involved in using FATS versus Web. FATS will ultimately be
replaced once phase two of Web FMIS advances is implemented.
Concurrently, the Accounts Payable Manager, Deputy for Financial
Management, and the IT Department participated in discussions with the
Senate Committee on Rules and Administration which led to a major
revision to the Senate Travel Regulations. Among the many changes was a
standardization of the number of travel advances any one individual may
have outstanding at any given time. Prior to this, different entities
had different limits and some had no limits at all. A maximum of two
per individual was established. The advance revisions were included in
the latest version of Web FMIS.
The Accounts Payable Audit Section processed in excess of 158,000
expense vouchers in fiscal year 2006, as well as 45,000 uploaded items.
In addition, the section sanctioned in excess of 56,000 vouchers under
authority delegated by the Senate Committee on Rules and
Administration. The voucher processing consisted of providing
interpretation of Senate rules, regulations and statutes and applying
the same to expense claims, monitoring of contracts, and direct
involvement with the Senate's central vendor file. On average, vouchers
greater than $100 that do not have any issues or questions are
received, audited, sanctioned electronically by the Senate Committee on
Rules and Administration using Web FMIS and paid within 10 business
days.
Uploaded items are of two varieties, certified expenses and vendor
payments. Certified expenses have been around since the 1980's and
included items such as stationery, telecommunications, postage, and
equipment. Currently, the certifications include mass transit, mass
mail, franked mail, excess copy charges, Photographic Studio, and
Recording Studio charges. Expenses incurred by the various Senate
offices are certified to the Disbursing Office on a monthly basis. The
expenses are detailed on a spreadsheet which is also electronically
uploaded. The physical voucher is audited and appropriate revisions are
made. Concentrated effort is put forth to ensure certified items appear
as paid in the same month they are incurred.
Vendor uploads are fairly new, and are used to pay vendors for the
Stationery Room, Senate Gift Shop, state office rentals, and refunds of
security deposits for the Page School. The methodology is roughly the
same as for certifications, but the payments rendered are for the
individual vendors. Although these items are generally processed and
paid quickly, the state office rents are generally paid a few days
prior to the month of the rental in keeping with a general policy of
paying rent in advance.
The Disbursing Office has sanctioning authority for vouchers of
$100 or less. These vouchers comprise approximately 60 percent of all
vouchers processed. The responsibility for sanctioning rests with the
Certifying Accounts Payable Specialists and are received, audited, and
paid within 5 business days of receipt. As in the previous year,
Disbursing continued to pass two post-payment audits performed by the
Senate Committee on Rules and Administration.
Additionally, advance documents and non-Contingent Fund vouchers
are now posted in Audit. Currently, there are three Certifying Accounts
Payable Specialists who handle the bulk of the sanctioning
responsibilities within the group. This, coupled with the reduced flow
of vouchers to the Senate Committee on Rules and Administration, has
allowed us to continue with their inclusion in the online sanctioning
process.
The Accounts Payable Audit Group provided training sessions in the
use of new systems, the process for generation of expense claims, the
permissibility of an expense, and participated with seminars sponsored
by the Secretary of the Senate, the Sergeant at Arms, and the Library
of Congress. The Section trained 10 new Administrative Managers and
Chief Clerks and conducted three informational sessions for Senate
staff through seminars sponsored by the Congressional Research Service
(CRS). The Accounts Payable group also routinely assists the IT
department and other groups as necessary in the testing and
implementation of the new hardware, software, and system applications.
Web FMIS version 10 was in use for most of the year with the
electronic, importable expense summary report (ESR). The section
participated in testing for the release of Web FMIS version 11 late in
the year.
The cancellation process for advances was upgraded and streamlined
in 2006. This was necessary to ensure repayment of advances
systematically for canceled or postponed travel in accordance with
Senate Travel Regulations, as well as to provide functionality
consistent with the release of the advance module in Web FMIS version
11. The new process eliminates the need to create zero dollar vouchers,
allows the Disbursing Office to completely handle the cancellations in
FAMIS, and allows administrative managers to simply void their advance
documents.
disbursing office information technology
Financial Management Information System
The Disbursing Office Information Technology (IT) Department
provides both functional and technical assistance for all Senate
financial management activities. Activities revolve around support of
the Senate's Financial Information System (FMIS) which is used by 140
Senate accounting locations (i.e., 100 Senator's offices, 20
committees, 20 leadership and support offices, the Office of the
Secretary of the Senate, the Office of the Sergeant at Arms, the Senate
Committee on Rules and Administration Audit section, and the Disbursing
office). Responsibilities include:
--Supporting current systems;
--Testing infrastructure changes;
--Managing and testing new system development;
--Planning;
--Managing the FMIS project, including contract management;
--Administering the Disbursing Office's Local Area Network (LAN); and
--Coordinating the Disbursing Office's Disaster Recovery activities.
The activities associated with each of these responsibilities are
described in more detail in the sections that follow. Work during 2006
was supported by the Sergeant at Arms (SAA) Technology Services staff,
the Secretary's Information Systems staff, and contracts with
BearingPoint.
The SAA Technology Services staff is responsible for providing the
technical infrastructure, including hardware (mainframe and servers),
operating system software, database software, and telecommunications;
technical assistance for these components, including migration
management, and database administration; and regular batch processing.
BearingPoint, under contract with the SAA, is responsible for
operational support, and under contract with the Secretary, for
application development. The Disbursing office is the ``business
owner'' of FMIS and is responsible for making the functional decisions
about FMIS. The three organizations work cooperatively.
Highlights of the year include:
--Implementation of two releases of Web FMIS, including integration
of the travel advance functionality of the FATS;
--Implementation of a release of SAVI that reduced the number of
pages of a standard Travel Expense Summary Report from 3 to 2;
--Implementation of a release of Checkwriter;
--Implementation of two sets of changes to ADPICS and FAMIS;
--Testing of a major upgrade to the underlying database, from DB2v7
to DB2v8;
--Testing of a new mainframe computer;
--Support of the Senate Committee on Rules and Administration's post
payment audit of a statistically valid sample of vouchers of
$100 or less;
--Installing new PCs throughout the Disbursing Office;
--Coordinating and participating in the FMIS portion of a disaster
recovery exercise for the Alternate Computing Facility; and
--Conducting monthly classes and seminars on Web FMIS.
FMIS is not a single computer system. It is composed of many
subsystems that provide Senate-specific functionality. These subsystems
are outlined in the table that begins on the following page.
Supporting Current Systems
The IT section supports FMIS users in all 140 accounting locations,
the Disbursing Office Accounts Payable, Accounting, Disbursements and
Front Office Sections, and the Senate Committee on Rules and
Administration Audit staff. The activities associated with this
responsibility include:
--User support--provide functional and technical support to all
Senate FMIS users; staff the FMIS ``help desk''; answer
hundreds of questions; and meet with chiefs of staff,
administrative managers, chief clerks, and directors of various
Senate offices as requested;
--Technical problem resolution--ensure that technical problems are
resolved;
--Monitor system performance--check system availability and
statistics to identify system problems and coordinate
performance tuning activities for database access optimization;
--Security--maintaining user rights for all ADPICS, FAMIS, and Web
FMIS users;
--System administration--design, test and make entries to tables that
are intrinsic to the system;
--Support of accounting activities--perform functional testing of the
cyclic accounting system activities such as rollover, the
process by which tables for the new fiscal year are created,
and archiving and purging for the current year tables data for
lapsed fiscal years;
--Support the Senate Committee on Rules and Administration post
payment voucher audit process; and
--Training--provide functional training to all Senate FMIS users.
Under the supervision of the IT Group, the contractor created tools
to determine the sample size, to enable selecting the sample from the
universe of vouchers of $100 and less, and to determine the acceptable
number of discrepancies given the sample size and the desired
confidence interval. Both audits conducted in 2006 resulted in a
favorable finding of zero discrepancies. The audit conducted in April
2006 for the six-month period ending March 31, 2006, covered 26,162
vouchers and the audit conducted in October 2006 for the six-month
period ending September 30, 2006, covered 27,994 vouchers.
SENATE FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT INFORMATION SYSTEM
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Subsystem Functionality Source Primary Users Implementation
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
FAMIS (Mainframe).................. General ledger.......................... Off-the-shelf federal system............ Disbursing Office....................... October 1998
Vendor file
Administrative functions
Security functions
ADPICS (Mainframe)................. Preparation of requisition, purchase Off-the-shelf federal system............ Sergeant at Arms........................ October 1998
order, voucher from purchase order, and Disbursing Office
direct voucher documents. Secretary of the Senate
Electronic document review functions
Administrative functions
Checkwriter (Client-server)........ Prints checks and check registers as Off-the-shelf state government system Disbursing Office....................... October 1998
well as ACH (Automated Clearing House) purchased from and adapted to Senate's
direct deposit transmission payments. requirements.
Web FMIS (Intranet)................ Preparation of voucher, travel advance, Custom software developed by contractor. All Senators' offices................... October 1999--Client Server
voucher from advance documents, credit All Committee offices August 2004--Intranet
documents and simple commitment and All leadership & support offices
obligation documents. Secretary of the Senate
Entry of detailed budget Sergeant at Arms
Reporting functions (described below) Disbursing Office
Electronic document submission and
review functions.
Administrative functions
FATS (PC-based).................... Tracks travel advances and petty cash Developed by SAA Technology Services.... Disbursing Office....................... Spring 1983
advances (available to Committees only).
Tracks election cycle information
We are in the process of integrating
FATS functionality into Web FMIS. The
December 2006 Web FMIS release
integrated the travel advance and petty
cash advance functionality of FATS.
Post Payment Voucher Audit (PC- Selects a random sample of vouchers for Excel spreadsheet developed............. Senate Committee on Rules and Spring 2003
based). the Senate Committee on Rules and Administration And Disbursing Office.
Administration to use in conducting a
post payment audit. Sanctioning of
these documents was delegated to the
Financial Clerk.
SAVI (Intranet).................... As currently implemented, provides self- Off the shelf system purchased.......... Senate employees........................ Pilot--Spring 2002
service access (via the Senate's Senate-wide--July 2002
intranet) to payment information for
employees receiving reimbursements.
Administrative functions
Online ESR (Intranet).............. A component of SAVI through which Senate Custom software developed by contractor. Senate employees........................ April 2003
employees can create online Travel/Non-
Travel Expense Summary Reports and
submit them electronically to their
Administrative Manager/Chief Clerk for
processing.
Secretary's Report (Mainframe Produces the Report of the Secretary of Custom software developed by contractor. Disbursing Office....................... Spring 1999
extracts, crystal reports, and the Senate.
client-server ``tool box'').
Ledger Statements (Mainframe Produces monthly reports from FAMIS that Developed by SAA Technology Serv- ices. Disbursing Office....................... Winter 1999
database extracts, and crystal are sent to all Senate ``accounting Senate Accounting Locations
reports). locations''.
Web FMIS Reports (mainframe Produces a large number of reports from Custom software developed by contractor. Senate Accounting Locations............. October 1999--Client Server
database extracts, crystal Web FMIS, FAMIS and ADPICS data at April 2005--Intranet
reports, and Intranet). summary and detailed levels. Data is
updated as an overnight process and can
be updated through an online process by
accounting locations.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Testing Infrastructure Changes
The SAA provides the infrastructure on which FMIS operates,
including the mainframe, the database, security hardware and software,
the telecommunications network, and a hardware and software
installation crew. During 2005 the SAA implemented two major upgrades
to the FMIS infrastructure--upgrading the database software, DB2, from
version 7 to version 8, and installing a new mainframe computer.
For each upgrade, the Disbursing office tests all FMIS subsystems
in a testing environment and verifies all FMIS subsystems in the
production environment after the implementation. The change is
implemented and production validation is done by the IT section.
The DB2 upgrade required three such testing and validation periods
during the spring and summer of 2006 for operating system changes that
were pre-requisites of the DB2 upgrade, DB2 v8 in ``compatibility
mode'' and DB2v8 in new features mode. The new mainframe computer
required one validation activity. The SAA installed a new mainframe at
the ACF and later at the Primary Computing Facility in the Postal
Square Building (PCF).
Managing and Testing New System Development
During 2006, the FMIS team supervised development, performed
extensive integration system testing, and implemented changes to FMIS
subsystems. For each, implementation and production verification was
done over a weekend in order to minimize system down time to users.
Upgrades to the following systems were done during 2006: Web FMIS; SAVI
and Online ESR; Checkwriter; and ADPICS and FAMIS (for the SAA Finance
staff).
The items selected for development and implementation are based on
user requests, suggestions from the SAA technical staff, the
contractor, and the Disbursing office IT section. The office meets
regularly with users. During May and June the office met weekly with
the Web FMIS users group in order to review the new page designs and
functionality that were implemented in December 2006. Additionally, the
office met with the ADPICS/FAMIS users group on a monthly basis.
Web FMIS
Over the last three years the office has revamped Web FMIS,
creating a ``zero-client'' application that can be accessed via an
intranet browser, an important milestone in providing critical systems
in a disaster situation. This began in August 2004 with the
implementation of Web FMIS r9.0 for pilot offices. By the end of April
2005, all Web FMIS users were using the intranet version of Web FMIS. A
total of five upgrades to Web FMIS were implemented in 2005. During
2006, the office implemented two releases:
--Web FMIS r10.3.--Implemented in January 2006, updated the
technology for and provided more functionality on the Inbox
pages and the travel reimbursement mileage rate maintenance
page. Additional functionality was added to the Documents/
Create page and the Budget page, and bugs were fixed.
--Web FMIS r 11.--Implemented in December 2006, included a rewritten
Document Create page that eliminated pop-ups so that the system
is not impacted by pop-up blockers; made technical changes to
support future functionality such as attaching scanned invoices
and creating vouchers via importing data from vendors; and
provided more payment information. Additionally, the travel
advance and cash advance tracking functionality of the
standalone FATS system were integrated into Web FMIS. The
system edits performed when a travel advance document is
submitted electronically indicate whether the office has
sufficient funds for the travel advance, based on the total of
all outstanding advances allowed for that office and whether
the traveler can be given another advance, based on the total
number of outstanding advances allowed for that individual. The
system supports the underlying rules associated with travel
advances that were issued by the Senate Committee on Rules and
Administration in December 2006.
During 2006, the office continued to work with the contractor to
define the requirements for additional functionality required for the
Web FMIS releases planned for 2007:
--Web FMIS r12.--Planned for Summer 2007, will add the ability to
``import'' invoice data from an outside vendor in order to
create a voucher with minimal retyping. (This process is
similar to the ``import'' process by which data from an online
ESR, created via SAVI, is used to create a travel voucher).
--Web FMIS r13.--Planned for Winter 2007, will be a pilot of
paperless voucher processing, which requires adding electronic
signature and documentation imaging functionality.
Senate Automated Vendor Inquiry and Online ESR.--SAVI enables
Senate staff to check the status of reimbursements, whether via check
or direct deposit referencing an online ESR. The Online ESR function
enables Senate staff to create expense summary reports, both travel and
non-travel. These documents can be imported into Web FMIS, reducing the
data entry tasks for voucher preparation. The SAVI system was upgraded
once in 2006. Release 4.0, implemented in December 2006, reduced the
number of pages of an average Travel ESR from 3 to 2. The reformatted
Travel ESR collapses any sections in which there are no expenses and
has a condensed signature block.
Checkwriter.--The Disbursing office makes payments via direct
deposit and check using the Checkwriter software. Release 6.0,
implemented in December 2006, contains a rewritten security component.
ADPICS and FAMIS.--The Sergeant at Arms finance staff are the
primary users of ADPICS. ADPICS is a mainframe system that provides
integrated procurement, receiving and voucher preparation functions
that are not included in Web FMIS. The SAA finance staff requested a
number of changes that would support more efficient use of ADPICS.
These changes were implemented in the following two releases during
2006:
--March 2006.--Changes were made to twenty-five ADPICS and FAMIS
screens. The most important of these affected the master vendor
table and enables storing the vendor's DUNS and TINS numbers at
the vendor suffix level. This allows the Disbursing Office to
continue to use the same vendor number when a company changes
names. This helps the SAA finance staff query data by vendor
number. Other changes ranged from adding fields on specific
screens, modifying the titles of function keys that provide
direct links to other screens so that they show the screen
number instead of a short screen name, modification of query
results, modification of calculations, and providing the
ability to link directly from FAMIS to ADPICS; and
--October 2006.--Changes were made to twelve ADPICS screens. Many of
these changes facilitated ``round-trip'' linking from one
screen to another and then back to the original. Others enabled
seeing more records on a list by specifying a starting point or
expanding the number of pages displayed.
Planning
The Disbursing Office IT group performs two main planning
activities:
--Schedule coordination--planning and coordinating a rolling 12-month
schedule; and
--Strategic planning--setting the priorities for further system
enhancements.
Schedule Coordination
In 2006, this group continued to hold two types of meetings among
the Disbursing office, SAA and the contractor to coordinate schedules
and activities. These are:
--Project specific meetings--a useful set of project specific working
meetings, each of which has a weekly set meeting time and meets
for the duration of the project (e.g., Document Purge meetings
and Web FMIS requirements meetings); and
--Technical meeting--a weekly meeting among the Disbursing Office
staff (IT and functional), SAA Technical Services staff, and
the contractor to discuss the active projects, including
scheduling activities and resolving issues.
Strategic Planning
The FMIS strategic plan has a longer time horizon than the rolling
12-month time frame of the technical meeting schedule. It is designed
to set the direction and priorities for further enhancements. In 2002 a
five-year strategic plan was written by the IT and Accounting staff for
Disbursing Office Strategic Initiatives. This detailed description of
five strategic initiatives formed the base for the Secretary of the
Senate's request in 2002 for $5 million in multi-year funds for further
work on the FMIS project. The five strategic initiatives are:
--Paperless Vouchers--Imaging of Supporting Documentation and
Electronic Signatures.--Beginning with a feasibility study and
a pilot, implement new technology, including imaging and
electronic signatures, that will reduce the Senate's dependence
on paper vouchers. This will enable continuation of voucher
processing operations from any location should an emergency
occur;
--Web FMIS.--Respond to requests from the Senate's Accounting
Locations for additional functionality in Web FMIS;
--Payroll System.--Respond to requests from the Senate's Accounting
Locations for online real time access to payroll data;
--Accounting Subsystem Integration.--Integrate Senate-specific
accounting systems, improve internal controls, and eliminate
errors caused by re-keying of data; and
--CFO Financial Statement Development.--Provide the Senate with the
capacity to produce auditable financial statements that will
obtain an unqualified opinion.
Managing the FMIS Project
The responsibility for managing the FMIS project was transferred to
the IT group during the summer of 2003 and includes developing the task
orders with contractors overseeing their work and reviewing invoices.
In 2006, three new task orders were executed: Web FMIS FATS
enhancement; Imaging and signature design and electronic invoicing
enhancement continuation; and Service year 2007 extended operational
support.
In addition, work continued under two task orders executed in prior
years: Web FMIS r10; SAA finance system and reporting enhancements; and
Service year 2006 extended operational support (which covers activities
from September 2005 to August 2006).
Administering the Disbursing Office's Local Area Network (LAN)
The Disbursing office administers its own Local Area Network (LAN),
which is separate from the LAN for the rest of the Secretary's Office.
Our LAN Administrator's activities included: Office-wide LAN
Maintenance and Upgrade; and Projects for the Payroll and Benefits
Section.
Office-wide LAN maintenance and upgrade
The Disbursing Office maintained the existing workstations with
appropriate upgrades including: Installing new PCs for the staff;
Installing new servers for the Disbursing office LAN; and Implementing
the Web-based version of FedLine, the software through which direct
deposit payments are sent to the Federal Reserve.
Projects for Payroll and Employee Benefits Sections
The Disbursing Office continued to support the Payroll/Benefits
Imaging system, developed by SAA staff, which captures and indexes
payroll documents turned in at the front counter electronically. This
is a critical system for Payroll and Employee Benefits sections.
Coordinating the Disbursing Office(s Disaster Recovery Activities
In the fall, the Sergeant at Arms technical staff conducted a
disaster recovery test of the Senate's computing facilities, including
FMIS functions. The test involved switching the Senate's network from
accessing systems at the PCF to the ACF and powering down the PCF. The
SAA's primary purpose was to test the technical process of switching to
the ACF, although due to work constraints, only a limited amount of
time was available for functional testing. In essence, FMIS systems and
data would be ``failed-over'' to the ACF, made available for testing
for the functional testing window, and then the systems would be
``failed back'' to the PCF, but that the data would not be ``failed
back''. Thus, any changes made while testing at the ACF would not be
reflected in production data.
The Disbursing Office staff set minimal goals of accessing all
critical FMIS subsystems. While the Disbursing Office IT staff
coordinated activities, the actual testing was done by Disbursing
Office functional and technical staff, the contractor, and SAA
technical staff. Disbursing IT staff and the contractor tested ADPICS/
FAMIS, Web FMIS, SAVI, and Checkwriter. Disbursing payroll staff and
SAA technical staff tested the payroll system.
Within the limited scope of the test, the Disbursing Office
successfully tested all the critical components of FMIS, with the
exception of (a) printing requisition, purchase order and voucher
documents from ADPICS for SAA finance (b) critical batch processes
which were not tested (e.g. taking a a single document from data entry
in Web FMIS through payment in FAMIS). The Disbursing Office has
requested that the SAA conduct disaster recovery tests twice a year and
that additional system components be available to test at each
successive test.
Disbursing Office COOP Activities
The Disbursing Office has had a Continuation of Operations Plan
(COOP) since 2001. This document addresses issues beyond the scope of
disaster recovery. Normal maintenance is performed on this document to
ensure that it remains up-to-date and viable. In addition to the
success of disaster recovery testing in December, Disbursing has also
completed the setup and pre-positioning of essential equipment and
supplies.
administrative offices
1. conservation and preservation
The Office of Conservation and Preservation develops and
coordinates programs directly related to the conservation and
preservation of Senate records and materials for which the Secretary of
the Senate has statutory authority. This includes: deacidification of
paper and prints, phased conservation for books and documents,
collection surveys, exhibits, and matting and framing for the Senate
leadership.
Over the past year, the Office of Conservation and Preservation has
embossed 335 books and matted and framed 551 items for Senate
leadership, as well as matting and framing six items for the 55th
Inaugural ceremonies. For more than 25 years, the office has bound a
copy of Washington's Farewell Address for the annual ceremony. Last
year, the office rebound in leather and added 96 new pages to the
Farewell Address sign-in book for Senators who read the address and
fabricated a new box to house the book. In 2006, a volume was bound and
read by Senator Ken Salazar.
As mandated in the 1990 Senate Library Collection Condition Survey,
the office continued to conduct an annual treatment of books identified
by the survey as needed conservation or repair. In 2006 conservation
treatments were completed for 99 volumes of a 7,000 volume collection
of House Hearings. Specifically, treatment involved recasing each
volume as required, using alkaline end sheets, replacing acidic tab
sheets with alkaline paper, cleaning the cloth cases, and replacing
black spine title labels of each volume as necessary. The Office of
Conservation and Preservation will continue preservation of the
remaining 3,750 volumes.
The office assisted the Senate Library with 608 books sent to the
Library Binding section of the Government Printing Office (GPO) for
binding. Additionally, the Office of Conservation and Preservation
worked with the Senate Library to create four exhibits located in the
Senate Russell building basement corridor. This office also completed
the restoration of 55 volumes of House hearings for the Senate Library
that had water and mold damage. These books were rebound with new end
sheets and new covers using the old spines when possible.
The Office of Conservation and Preservation continues to assist
Senate offices with conservation and preservation of documents, books,
and various other items. For example, the office continues to monitor
the temperature and humidity in the Senate Library storage areas, the
vault and warehouse for preservation and conservation purposes.
2. curator
The Office of Senate Curator, on behalf of the Senate Commission on
Art, develops and implements the museum and preservation programs for
the United States Senate. The office collects, preserves, and
interprets the Senate's fine and decorative arts, historic objects, and
specific architectural features; and exercises supervisory
responsibility for the historic chambers in the Capitol under the
jurisdiction of the Commission. Through exhibitions, publications, and
other programs, the office educates the public about the Senate and its
collections.
Collections: Commissions, Acquisitions, and Management
A painting of Senator Bob Dole for the Senate Leadership Portrait
Collection was officially unveiled in the Old Senate Chamber on July
25, 2006 and a mural depicting the authors of the Connecticut
Compromise was unveiled on September 12, 2006 in the Senate Reception
Room. Other important commissioned works in progress include leadership
portraits of Senators Robert C. Byrd, Tom Daschle, and Trent Lott; all
three are scheduled to be completed in 2008.
Three hundred sixty-two objects were accessioned into the Senate
Collection, including: 126 Senate Chamber Gallery passes, dating from
1890 to the present; tickets for various joint sessions of Congress
held in 2006; ephemera related to nominations, new Congresses, laying
in state ceremonies, and portrait unveilings; china used in the Senate
Restaurant in the 1920s and 1930s; and historic prints and photographs
of the Capitol and its interior, including a circa 1890 stereoview of
the Senate Chamber, a rare 1827 wood engraving of the west front of the
Capitol, and an 1872 cartoon by Thomas Nast.
The Senate Commission on Art approved the acquisition of a
monumental, Civil War-era painting (recently discovered in New York
State) of Henry Clay in the U.S. Senate. This painting is a rare
depiction of the historic Old Senate Chamber. Additionally, it serves
as a group portrait memorializing Senator Clay and twelve of his 19th
century Senate colleagues. The painting will require extensive
conservation.
As part of an ongoing effort to locate and recover historic objects
associated with the Senate, a historic Russell Building partner desk,
built by George Cobb, was located. It was recently returned to the
Senate from the Lyndon Baines Johnson Library and Museum.
Forty-four new foreign gifts were reported to the Select Committee
on Ethics and transferred to the Curator's Office. They were catalogued
and are maintained by the office in accordance with the Foreign Gifts
and Decorations Act. Appropriate disposition of 27 foreign gifts was
completed following established procedures.
Preparations continued for new curatorial storage spaces in the CVC
and the SSF. The office worked with the SAA staff to select a vendor to
provide specialized preservation storage equipment for the two Curator
storage rooms in the CVC. Installation of the equipment is planned for
late 2007. Preparations are nearing completion for the storage room in
the SSF, with specialized climate control and security. Objects will be
moved into the space in the spring of 2007.
Along with the expansion of curatorial storage spaces, improved
monitoring plans were developed to track the environmental conditions
in these spaces. Consistency in temperature and relative humidity will
be monitored through a single electronic system that collects data from
all collection storage areas, as well as some of the historic spaces in
the Capitol where collections are on display. After careful review by a
committee representing the Curator's Office, Senate Security,
Secretary's Information Systems, and Senate IT, a system was selected
earlier this year and installation should take place this spring.
Temporary monitors were installed in the new SSF Curator room and have
greatly aided in evaluating and adjusting the environmental systems.
Monitoring for biological agents harmful to collections was
addressed through the development of an Integrated Pest Management Plan
(IPM). The office has initiated IPM monitoring in its current
collection storage spaces.
The Curator's office completed its project to photograph the 102
historic Senate Chamber desks (which includes the 100 on the Senate
floor and 2 desks currently in storage). One set of transparencies will
be stored off-site for emergency purposes, while a second working set
will be used for the web, image requests, and future publications. The
project was completed ahead of schedule.
The Curator's staff began a comprehensive and detailed survey of
the Senate Chamber chairs. Twenty-seven chairs (seat and chair frames)
were examined during Senate recesses to determine past occupants and to
identify changes in Senate Cabinet Shop construction over the years. It
is hoped that this study will enable the identification and
preservation of important chairs that still remain in the Senate, and
also educate Curator's staff so that timely and informed decisions can
be made on chairs that might come up for sale or donation.
In keeping with established procedures, all Senate Collection
objects on display were inventoried, noting any changes in location. In
addition, as directed by S. Res. 178 (108th Congress, 1st sess.), the
office submitted inventories of the art and historic furnishings in the
Senate to the Senate Committee on Rules and Administration. The
inventories, submitted every six months, are compiled by the Curator's
office with assistance from the SAA and the AOC Senate Superintendent.
Conservation and Restoration
A total of 12 objects received conservation treatment in 2006,
including 9 paintings and 3 decorative art objects.
Several conservation projects were carried out to prepare both fine
and decorative art objects for loan. In February 2006, a fine art
services company was contracted to remove a monumental painting, The
Battle of Chapultepec, by James Walker, from display at the former
Marine Corps Historical Museum in Washington, D.C., where it had been
on loan since 1982. The company disassembled the frame and constructed
four crates to transport the painting and frame to the Thomas Gilcrease
Institute of American History and Art in Tulsa, Oklahoma, where it is
now on loan. The Gilcrease Museum provides an excellent venue for
continued public display of the painting within the context of the
history of the southwest region of the country.
Two large paintings displayed in the Senate wing received
conservation treatment in situ during the August 2006 recess: The First
Reading of the Emancipation Proclamation by President Lincoln by
Francis Bicknell Carpenter, and Daniel Webster by James Henry Wright.
The AOC assisted with both projects by providing scaffolding in the
stairwells for access to the paintings by the conservators.
Also during the August recess, conservators installed the oil on
canvas painting depicting the authors of the Connecticut Compromise by
Bradley Stevens on the upper west wall of the Senate Reception Room.
The office contracted a report for a condition assessment and
treatment options for the Senate's historic 19th century Cornelius &
Baker armorial chandelier, and worked with staff at the Smithsonian
Institution to study its finishes. Also, staff conducted research into
the electrification of gasoliers in the Capitol; all in an effort to
provide an informed use and treatment recommendation for the chandelier
to the Commission on Art.
The Curator's staff participated in training sessions for the USCP
regarding the care and protection of art in the Capitol, and continued
to educate the housekeeping personnel on maintenance issues related to
the fine and decorative art collections.
Historic Preservation
The Curator's office worked with the AOC and the SAA to review,
comment, plan, and document Senate-side construction projects that
involve or affect historic resources. Construction and conservation
efforts that required considerable review and assistance included: the
Brumidi Corridor mural conservation; egress modifications; skylight
repair of Senate grand stairwells; S-127 mural conservation; wireless
antenna installation; Senate Chamber bench refinishing and re-
upholstering. The office continued to refine communication procedures
with those organizations that undertake building projects, as well as
the Senate community. As a result of this effort, schedule coordination
between the trade shops, the Curator, and the occupants has improved,
and the art and architectural objects in project areas are better
protected. In addition, the office worked to increase services by
facilitating projects for Capitol offices.
One of the most ambitious preservation undertakings by the office
is the restoration and rehabilitation of the Senate Reception Room.
Anticipated to be a joint venture with the AOC, the project will
highlight the significant elements of the room through restoration and
interpretation. An advisory board was impaneled by the Commission on
Art to provide counsel with this prominent project and the advisory
board held its first meeting.
The Curator's office continued to provide research services
regarding architectural history, and to disseminate important
discoveries for the benefit of the Senate. During the past year, the
office increased knowledge and holdings pertaining to room histories,
architectural features, and historic images. Research projects
included: international Minton tile repair and replacement; original
doors in the Brumidi Corridors; and compiling searchable annual reports
from the Secretary of the Senate, the SAA, and the AOC. Another new
initiative, with the assistance of the SAA Photographic Studio, was to
visually document the leadership suites and committee rooms in the
Capitol during the 109th Congress.
Historic Chambers
The Curator's staff continued to maintain the Old Senate and Old
Supreme Court Chambers, and coordinated periodic use of both rooms for
special occasions. By order of the USCP, the Old Senate Chamber was
closed to visitors after September 11, 2001. However, during eight
Senate recesses the historic room is open to Capitol Guide and staff-
led tours. Twenty-four requests were received from current Members of
Congress for after-hours access to the Old Senate Chamber. Twenty-one
requests were received by current Members of Congress for admittance to
the Old Supreme Court Chamber after-hours.
In order to enhance existing documentation and to provide an
important resource for future planning, the office continued to work
closely with the AOC and a contractor to oversee the creation of
accurate, existing condition drawings of the Old Senate Chamber and the
Old Supreme Court Chamber that meet the Historic American Building
Survey standard. No such detailed drawings exist for these historic
chambers, or any space within the Capitol, yet this is important
historical and archival documentation. Currently, the Old Senate
Chamber drawings are undergoing final edits and the Old Supreme Court
Chamber is being measured.
Loans To and From the Collection
A total of 58 historic objects and paintings are currently on loan
to the Curator's office on behalf of Senate leadership and officials in
the Capitol. The staff added loans of one object, returned two
paintings at the expiration of their loan periods to their respective
owners, and renewed loan agreements for 32 other objects.
The Secretary's china was distributed and returned four times in
2006. It was used for events such as a dinner for the retiring Senators
of the 109th Congress, and a luncheon and dinner for new Senators. The
official Senate china was inventoried and used at 24 receptions for
distinguished guests.
Publications and Exhibitions
The Curator's office published the United States Senate Catalogue
of Graphic Art. This 500-page book features the Senate's collection of
more than 900 historic engravings and lithographs and includes 2 full-
length essays and almost 40 short essays discussing selected prints.
The volume is the first comprehensive publication of the Senate's
historic print collection, which represents a 30-year effort to
document graphically the 19th and early 20th century history of the
Senate, the Capitol, and American political history. The diverse
illustrations range for inauguration ceremonies and impeachment trials
to senatorial portraits and political cartoons. Represented in the
Senate's graphic art collection are some of the most notable artists
who worked in the printmaking medium: Augustus Kollner, Rembrandt Peal,
Alexander Hay Ritchie, Thomas Nast, and Joseph Keppler. The Senate
Curator and Associate Senate Historian co-authored the publication, a
companion volume to the United States Senate Catalogue of Fine Art,
published in 2003. The Curator's staff worked closely with the
Government Printing Office (GPO) on the design and printing of the
publication.
The office completed and posted three major interactive exhibits on
the Senate Web site: Isaac Bassett: A Senate Memoir; The Senate Chamber
Desks; and Take the Puck Challenge! All three exhibits were developed
in conjunction with the Secretary's Webmaster and a contractor. Isaac
Bassett features selections from the historic Isaac Bassett manuscript
collection, and is illustrated by images from the Senate's collection
of art and historical objects. It uses Bassett's own words to
illustrate life in the 19th century Senate as only the doorkeeper could
have described it. His unique position as a trusted, long-time employee
of the Senate and close confidant of many Senators make the stories he
included in his memoir both engaging and enlightening. The Web site
features actual images of Bassett's handwritten notes and an
interactive time line.
The Senate Chamber Desks Web site chronicles the history of these
historic furnishings. Viewers are able to see where their Senators sit,
learn specific information about each desk (including biographical
information on Senators who occupied each desk, and conservation and
restoration records), and read stories related to the history of the
desks.
Take the Puck Challenge! features quizzes, games, and puzzles to
introduce viewers to the political cartoons of the 19th century
satirical magazine Puck. It is part of a larger Web site that features
all of the Senate's Puck cartoons.
Another interactive Web exhibit, Advise and Consent: The Drawings
of Lily Spandorf, recently went live. Advise and Consent explores the
work of Lily Spandorf, an artist sent to sketch the filming of the Otto
Preminger movie of the same name, filmed in and around the Capitol in
1962. Ms. Spandorf's sketches are now owned by the Senate.
As part of an ongoing program to provide more information about the
Capitol and its spaces, the office developed a brochure for S-238, the
Strom Thurmond Room, and posted several brochures on the Senate Web
site, including: The U.S. Senate Leadership Portrait Collection; The
U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Committee; and The Vice Presidential Bust
Collection. The office also added to the Senate Web site's fine art
pages by publishing the biographical and subject information from the
United States Senate Catalogue of Fine Art for 160 works of art.
In May 2006, at the request of the Senate Committee on Rules and
Administration, six historic photographs of the Capitol were enlarged,
framed, and installed in the basement of the Senate Russell Building in
order to enhance the space. The Office of Senate Curator also continued
to be a significant contributor to Unum, the Secretary of the Senate's
newsletter.
The office continued to develop an oral history program related to
the Senate's art and historical collections. Several artists were
interviewed related to their work on recently commissioned portraits.
It is anticipated that a Web site on the first phase of this
educational project will be posted this year.
Policies and Procedures
The Senate Curatorial Advisory Board met in February, 2006. The
board reviewed the Battle of Chapultepec loan; the Connecticut
Compromise mural; the Senator Bob Dole portrait; the Cornelius and
Baker historic chandelier; as well as new acquisitions. The historic
structures report for the Senate east vestibule, adjacent stairwell,
and Small Senate Rotunda was presented, and the restoration of these
historic spaces was discussed. The board continued to provide
invaluable assistance to the Senate on curatorial and preservation
matters throughout the year. Composed of respected scholars and
curators, this 12-member board was established to provide expert advice
to the Commission on Art regarding the Senate's art and historic
collections and preservation program, and to assist in the acquisition
and review of new objects for the collection.
In 2006 the Senate passed legislation (S. Res. 629) establishing a
procedure for affixing and removing permanent and semi-permanent
artwork in the Senate wing of the Capitol and in the Senate Office
Buildings. The new regulations require the Commission on Art to review
any such proposals to add such permanent or semi-permanent art, and the
Senate to give its formal approval before any such proposals may be
adopted.
Building on the historic mirror survey completed in 2005, the
office developed a management policy and procedures for the collection,
as well as care and maintenance plans. This program will ensure that
the Senate's impressive collection of nearly 100 ornate mirrors in the
Capitol receives the treatment necessary to preserve them for future
generations.
Collaborations, Educational Programs, and Events
The much anticipated nine-hour documentary on the Capitol and
Congress developed by C-SPAN aired in July. Providing a detailed
history of the building and institution, the Curator's office and the
Historical Office worked closely with C-SPAN over a two-year period on
various aspects of the historical content, filming, and interviews.
The office continued to assist CVC staff on several initiatives for
the new Visitor Center. These include the interactive programs for the
exhibition area and the development of a plan for artwork in the CVC.
The Senate Curator and staff gave lectures on the Senate's art and
historical collections to various historical groups and art museums.
Office Administration
The SSF was completed in late 2005. The office worked for several
years with the SAA staff to develop plans for space within the
warehouse. While the museum-quality space will be finalized this
spring, other storage space assigned to the Curator was occupied in
January, 2006. The office transferred several historic furnishings and
other Senate-related objects, exhibit and art shipping materials, and
publications to the completed storage area. As part of that task,
material was re-inventoried, and new tracking numbers were assigned.
With the assistance of the Office of Education and Training, the
staff continued work on developing a three-year strategic plan for the
Office of Senate Curator. This will be an important document for the
office as it moves forward with its many conservation, preservation,
and education initiatives.
Automation
The office continued to work on developing an organization plan and
procedures for all types of files and media collected and maintained by
the Curator's office. Paper and electronic files have increased
substantially in the last ten years and maintaining systematic
organization of these various documents is imperative. The results will
greatly improve response time to information requests, search
capabilities for researchers, and the safety of significant reference
materials.
Objectives for 2007
Preparations to move Senate collections into the new curatorial
storage spaces will be a major initiative in 2007. Once outstanding
issues related to control of the environment are addressed at the SSF,
the office will move more than 75 historic objects, including
furniture, rugs, paintings, and a chandelier, to the museum-quality
space. In association with the AOC and SAA, the office will also
develop a Disaster Recovery Plan for this storage space, to mitigate
the potential affect of disasters upon collection objects.
The office will oversee installation of collection storage
equipment for the two storage spaces in the CVC in the fall of 2007.
Museum-quality storage equipment has been ordered to house collection
objects in these new spaces, in accordance with a recently completed
Collection Storage Plan. Objects in need of archival re-housing will be
identified and prioritized as part of the preparations for a collection
move that will take place in 2008.
Proposals for an environmental monitoring system that will
encompass all collection storage spaces will be assessed and reviewed
by the Senate Curator's office with the assistance of other Senate
offices. It is intended that environmental monitors will be purchased
and installed in phases starting later this spring.
Conservation and preservation continue to be a priority. Projects
in 2007 will include conservation treatment to restore the historic
frame and painting, Henry Clay in the U.S. Senate, by Phineas Staunton.
Other conservation projects include: the monumental painting, The
Battle of Lake Erie, by William Henry Powell, displayed in the east
grand stairway of the Senate wing; the portrait of John Adams by
Eliphalet Frazer Andrews; and the frame for the painting, Sergeants
Jasper and Newton Rescuing American Prisoners from the British, by John
Blake White.
The office will continue its efforts to locate and recover
significant historic Senate pieces. It will also embark on developing a
plan to highlight the Russell Building furniture in preparation for the
100th anniversary of these historic pieces in 2009.
The microfiche of the Senate collection files will be sent off-site
to the National Archives for contingency in case of a disaster, along
with transparencies documenting several historic photographic albums,
the Senate desks, and the more than 900 historic prints in the Senate
collection.
In 2007 the Office of Senate Curator will complete a reorganization
of the Senate art Web site to provide easier, more intuitive access to
the Senate's art, historical collections, and online exhibits and
publications. This task will be undertaken in coordination with the
Secretary's Webmaster and Senate Library staff, and will be an
important first step in creating and organizing the Senate's Web
content according to standardized metadata.
Also related to the Web site, the office will work with the
Historical office and staff of the Senate Page School to develop a Web
exhibit for high school students on the history and art of the Senate.
The conservation process for the newly acquired Henry Clay painting
will be documented for use on the Senate art Web site as part of the
office's education initiatives. Additionally, staff will update The
Senate Chamber Desks Web site to reflect the 110th Congress, and will
add additional historical facts about the desks.
The office will review its public education programs with an eye
toward leveraging office assets to greater effectiveness, and
developing a long-range strategic plan for the program. Several
publications will be reprinted, and the office will continue to enlarge
its offering of brochures on historic rooms by producing one on the
Democratic leader's suite in the Capitol.
The Office of Senate Curator will continue to administer the
current commissioned leadership portraits of Senators Byrd, Daschle,
and Lott, and advance efforts to commission leadership portraits of
Senators Frist and Stevens.
Historic preservation activities will increase as the office takes
a more active role in the Capitol's building projects and maintenance.
The office will work to promote its preservation services for Senate
offices, including providing architectural histories and facilitating
projects. The office will also implement a preservation inspection
program for the Senate side of the Capitol in order to ensure the
immediate repair and continued protection of the Senate's architectural
resources. Finally, with the AOC, adopting a preservation policy and
appointing an historic preservation officer, the Curator's role in
building project review will expand and become more formalized. The
office will work with the AOC's historic preservation officer to define
a review process and to ensure the highest preservation standards are
applied to all Capitol projects.
Responding to the critical conservation priorities identified for
the Senate's historic mirror collection, the Curator's office will
develop and contract a multi-phased conservation project. This work
will include full conservation of at least three mirrors and on-site
consolidation of two mirrors, and will establish procedures and
standards for a mirror conservation program. Similarly, the office will
embark on a comprehensive maintenance program for all Senate
collections under the purview of the Office of Senate Curator. Such a
program will help safeguard the objects for future generations.
Additionally, the Senate Curatorial Advisory Board and Senate
Reception Room Advisory Board will meet, review, and report on
projects. The Senate Curator's COOP will be re-evaluated, tabletop
exercises conducted, and the COOP document updated.
3. joint office of education and training
The Joint Office of Education and Training provides employee
training and development opportunities for all Senate staff in
Washington D.C. and the states. There are three branches within the
office. The Technical Training branch is responsible for providing
technical training support for approved software packages and equipment
used in either Washington, D.C. or the state offices. This branch
provides instructor-led classes; one-on-one coaching sessions;
specialized vendor provided training; computer-based training; and
informal training and support services. The Professional Training
branch provides courses for all Senate staff in areas including:
management and leadership development, human resources issues and staff
benefits, legislative and staff information, new staff and intern
information. The Health Promotion branch provides seminars, classes and
screenings on health and wellness issues. This branch also coordinates
an annual Health Fair for all Senate employees and plans three blood
drives every year.
Training Classes
The Joint Office of Education and Training offered 658 classes in
2006, drawing 6,007 participants. This office's registration desk
handled over 32,000 e-mail and phone requests for training and
documentation.
Of the above total, in the Technical Training area 273 classes were
held with a total attendance of 1,226 students. An additional 410 staff
received coaching in 160 sessions on various software packages and
other computer related issues. In the Professional Development area 385
classes were held with a total attendance of 4,781 students.
The Office of Education and Training is available to work with
teams on issues related to team performance, communication, or conflict
resolution. During 2006, over 55 requests for special training and team
building were met.
In the Health Promotion area, 2,628 staff participated in Health
Promotion activities throughout the year. These activities included:
lung function and kidney screenings, blood drives, the Health and
Fitness Day and seminars on health related topics.
State Training
Since most of the classes that are offered are only practical for
D.C. based staff, the Office of Education and Training continues to
offer the ``State Training Fair'' which began in March 2000. In 2006,
two sessions of this program were attended by 63 state staff. This
office also conducted the State Directors Forum, which was attended by
25 state administrative managers and directors. In addition, this
office has implemented the ``Virtual Classroom'' which is an internet-
based training library of 3,000+ courses. To date, 392 state office and
D.C. staff have accessed a total of 903 different lessons using this
training option. Furthermore, the Professional Training branch offered
22 Video Teleconferencing classes, which were attended by 323 state
staff.
4. chief counsel for employment
The Office of the Senate Chief Counsel for Employment (SCCE) is a
non-partisan office established at the direction of the Joint
Leadership in 1993 after enactment of the Government Employee Rights
Act (GERA), which allowed Senate employees to file claims of employment
discrimination against Senate offices. With the enactment of the
Congressional Accountability Act of 1995 (CAA), Senate offices became
subject to the requirements, responsibilities and obligations of 11
employment laws. The SCCE is charged with the legal defense of Senate
offices in employment law cases at both the administrative and court
levels. Also, on a day-to-day basis, the SCCE provides legal advice to
Senate offices about their obligations under employment laws.
Accordingly, each of the 180 offices of the Senate is an individual
client of the SCCE, and each office maintains an attorney-client
relationship with the SCCE.
The areas of responsibilities of the SCCE can be divided into the
following categories:
--Litigation;
--Mediations to Resolve Lawsuits;
--Court-Ordered Alternative Dispute Resolutions;
--Union Drives, Negotiations, and Unfair Labor Practice Charges;
--Occupational Safety and Health Act (OSHA)/Americans With Disability
Act (ADA) Compliance;
--Layoffs and Office Closings In Compliance With the Law;
--Management Training Regarding Legal Responsibilities; and
--Preventive Legal Advice.
Litigation; Mediations; Alternative Dispute Resolutions
The SCCE defends each of the 180 employing offices of the Senate in
all court actions, hearings, proceedings, investigations, and
negotiations relating to labor and employment laws. The SCCE handles
cases filed in the District of Columbia and cases filed in any of the
50 states.
OSHA/ADA Compliance
The SCCE provides advice and assistance to Senate offices by
assisting them with complying with the applicable OSHA and ADA
regulations; representing them during Office of Compliance inspections;
advising State offices on the preparation of the Office of Compliance's
Home State OSHA/ADA Inspection Questionnaires; assisting offices in the
preparation of Emergency Action Plans; and advising and representing
Senate offices when a complaint of an OSHA violation has been filed
with the Office of Compliance or when a citation has been issued.
In 2006, the SCCE inspected 184 Senate offices to ensure compliance
with the ADA and OSHA.
Management Training Regarding Legal Responsibilities
The SCCE conducts legal seminars for the managers of Senate offices
to assist them in complying with employment laws, thereby reducing
their liability.
In 2006, the SCCE gave 71 legal seminars to Senate offices. Among
the topics covered were:
--The Congressional Accountability Act of 1995: Management's Rights
and Obligations;
--Employment Laws You Must Know When Managing a Senate Office;
--Avoiding Legal Landmines in Your Office;
--Understanding Sexual Harassment in the Workplace;
--A Manager's Guide to Preventing and Addressing Sexual Harassment in
the Workplace;
--Keys to Hiring: Reference Checks, Background Checks, and Testing
for Illegal Drug Use;
--Hiring the Right Employee: Advertising and Interviewing;
--Your Office's Obligation to Give Military Leave;
--Administering the Student Loan Repayment Program;
--The Basic Pilot Program for Employment Eligibility Confirmation;
--Diversity Awareness: The Legal Perspective;
--Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990;
--Legal Pitfalls in Evaluating, Disciplining and Terminating
Employees;
--A Manager's Guide to Complying with the Family and Medical Leave
Act (FMLA).
In addition, at the request of several Member offices, the SCCE
developed and gave two new seminars: (1) How to Interview Academy
Candidates: Appropriate and Inappropriate Questions, and (2) How to
Interview Applicants for the Page Program: Appropriate and
Inappropriate Questions.
Preventive Legal Advice
The SCCE meets with Members, chiefs of staff, administrative
directors, administrative managers, staff directors, chief clerks and
counsels at their request to provide legal advice. The purposes are to
ensure compliance with the law, prevent litigation and minimize
liability in the event of litigation. For example, on a daily basis,
the SCCE advises Senate offices on matters such as disciplining or
terminating employees in compliance with the law, handling and
investigating sexual harassment complaints, accommodating the disabled,
determining wage law requirements, meeting FMLA requirements, and
management's rights and obligations under union laws and OSHA.
Administrative/Miscellaneous Matters
The SCCE provides legal assistance to employing offices to ensure
that their employee handbooks and office policies, supervisors'
manuals, job descriptions, interviewing guidelines, and performance
evaluation forms comply with the law.
Union Drives, Negotiations and Unfair Labor Practice Charges
In 2006, the SCCE handled one union drive and assisted in
negotiations with another union.
5. senate gift shop
The U.S. Senate Gift Shop was established under the administrative
direction and supervision of the Secretary of the Senate in October,
1992, (United States Code, Title 2, Chapter 4). Since its
establishment, the Senate Gift Shop has continued to provide service
and products that maintain the integrity of the Senate while increasing
the public's awareness of its history. The Gift Shop serves Senators,
their spouses, staffs, constituents, and the many visitors to the U.S.
Capitol complex.
The products available include a wide range of fine gift items,
collectables, and souvenirs created exclusively for the U.S. Senate.
The services available include special ordering of personalized
products and hard-to-find items, custom framing including red-lines and
shadow boxes, gold embossing on leather, etching on glass and crystal,
engraving on a variety of materials, and shipping.
Additionally, the Gift Shop produces and distributes educational
materials to tourists and constituents visiting the Capitol and Senate
Office Buildings.
Facilities
In addition to the three physical locations, the Gift Shop has
developed an online presence on Webster. The site currently offers a
limited selection of products that can be purchased by phone, e-mail,
or by printing and faxing the order form provided online. Long-term
plans are to further develop the Web site to include a greater
selection of merchandise, eventually adding an e-commerce component to
facilitate online transactions. Along with offering over-the-counter,
walk-in sales and limited intranet services, the Gift Shop
Administrative Office provides mail order service via the phone or fax,
and special order and catalogue sales.
The Gift Shop also maintains two warehouse facilities. While the
bulk of the Gift Shop's stock is held in the SSF, a portion of the Gift
Shop's overstock is maintained in the Hart Building. This space also
accommodates the Gift Shop's receiving, shipping and engraving
sections.
Operational procedures for the SSF include having most, if not all,
Gift Shop product delivered, received, and stored at this location
until the need for transfer to the Hart, Dirksen, and/or Capitol
Building locations. Although the overall management of the SSF is
through the SAA, the Director of the Gift Shop has responsibility for
the operation and oversight of the interior spaces assigned for Gift
Shop use. Storing inventory in this centralized, climate-controlled
facility provides protection for the Gift Shop's valuable inventory in
terms of physical security as well as improved shelf life for
perishable and non-perishable items alike.
Sales Activity
Sales recorded for fiscal year 2006 were $1,619,739.94. Cost of
goods sold during this same period were $1,101,734.48, accounting for a
gross sales profit of $518,005.46.
In addition to tracking gross profit from sales, the Senate Gift
Shop maintains a revolving fund and a record of inventory purchased for
resale. As of October 1, 2006, the balance in the revolving fund was
$2,105,118.02. The inventory purchased for resale was valued at
$2,551,847.08.
Accomplishments in Fiscal Year 2006
Official Congressional Holiday Ornaments
The year 2006 marked the beginning of the Gift Shop's fourth
consecutive four-year ornament series. Each ornament in the 2006-2009
series of unique collectables will be an image celebrating the day-to-
day activities taking place on the Capitol grounds. The four images are
based on original oil paintings commissioned by the Gift Shop.
Sales of the 2006 holiday ornament exceeded 30,000 ornaments, of
which more than 7,000 were personalized with engravings designed,
proofed, and etched by Gift Shop staff.
Constantino Brumidi Product
There were several new products developed this past year depicting
Brumidi's art in the Capitol. These include two different sets of
placemats, one of game birds and the other of song birds, and coasters
depicting Brumidi floral designs. Three glass vases of different sizes
and shapes were created. Each contain distinctly different bird images
deeply etched into the glass, and each can be personalized. A gift set
of gourmet candy and high quality paper cocktail napkins was created.
The napkins feature four different images of Constantino Brumidi's
``Birds of the Capitol'' which are located in the Capitol's Senate side
corridors.
Christopher Radko ornament
The Gift Shop designed and created a new and exclusive Holiday
Ornament with the Christopher Radko Company depicting a full three
dimensional likeness of the Capitol building. The ornament shows the
Capitol as it might look in early evening after a light snow has
covered the building and its surrounding landscape features.
Projects and New Initiatives for 2007
History of the Capitol
The Gift Shop will purchase for resale the book History of the
Capitol, (H. Doc. 108-240) by Glenn Brown. GPO expects to release
History of the Capitol later this year, and the Gift Shop plans to
purchase a large quantity to ensure availability to its customers for
an extended period of time. The book will be sold in both Gift Shop
locations and on the intranet Web site. The book will also be available
via phone and mail order.
Congressional Plates
The Official Congressional Plates for the 108th, 109th, and 110th
Congresses continue to be sold. The 111th plate, the final of the
series, has been approved for production.
Pickard China
The Gift Shop is working with the Pickard Corporation to recreate a
round porcelain box originally developed by Tiffany and Company more
than twelve years ago and subsequently discontinued by Tiffany. The
round box contains a series of four images on its perimeter depicting
the early meeting places of Congress. The lid depicts a more recent
image of the Capitol similar to how it appears today. With Tiffany's
permission, the original designs and colors will be replicated on a
white porcelain box.
Intranet/Webster
The Gift Shop anticipates a very exciting yet busy and challenging
year for the Gift Shop as it continues to develops its presence on
Webster. Primary considerations include Web site policy, design, and
layout, content and additional products to be featured. It is the Gift
Shop's intention to eventually incorporate links to the offices of the
Historical Office, Curator, and Senate Library so that visitors to the
Web site will have ready access to additional educational information.
6. historical office
Serving as the Senate's institutional memory, the Historical Office
collects and provides information on important events, precedents,
dates, statistics, and historical comparisons of current and past
Senate activities for use by members and staff, the media, scholars,
and the general public. The office advises Senators, officers, and
committees on cost-effective disposition of their non-current office
files and assists researchers in identifying Senate-related source
materials. The office keeps extensive biographical, bibliographical,
photographic, and archival information on the 1,895 former and current
Senators. It edits for publication historically significant transcripts
and minutes of selected Senate committees and party organizations, and
conducts oral history interviews with key Senate staff. The photo
historian maintains a collection of approximately 40,000 still pictures
that includes photographs and illustrations of Senate committees and
most former Senators. The office develops and maintains all historical
material on the Senate Web site.
Editorial Projects
200 Notable Days: Senate Stories, 1787-2002
GPO issued 200 Notable Days: Senate Stories, 1787-2002 in October
2006. This 225-page clothbound volume presents 200 brief stories, which
provide a colorful and textured outline of the Senate's historical
development through more than two centuries. Historian David McCullough
pronounced the work to be ``deftly and engagingly done'' and noted that
as the author clearly enjoyed himself ``in this wonderful chronicle, so
consequently does the reader.''
The New Members' Guide to Traditions of the United States
Senate
In support of the November 2006 new members' orientation program,
the Historical Office prepared a 32-page booklet designed to serve as a
guide to the Senate's distinguishing customs and rituals. Following a
``cradle-to-grave'' theme, the document begins with ``orientation
programs'' and ``oath taking,'' and concludes with ``end-of-session
valedictories'' and ``funerals and memorial services.'' Among the 29
topics included are ``Maiden Speeches,'' ``Seersucker Thursday,'' ``the
Candy Desk,'' ``the Golden Gavel Award,'' and ``Washington's Farewell
Address.'' Copies are available through the Senate Office of Printing
and Document Services.
Administrative History of the Senate
Throughout 2006, the assistant historian continued the research and
writing for this historical account of the Senate's administrative
evolution. This study traces the development of the Offices of the
Secretary of the Senate and Sergeant at Arms, considers 19th and 20th
century reform efforts that resulted in the reorganization and
professionalization of Senate staff, and looks at how the Senate's
administrative structure has grown and diversified. Specifically,
during the past year the assistant historian completed drafts of the
first (1789-1814) and third (1836-1861) chapters, as well as portions
of chapters two (1814-1836) and four (1861-1877).
``The Idea of the Senate''
For more than two centuries, Senators, journalists, scholars, and
other first-hand observers have attempted to describe the uniqueness of
the Senate, emphasizing the body's fundamental strengths, as well as
areas for possible reform. From James Madison in 1787 to Lyndon Johnson
biographer Robert Caro in 2002, sharp-eyed analysts have left memorable
accounts that can help modern Senators better understand the Senate in
its historical context. Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Allen Drury's
1943 comment about the Senate of his day--``There is a vast area of
casual ignorance concerning this lively and appealing body''--retains a
ring of truth for modern times. The ``Idea of the Senate'' project,
completed during this year, identifies 30 major statements by
knowledgeable observers. Each of the brief chapters includes an
extended quotation and an essay that places the quotation in historical
context. This work will be published during 2007.
Rules of the United States Senate, Since 1789
In 1980, Senate Parliamentarian Emeritus Floyd M. Riddick, at the
direction of the Senate Committee on Rules and Administration, prepared
a publication containing the eight codes of rules that the Senate
adopted between 1789 and 1979. In the 1990s, the Senate Historical
Office, in consultation with Dr. Riddick, developed a project to
incorporate an important feature not contained in the 1980 publication.
Beyond simply listing the eight codes of rules, our goal is to show
how--and why--the Senate's current rules have evolved from earlier
versions. This work, to be completed during 2007, will contain eight
narrative chapters outlining key debates and reasons for significant
changes. Appendices will include the original text of all standing
rules and all changes adopted between each codification.
Biographical Directory of the U.S. Congress, 1774-2007
Since 1989, the assistant historian has added many new biographical
sketches, expanded bibliography entries, and revised and updated most
of the online database's nearly 2,000 Senate and vice-presidential
entries. An updated print edition, covering the years 1774-2005, was
published early in 2006. The assistant historian continues to oversee
all editing and updating of existing information for the online version
of the Biographical Directory (http://bioguide.congress.gov) to allow
for expanded search capabilities, maintain accuracy, and incorporate
new information and scholarship.
Oral History Program
The Historical Office conducts a series of oral history interviews,
which provide personal recollections of various Senate careers. This
year, roundtable interviews were conducted with veteran Capitol
telephone operators, Joan Sartori, Ellen Kramer, Martha Fletcher, and
Barbara Loughery. Interviews were also completed with John D. Lane, who
served in the early 1950s as administrative assistant to Senator Brien
McMahon (D-CT). Several other interviews with Senate staff are in
progress. The complete transcripts of 22 interviews have also been
posted on the Senate's Web site.
Member Services
Members' Records Management and Disposition Assistance
The Senate archivist assisted Members' offices with planning for
the preservation of their permanently valuable records, emphasizing the
importance of managing electronic records and transferring valuable
records to a home-state repository. In addition, the office provided
special assistance to offices closing at the end of the 109th Congress.
This included identifying appropriate repositories for those members
who had not already selected one, working with staff to ensure
appropriate selection and preservation of historical documentation
including electronic records, and advising members on access
restrictions.
The archivist revised and published the Records Management Handbook
for United States Senators and Their Archival Repositories and the
Checklist for Closing a Senator's Office. The archivist continued to
work with staff from all repositories receiving senatorial collections
to ensure adequacy of documentation and the transfer of appropriate
records with adequate finding aids. The archivist provided briefing
materials to transition offices and met with staff. The archivist
conducted a seminar on records management for Senate offices and
participated in the Senate Services Fair sponsored by the Office of
Education and Training. The archivist organized a day-long meeting in
conjunction with the Society of American Archivists' annual meeting for
Congressional Papers Roundtable members that covered selection,
arrangement, and description of congressional papers; new web-based
sources for political historical research; and contemporary Senate
electronic record-keeping systems and related preservation issues.
Committee Records Management and Disposition Assistance
The Senate archivist provided each committee with staff briefings,
record surveys, guidance on preservation of information in electronic
systems, and instructions for the transfer of permanently valuable
records to the National Archives' Center for Legislative Archives. The
office oversaw the transfer to the Archives of 350 accessions of Senate
records. The archivist revised and published the U.S. Senate Records:
Guidelines for Committee Staff. The archivist and assistant archivist
responded to approximately 400 requests for loans of records back to
committees. The archival assistant continued to provide processing aid
to committees and administrative offices in need of basic help with
noncurrent files. The archival assistant produced committee archiving
reports in Access database format covering records' transfers for the
past Congress. The archivist will use these reports in 2007 to provide
committees with suggestions to promote timely transfers.
Photographic Collections
The photo historian supported publication of 200 Notable Days:
Senate Stories, 1787-2002 by obtaining uniquely engaging illustrations
from her collections and from photo archives throughout the nation. The
office continued to provide timely photographic reference service,
while cataloging, digitizing, rehousing, and expanding the office's
40,000-item image collection. The photo historian also maintained the
Office's COOP and vital electronic records. As a contribution to the
office's educational outreach efforts, the photo historian added to the
online photographic exhibits for the Senate Web site a feature entitled
The Senate Through the Ages.
Educational Outreach
``Senate Historical Minutes''
The Senate historian continued a 10-year series of ``Senate
Historical Minutes,'' begun in 1997 at the request of the Senate
Democratic Leader. In 2006, the historian prepared and delivered a
``Senate Historical Minute'' at 17 Senate Democratic Conference weekly
meetings. These 400-word Minutes were designed to enlighten members
about significant events and personalities associated with the Senate's
institutional development. More than 200 Minutes are available as a
feature on the Senate Web site. An illustrated compilation was recently
published as 200 Notable Days: Senate Stories, 1787-2002.
Public Inquiries
Much of the Historical Office's correspondence with the general
public takes place through the Senate's Web site, which has become an
indispensable source for information about the institution. Historical
Office staff maintain and frequently update the Web site with timely
reference and historical information. In 2006, the office responded to
an estimated 1,500 inquiries from the general public, the press,
students, family genealogists, congressional staffers, and academics,
through the public e-mail address provided on the Senate Web site. The
diverse nature of their questions reflects varying levels of interest
in Senate operations, institutional history, and former members. In
coordination with the Senate Office of Education and Training,
Historical Office staff provided seminars on the general history of the
Senate, Senate committees, women Senators, Senate floor leadership, and
the U.S. Constitution. Office staff also participated in seminars and
briefings for specially scheduled groups.
C-SPAN Documentary on the Capitol
Over the past two years, the Historical Office, in conjunction with
the Office of the Curator, assisted C-SPAN with source material and on-
camera interviews for its nine-hour television documentary ``The
Capitol''. C-SPAN launched this series in late May and repeated it
throughout the year.
Advisory Committee on the Records of Congress
This 11-member permanent committee, established in 1990 by Public
Law 101-509, meets twice a year to advise the Senate, the House of
Representatives, and the Archivist of the United States on the
management and preservation of the records of Congress. Its Senate-
related membership includes appointees of the majority and minority
leaders; the Secretary of the Senate, who served as committee vice
chair during the 109th Congress; and the Senate historian. The
Historical office provided support services for the Committee's June
and December meetings.
Capitol Visitor Center Exhibition Content Committee
Staff historians completed their assignments in drafting text for
displays in the 17,000-square-foot exhibition gallery of the CVC.
During 2006, the office continued to assist Donna Lawrence Productions
and Cortina Productions with background material for visitor
orientation films and interactive visual displays.
7. human resources
The Office of Human Resources was established in June 1995 as a
result of the Congressional Accountability Act. The office focuses on
developing and implementing human resources policies, procedures, and
programs for the Office of the Secretary of the Senate that not only
fulfill the legal requirements of the workplace but which complement
the organization's strategic goals and values.
This includes recruiting and staffing; providing guidance and
advice to managers and staff; training; performance management; job
analysis; compensation planning, design, and administration; leave
administration; records management; maintaining the employee handbooks
and manuals; internal grievance procedures; employee relations and
services; and organizational planning and development.
The Human Resources office administers the following programs for
the Secretary's employees: the Public Transportation Subsidy program,
Student Loan Repayment Program, parking allocations, and the Summer
Intern Program that offers college students the opportunity to gain
valuable skills and experience in a variety of Senate support offices.
Recruitment and Retention of Staff
Human Resources has the ongoing task of advertising new vacancies
or positions, screening applicants, interviewing candidates and
assisting with all phases of the hiring process. Human Resources is now
coordinating with the SAA Human Resources Department to post all SAA
and Secretary vacancies on the Senate intranet so that the larger
Senate community may access the posting from their own offices.
Additionally, an ``Employment'' link on Webster will be fully activated
in the next few months, highlighting SAA, Secretary and Employment
Bulletin vacancies and application processes.
Outreach
Comprehensive resource manuals for the Senate's Elder Care Fair
have been created and are being distributed throughout the Senate and
have been requested by specific offices, committees, and/or
departments. It was originally intended that the Elder Care Fair would
be beneficial to Senate staff every two years, starting with the first
one in 2005. Since the groundwork has been laid, the fair can be held
more frequently, and hosting the event will rotate among the human
resource offices of the Secretary, the SAA, the AOC, and the House. The
next fair will be held later this year.
Training
In conjunction with the SCCE, Human Resources continues to develop
and provide training for department heads and staff. Training topics
include Sexual Harassment, Interviewing Skills, Conducting Background
Checks, and Providing Feedback to Employees and Goal Setting.
Interns and Fellows
Human Resources manages the Secretary's internship program and the
coordination of the Heinz Fellowship program. From advertising,
conducting needs analyses, communicating, screening, placing and
following up with all interns, HR keeps a close connection with these
program participants in an effort to make the internship most
beneficial to them and the organization.
Combined Federal Campaign
Human Resources has taken an active role in the Combined Federal
Campaign (CFC) for the Senate community at-large. The office serves as
co-director of the program for the Senate, participating in kick off
meetings, identifying key workers in each office, and disseminating and
collecting necessary information and paperwork.
8. information systems
The staff of the Department of Information Systems provides
technical hardware and software support for the Office of the Secretary
of the Senate. Information Systems staff also interface closely with
the application and network development groups within the SAA, GPO, and
outside vendors on technical issues and joint projects. The department
provides computer-related support for all local area network (LAN)
servers within the Office of the Secretary. Information Systems staff
provide direct application support for all software installed on
workstations, initiate and guide new technologies, and implement next
generation hardware and software solutions.
Mission Evaluation
The primary mission of the Information Systems Department is to
continue to provide the highest level of customer satisfaction and
computer support for all departments within the Secretary's office.
Emphasis is placed on the creation and transfer of electronic
legislative files to outside departments and agencies, meeting
Disbursing Office financial responsibilities to the member offices, and
office mandated and statutory obligations.
Staffing and Functionality
Information Systems staff functionality was expanded by moving the
IT structure from a local LAN support structure to an enterprise IT
support process. Improved diagnostic practices were adopted to expand
support across all departments. Several departments, namely Disbursing,
Chief Counsel for Employment, Office of Public Records, Page School,
Senate Security, Stationery and Gift Shop previously employed dedicated
information technology (IT) staff resident within the offices.
Information Systems personnel continue to provide multi-tiered
escalated hardware and software support for these offices.
For information security reasons, departments have implemented
isolated computer systems, unique applications, and isolated local area
networks. The Secretary of the Senate network is a closed local area
network to all offices within the Senate. Information Systems staff
continue to provide a common level of hardware and software integration
for these networks, and for the shared resources of interdepartmental
networking. Information System staff actively participate in all new
project design and implementation within the Secretary of the Senate
operations.
Fiscal Year 2006 Summary of Improvements to the Secretary's Local Area
Networks
Adopted improved network monitoring standards and implemented
active e-mail spam controls for the Secretary of the Senate staff.
Established an automated server to schedule and deploy software
updates on all staff workstations during non-business hours of
operation.
Replaced 237 staff workstations (95 percent) and upgraded software
applications across all departments.
Installed Video Teleconferencing (VTC) hardware and incorporated
VTC as an alternative COOP communications tool.
Upgraded and replaced all handheld mobile devices (Blackberry) for
essential staff.
Provided network support for the Webster Hall and Alternate Chamber
COOP Exercise.
Finalized implementation of new point of sale and accounting system
for the Stationery Room.
Completed Senate Wireless network access verification testing for
staff access in Hart, Russell, and Dirksen locations.
Completed office staff occupancy, network access, and provided
environmental tools at the SSF.
Active Directory and Message Infrastructure Project (ADMA)
All SecurID and Passfaces users have remote Web portal to Senate
Web services.
Access to Web-based services is available from all public and
private internet locations
Staff members can now retrieve Web mail from any home or state
office workstation.
Leveraged technologies included continuation of Groove
Collaboration Project, and integrated Voice Over IP (VoIP) solution
during COOP events.
Clearly, the implementation of ADMA for the Secretary involved
numerous resources on the part of both the SAA and the Secretary's
offices. The importance of this single project provides the ``base''
for all future IT related projects in the coming years.
Legislative Operation Upgrades
Upgraded Daily Digest LIS software application.
Installed and updated a third off-site legislative COOP laptop kit.
9. interparliamentary services
The Office of Interparliamentary Services (IPS) has completed its
25th year of operation as a department of the Secretary of the Senate.
IPS is responsible for administrative, financial, and protocol
functions for all interparliamentary conferences in which the Senate
participates by statute, for interparliamentary conferences in which
the Senate participates on an ad hoc basis, and for special delegations
authorized by the Majority and/or Minority Leaders. The office also
provides appropriate assistance as requested by other Senate
delegations.
The statutory interparliamentary conferences include the following:
NATO Parliamentary Assembly, Mexico-United States Interparliamentary
Group, Canada-United States Interparliamentary Group, British-American
Interparliamentary Group, United States-Russia Interparliamentary
Group, and United States-China Interparliamentary Group.
In May, the 46th Annual Meeting of the Canada-U.S.
Interparliamentary Group was held in South Carolina. Arrangements for
this successful event were handled by the IPS staff.
All foreign travel authorized by the Majority and Minority Leaders
is arranged by the IPS staff. In addition to delegation trips, IPS
provided assistance to individual Senators and staff traveling
overseas. Senators and staff authorized by committees for foreign
travel call upon this office for assistance with passports, visas,
travel arrangements, and reporting requirements.
IPS receives and prepares for printing the quarterly financial
reports for foreign travel from all committees in the Senate. In
addition to preparing the quarterly reports for the Majority Leader,
the Minority Leader, and the President Pro Tem, IPS staff assist staff
members of Senators and committees in completing the required reports.
Interparliamentary Services maintains regular contact with the
Department of State and foreign embassy officials. Official foreign
visitors are frequently received in this office and assistance is given
to individuals as well as to groups by the IPS staff. The staff
continues to work closely with other offices of the Secretary of the
Senate and the SAA in arranging programs for foreign visitors. In
addition, IPS is frequently consulted by individual Senators' offices
on a broad range of protocol questions. Occasional questions come from
state officials or the general public regarding Congressional protocol.
On behalf of the Majority and Minority Leaders, the staff arranges
receptions in the Senate for Heads of State, Heads of Government, Heads
of Parliaments, and parliamentary delegations. Required records of
expenditures on behalf of foreign visitors under authority of Public
Law 100-71 are maintained in the Office of Interparliamentary Services.
Planning is underway for the 46th Annual Meeting of the Mexico-U.S.
Interparliamentary Group and the British American Parliamentary Group
meetings which will be held in the United States in 2007. Advance work,
including site inspection, will be undertaken for the Canada-U.S.
Interparliamentary Group to be held in the United States in 2008.
Preparations are also underway for the spring and fall sessions of the
NATO Parliamentary Assembly.
10. library
The Senate Library provides legislative, legal, business, and
general information services to the United States Senate. The library's
collection encompasses legislative documents that date from the
Continental Congress in 1774; current and historic executive and
judicial branch materials; an extensive book collection on American
politics, history, and biography; and a wide array of online systems.
The library also authors content for three Web sites--LIS.gov,
Senate.gov, and Webster.
Notable Achievements
Information inquiries increased 90 percent.
LIS training provided to 343 Senate staff.
Acquired digital databases containing 313,730 congressional
documents.
Published first bibliography on Senate.gov using XML.
Committee hearing (from 1889) cataloging project completed.
Treaty and executive report (from 1857) cataloging project
completed.
Shelved 26,000 volumes at the Senate Support Facility.
Acquired catalog and Web servers to support library system upgrade.
Environmental control systems installed to safeguard document
collections.
Information Services
The foundations of Senate Library services are authoritative
legislative record keeping, prompt resolution of traditional requests,
and customized research instruction. The library is significantly
expanding the use of Web technology to meet the Senate's ever-
increasing demand for current, accurate, and relevant information. The
Library's efforts include establishing workflow and publication
policies, and leading the Senate.gov Content Team toward improving site
structure and meta data standards. The library's commitment to improve
services resulted in a 90 percent inquiry increase, the third
consecutive year of double-digit increases.
INFORMATION SERVICES INQUIRIES
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Increase
from Prior
Year Traditional Web Total Year
(percent)
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2006........................................................... 31,032 1,596,772 1,627,804 90
2005........................................................... 33,080 823,076 856,156 35
2004........................................................... 33,750 602,236 635,986 61
2003........................................................... 46,234 348,198 394,432 ( \1\ )
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
\1\ Baseline.
Legislative Record Keeping
The library guarantees daily accuracy of more than 100 Senate
business-related lists on three Web sites--Senate.gov, LIS.gov, and
Webster. Legislative records published by the Library are in high
demand because of their usability and quick access. Almost 1.6 million
visitors to Library-produced Web resources underscore the need for
these materials. The three most popular legislative publications--Hot
Bills List, Appropriations Legislation, and Action on Cloture--garnered
456,151 Web visitors in 2006.
HOT BILLS, APPROPRIATIONS, AND CLOTURE WEB INQUIRIES
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Publication Senate.gov LIS Webster Total
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Hot Bills (Active Legislation).................................. 372,857 17,096 8,796 398,749
Appropriations Legislation (fiscal year 1987-present)........... 43,795 6,293 3,545 53,633
Cloture Motion Activity (1985-present).......................... 1,299 1,256 1,214 3,769
-----------------------------------------------
Total Web Inquiries......................................... .......... .......... .......... 456,151
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Since accepting responsibility to author Senate.gov content in
2002, library staff have dedicated themselves to mastering Web
technology best practices. Efforts have resulted in the conversion of
many existing print and Web publications into XML format. This
versatile format is a universal standard for efficiently storing and
retrieving data. The great advantage of XML is that both print and Web
products can be easily generated from a single data source.
Senator Biography Database
Several offices under the Secretary of the Senate share publishing
responsibility for up-to-the-day information on Senate.gov. When new
Senate records are set, such as for the longest-serving Senator or when
a Senator has cast more than 10,000 votes, those accomplishments are
immediately published on the site. To support these requirements, the
library conducted a review of software products to construct a
biographical database.
As part of this effort, the library has created a prototype
database designed to eliminate redundant data entry, improve workflow,
and reduce the potential for error. Key elements about the 1,895
individuals who have served as Senators since 1789--member name, state,
party, and dates of service, for example--can be stored and managed in
the database. These standardized elements are retrievable as needed.
Committee Hearings
The library's retrospective Senate hearing project was completed on
December 28--an achievement that took 13 years of effort. This
significant accomplishment provides Senate staff with bibliographic
access to the library's collection of 36,300 hearings dating from 1889.
The library collection is regarded as the most complete in existence,
surpassing those of the Library of Congress and National Archives.
A second hearing project involves creating catalog records for
Senate hearings announced in the Congressional Record Daily Digest.
This project bridges the three- to six-month period between the hearing
announcement and the official publication of the hearing. For the first
time, Senate staff have a reliable source--the library catalog--to
locate hearing information for all hearings, including unpublished
hearings. Since the project began in May 2005, 1,098 unpublished
hearing records have been created.
Floor Schedule
The library is responsible for posting the Floor Schedule on
Senate.gov after each Senate meeting adjourns. The schedule provides
convene and adjourn times, program highlights, and links to roll call
votes and daily calendars. Floor Schedule production was improved this
year by establishing an XML template that standardizes the format.
Digital Congressional Document Collection
The library acquired two congressional document databases and the
full-text searchable collections provide Senate-wide access to 313,730
reports and documents. The databases contain the U.S. Congressional
Serial Set, Senate Journal, House Journal, Senate Executive Journal,
and American State Papers. An added benefit of these databases is that
customized research collections can be created by Senate staff from
their desktop. For example, one customized collection groups early
editions of the Secretary of the Senate Report (1823-1903).
DIGITAL COLLECTION USAGE
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Title (coverage) Searches
------------------------------------------------------------------------
American State Papers (1789-1838)............................ 588
Congressional Research Service Reports (1916-present)........ 400
Senate and House Committee Prints (1830-present)............. 400
U.S. Congressional Serial Set (1817-1906).................... 1,729
----------
Total Digital Collection Searches........................ 3,117
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Treaty Documents and Executive Reports
More than 1,565 treaties and 1,016 executive reports, from 1857 to
the present, were cataloged during a 5-year project. This project
provides bibliographic access to the entire Senate executive document
collection through the library's catalog. The international scholarly
community will also benefit from these unique bibliographic records
because in many instances the only known copies are in the Senate
collection.
Traditional Information Requests
Traditional requests--by telephone, e-mail, or in-person--are fewer
than Web-based inquiries; however they dominate daily library activity.
Often working under strict deadlines, the eight-person team personally
responds to a monthly average of 2,586 staff inquiries. Each request is
handled in a timely, confidential, and nonpartisan manner. Research
requests vary widely, including legislative, legal, economic, and
historical topics. The knowledge gained from this frontline experience
provides the basis from which the librarians create Web products.
INFORMATION SERVICE SUPPORT ACTIVITIES
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Category Total
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Document Deliveries.......................................... 3,290
Circulation:
Item Loans............................................... 2,941
New Accounts............................................. 333
----------
Total Accounts......................................... 2,745
==========
Microform Center:
Titles Used.............................................. 245
Pages Printed............................................ 4,479
Photocopies.................................................. 101,297
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Customized Research Instruction and Professional Outreach
The library conducted 46 LIS Savvy classes for 343 staff. This
important responsibility utilizes the library's expertise in
legislative procedure and database research. During this second year of
the library's LIS training program, additional classes for advanced
search techniques are in development. The library is also collaborating
with the Office of Education and Training to design a self-paced,
online LIS course.
During 2006, 175 staff attended Services of the Senate Library
seminars, the Senate Services Fair, Senate Page School tours, state
staff orientations, and the annual National Library Week reception and
book talk. Visitors from graduate schools, professional organizations,
and federal libraries totaled 188.
Technical Services
Acquisitions
As a participant in GPO's Federal Depository Library Program
(FDLP), the library receives selected categories of legislative,
executive, and judicial branch publications. The library received
10,655 government publications in 2006, 9,907 of those through the
FDLP. In response to the trend of issuing government documents in
electronic format, 20,400 links were added to the library catalog. The
links provide Senate staff desktop access to the full-text of each
document.
ACQUISITIONS
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Category Total
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Congressional Documents...................................... 7,322
Executive Branch Publications................................ 3,333
Books........................................................ 889
----------
Total Acquisitions....................................... 11,544
------------------------------------------------------------------------
A major project is the ongoing title-by-title evaluation of
executive branch publications. During the project's sixth year, 1,219
items were withdrawn from the collection, 642 of which were donated to
requesting federal libraries. The project's final phase will improve
organization and access by integrating the retained documents into the
book collection. Toward this end, 602 documents were reclassified and
merged into the larger primary collection.
The library significantly expanded its microform periodical
coverage through the acquisition of surplus materials from Washington-
area libraries. New titles include: Los Angeles Times, 1978-2005; New
England Journal of Medicine, 1984-1998; The New York Times, 1926-1961;
The Progressive, 1984-2004; and USA Today, 1993-2005.
Catalog
The library's productive cataloging staff draws on years of
experience to produce and maintain a catalog of more than 177,940
bibliographic items. During 2006, 13,303 items were added to the
catalog, including 8,132 new titles--a 57 percent increase over 2005--
and 6,154 items were withdrawn. A total of 32,592 maintenance
transactions contributed to the catalog's content, currency, and record
integrity.
Senate staff searched the library catalog on 4,742 occasions (+21
percent), viewing 6,514 catalog pages (+12 percent). The catalog is
updated nightly to ensure that Senate staff will retrieve accurate and
current information on library holdings. Visual appeal and utility were
enhanced with the addition of 280 book jacket images for new titles.
A related, ongoing project involves cataloging the Senate
Historical Office's 3,000-volume book collection. Records for 820
titles were added to the library catalog, bringing the total number of
Historical Office titles to 1,426. They will be able to efficiently
identify and locate volumes in their collection through the library
catalog.
Name Authorities Cooperative Program (NACO)
NACO, an international cataloging authority located at the Library
of Congress, manages personal name and subject control for the library
community. As one of 457 participants, the library contributed 616
personal names and congressional terms. That exceptional number
underscores the very special nature of the Senate's collections and
skills of the library's catalogers.
Library System Servers
The library acquired three servers that will provide a platform for
the fiscal year 2007 catalog upgrade. New capabilities will shorten
data transfer time and increase catalog availability, enhance record
processing, and provide for dynamic delivery of catalog content to the
Web.
Collection Maintenance
Senate Support Facility
The library's off-site collection includes legislative publications
dating from the early 1800s. These 26,000 volumes are an archive of the
Senate's primary source documents. In early 2006 the collection was
transferred to the new SSF; organization and shelving were completed by
August.
Environmental Controls
Air handling and water detection systems were installed in the
Russell Building book stacks. These environmental controls improve
storage conditions for the Senate's historic collections. With the new
equipment, the site meets strict archival standards for both
temperature and humidity levels. Newly installed detection devices will
alert staff to any water-related issues.
Sensors to remotely monitor environmental conditions were installed
in the library's book stacks within the SSF. If relative humidity and
temperature levels exceed preset thresholds, staff will receive an e-
mail alert. These improvements mark the first time in the library's
history that all collections are housed in controlled environments.
Preservation and Binding
A collection survey to examine the physical condition of the
38,815-volume book collection was completed in August 2006. The survey
concluded that the collection is in excellent condition. However, 580
volumes (1.5 percent) will require minor repair and 32 volumes will be
evaluated for major repair or replacement.
Library collections include every printed legislative document
since the First Congress. In order to ensure that this collection
remains comprehensive, materials are prepared for binding at GPO.
During the year, 608 volumes containing hearings, committee prints,
bills and resolutions, Congressional Records, and other materials were
bound.
Administrative
Budget
Budget savings in 2006 totaled $1,575; and, after a decade of
budget monitoring, savings total $75,813.86. This continual review of
purchases eliminates materials not meeting the Senate's current
information needs. This oversight is also critical in offsetting cost
increases for core materials and for acquiring new materials. The goal
is to provide the highest level using the latest technologies and best
resources in the most cost-effective manner.
Continuity of Operations Plan (COOP)
Several Library initiatives this year will further enable the
Office of the Secretary to provide information services to the Senate
from off-site. Projects include housing core documents at the SSF and
training staff to remotely access the Senate network from a Senate-
issued laptop. Additionally, the library established a Digital
Congressional Research Collection containing fully searchable
congressional documents dating from the First Congress. These databases
can be remotely accessed, and support immediate digital delivery of
information.
Unum, Newsletter of the Office of the Secretary of the
Senate
Unum, the Secretary's quarterly newsletter has been produced by
Senate Library staff since October 1997. It serves as an historical
record of accomplishments, events, and personnel in the Offices of the
Secretary of the Senate. The newsletter is distributed throughout the
Senate, and to former staff and Senators.
The four 2006 issues highlighted several significant events
including three major publications issued through Secretary's office,
200 Notable Days: Senate Stories, 1787-2002, United States Senate
Graphic Arts Catalog, and Biographical Directory of the United States
Senate, 1789-2005.
Major Library Goals for 2007
Redesign the library's Webster site.
Create a Web-based Senate index for Senate.gov and the library's
Webster site.
Acquire software for a senator's biographical database.
Develop online LIS training resources for Senate staff.
Upgrade the integrated library system.
Install new OCLC cataloging software.
Survey U.S. Congressional Serial Set volumes in the Senate Support
Facility.
Survey book, House hearing, and microform collections in the
Russell Building.
SENATE LIBRARY STATISTICS FOR CALENDAR YEAR 2006--ACQUISITIONS
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Books Government Documents Congressional Publications
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Reports/ Total
Ordered Received Paper Fiche Hearings Prints Bylaw Docs
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
January.............................................. 42 87 142 24 293 18 46 375 985
February............................................. 25 27 165 112 241 25 63 113 746
March................................................ 20 65 269 386 307 21 134 226 1,408
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1st Quarter.................................... 87 179 576 522 841 64 243 714 3,139
==================================================================================================
April................................................ 21 55 208 270 311 17 62 239 1,162
May.................................................. 25 86 184 ......... 310 20 86 334 1,020
June................................................. 13 87 161 43 220 23 56 72 662
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2nd Quarter.................................... 59 228 553 313 841 60 204 645 2,844
==================================================================================================
July................................................. 20 119 174 42 276 19 52 173 855
August............................................... 27 75 67 171 272 14 54 196 849
September............................................ 41 70 61 ......... 273 15 68 212 699
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
3rd Quarter.................................... 88 264 302 213 821 48 174 581 2,403
==================================================================================================
October.............................................. 38 92 300 13 352 14 58 705 1,534
November............................................. 60 52 214 41 262 16 36 195 816
December............................................. 15 74 117 169 233 19 33 163 808
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
4th Quarter.................................... 113 218 631 223 847 49 127 1,063 3,158
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2006 Total..................................... 347 889 2,062 1,271 3,350 221 748 3,003 11,544
2005 Total..................................... 346 880 2,337 1,251 2,926 252 884 3,458 11,988
==================================================================================================
Percent Change....................................... 0.29 1.02 -11.77 1.60 14.49 -12.30 -15.38 -13.16 -3.70
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
SENATE LIBRARY STATISTICS FOR CALENDAR YEAR 2006--CATALOGING
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Bibliographic Records Cataloged
S. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Hearing Government Documents Congressional Publications Total
Numbers ------------------------------------------------------------------- Records
Added to Books Docs./ Cataloged
LIS Paper Fiche Electronic Hearings Prints Pubs./
Reports
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
January............................................. 20 70 10 1 16 349 10 117 573
February............................................ 26 50 1 2 9 312 5 100 479
March............................................... 32 249 4 15 49 561 14 284 1,176
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1st Quarter................................... 78 369 15 18 74 1,222 29 501 2,228
===================================================================================================
April............................................... 30 38 11 4 21 418 1 83 576
May................................................. 19 246 5 51 5 461 36 5 809
June................................................ 7 116 3 1 .......... 391 7 46 564
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2nd Quarter................................... 56 400 19 56 26 1,270 44 134 1,949
===================================================================================================
July................................................ 45 168 4 ......... 12 618 5 11 818
August.............................................. 53 116 3 1 11 333 5 ......... 469
September........................................... 8 225 14 6 24 558 7 21 855
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
3rd Quarter................................... 106 509 21 7 47 1,509 17 32 2,142
===================================================================================================
October............................................. 33 59 ......... ......... .......... 485 4 18 566
November............................................ 21 92 10 ......... 11 578 1 5 697
December............................................ 24 70 5 15 13 442 3 2 550
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
4th Quarter................................... 78 221 15 15 24 1,505 8 25 1,813
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2006 Total.................................... 318 1,499 70 96 171 5,506 98 692 8,132
2005 Total.................................... 1,088 500 85 57 131 3,379 39 988 5,179
===================================================================================================
Percent Change...................................... -70.77 199.80 -17.65 68.42 30.53 62.95 151.28 -29.96 57.02
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
SENATE LIBRARY STATISTICS FOR CALENDAR YEAR 2006--DOCUMENT DELIVERY
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Micrographics Photocopiers
Volumes Materials Facsimiles Center Pages Pages
Loaned Delivered Printed Printed
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
January........................................... 240 354 100 184 7,079
February.......................................... 223 312 79 224 13,615
March............................................. 195 409 109 67 9,304
-------------------------------------------------------------
1st Quarter................................. 658 1,075 288 475 29,998
=============================================================
April............................................. 247 256 70 471 11,194
May............................................... 279 319 71 436 12,232
June.............................................. 313 340 100 778 12,804
-------------------------------------------------------------
2nd Quarter................................. 839 915 241 1,685 36,230
=============================================================
July.............................................. 249 211 69 1,312 6,315
August............................................ 185 203 65 162 6,488
September......................................... 398 283 71 190 9,178
-------------------------------------------------------------
3rd Quarter................................. 832 697 205 1,664 21,981
=============================================================
October........................................... 235 203 76 320 6,213
November.......................................... 260 208 34 268 3,014
December.......................................... 117 192 34 67 3,861
-------------------------------------------------------------
4th Quarter................................. 612 603 144 655 13,088
-------------------------------------------------------------
2006 Total.................................. 2,941 3,290 878 4,479 101,297
2005 Total.................................. 2,752 4,015 1,001 4,406 113,335
=============================================================
Percent Change.................................... 6.87 -18.06 -12.29 1.66 -10.62
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
11. senate page school
The United States Senate Page School exists to provide a smooth
transition from and to the students' home schools, providing those
students with as sound a program, both academically and experientially,
as possible during their stay in the nation's capital, within the
limits of the constraints imposed by the work situation.
Summary of Accomplishments
Continue to work toward accreditation by the Middle States
Commission on Secondary Schools. The process will be ongoing until
December 31, 2008.
Conducted closing ceremonies for two page classes on June 9, 2006,
and January 26, 2007, the last day of school for each semester.
Completed orientation and course scheduling for the Spring 2006 and
Fall 2006 pages. Needs of incoming students determined the semester
schedules.
Provided extended educational experiences including twenty-three
field trips, six guest speakers, writing and speaking contests, musical
instruments and vocal opportunities, and foreign language study with
the aid of tutors of five languages. Summer pages participated in eight
field trips to educational sites and listened to two guest speakers as
an extension of the page experience. National tests were administered
for qualification in scholarship programs.
Collected items for gift packages and then assembled and shipped to
military personnel in Afghanistan and Iraq as part of the community
service project embraced by pages and staff since 2002. Pages included
letters of support to the troops. Several recipients of gift packages
wrote letters to Pages expressing appreciation.
Purchased updated materials and equipment. These included eighteen
new workstations for students and staff. Math, science, and U.S.
history texts were purchased as well as academic support software. The
science lab was modified, updated, and safety compliant storage units
for chemicals were purchased.
Reviewed and updated the evacuation plan and COOP. Pages and staff
continue to practice evacuating to primary and secondary sites.
Participated in escape hood training (pages and staff). Staff was
recertified in CPR/AED procedures.
Trained tutors and substitute teachers in evacuation procedures.
Summary of Plans
Our goals include:
--Individualized small group instruction and tutoring by teachers on
an as-needed basis will continue to be offered.
--Foreign language tutors will provide instruction in French,
Spanish, Latin, Japanese, Chinese, and Russian.
--The focus of field trips will be sites of historic, political, and
scientific importance which complement the curriculum.
--Staff development options include attendance at seminars conducted
by Education and Training and subject matter and/or educational
issue conferences conducted by national organizations.
--The community service project will continue.
--Preparation for the accreditation visit will be made and all
necessary reports completed.
12. printing and document services
The Office of Printing and Document Services (OPDS) serves as the
liaison to GPO for the Senate's official printing, ensuring that all
Senate printing is in compliance with Title 44, U.S. Code as it relates
to Senate documents, hearings, committee prints and other official
publications. The office assists the Senate by coordinating,
scheduling, delivering and preparing Senate legislation, hearings,
documents, committee prints and miscellaneous publications for
printing, and provides printed copies of all legislation and public
laws to the Senate and the public. In addition, the office assigns
publication numbers to all hearings, committee prints, documents and
other publications; orders all blank paper, envelopes and letterhead
for the Senate; and prepares page counts of all Senate hearings in
order to compensate commercial reporting companies for the preparation
of hearings.
Printing Services
During fiscal year 2006, the OPDS prepared 4,320 requisitions
authorizing GPO to print and bind the Senate's work, exclusive of
legislation and the Congressional Record. Since the requisitioning done
by the OPDS is central to the Senate's printing, the office is uniquely
suited to perform invoice and bid reviewing responsibilities for Senate
printing. As a result of this office's cost accounting duties, OPDS is
able to review and assure accurate GPO invoicing as well as play an
active role in helping to provide the best possible bidding scenario
for Senate publications.
In addition to processing requisitions, the Printing Services
Section coordinates proof handling, job scheduling and tracking for
stationery products, Senate hearings, Senate publications and other
miscellaneous printed products, as well as monitoring blank paper and
stationery quotas for each Senate office and committee. The OPDS also
coordinates a number of publications for other Senate offices such as
the Curator, Historian, Disbursing Office, Legislative Clerk, Senate
Library as well as the U.S. Botanic Garden, USCP and the AOC. These
tasks include providing guidance for design, paper selection, print
specifications, monitoring print quality and distribution. Last year's
major printing projects included the Report of the Secretary of the
Senate; and numerous publications prepared by the Senate Historian's
office including 200 Notable Days in Senate History, and the New Member
Guide to Traditions of the U.S. Senate. Current major projects for the
office include A Botanic Garden for the Nation, the Annual Report of
the Architect of the Capitol, and A History of the U.S. Senate Budget
Committee.
Hearing Billing Verification
Senate committees often use outside reporting companies to
transcribe their hearings, both in-house and in the field. The OPDS
processes billing verifications for these transcription services
ensuring that costs billed to the Senate are accurate. The OPDS
utilizes a program developed in conjunction with the SAA Computer
Division that provides more billing accuracy and greater information
gathering capacity; and adheres to the guidelines established by the
Senate Committee on Rules and Administration for commercial reporting
companies to bill the Senate for transcription services. During 2006,
OPDS provided commercial reporting companies and corresponding Senate
committees a total of 934 billing verifications of Senate hearings and
business meetings. Over 66,000 transcribed pages were processed at a
total billing cost of over $433,000.
The office continued processing all file transfers between
committees and reporting companies electronically, ensuring efficiency
and accuracy. Department staff continues training to apply today's
expanding digital technology to improve performance and services.
HEARING TRANSCRIPT AND BILLING VERIFICATIONS
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2004 2005 2006 Percent change
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Billing Verifications........................... 787 949 934 -01.6
Average per Committee........................... 41.4 49.9 49.2 -01.6
Total Transcribed Pages......................... 56,262 66,597 66,158 -0.007
Average Pages/Committee......................... 2,961 3,505 3,482 -0.007
Transcribed Pages Cost.......................... $366,904 $426,815 $433,742 +1.016
Average Cost/Committee.......................... $19,311 $22,463 $22,829 +1.016
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Additionally, the Service Center within the OPDS is staffed by
experienced GPO detailees that provide Senate committees and the
Secretary of the Senate's Office with complete publishing services for
hearings, committee prints, and the preparation of the Congressional
Record. These services include keyboarding, proofreading, scanning, and
composition. The Service Center provides the best management of funds
available through the Congressional Printing and Binding Appropriation
because committees have been able to decrease, or eliminate, additional
overtime costs associated with the preparation of hearings.
Document Services
The Document Services Section coordinates requests for printed
legislation and miscellaneous publications with other departments
within the Secretary's Office, Senate committees, and GPO. This section
ensures that the most current version of all material is available, and
that sufficient quantities are available to meet projected demands. The
Congressional Record, a printed record of Senate and House floor
proceedings, Extension of Remarks, Daily Digest and miscellaneous
pages, is one of the many printed documents provided by the office on a
daily basis. In addition to the Congressional Record, the office
processed and distributed 14,902 distinct legislative items during the
109th Congress, including Senate and House bills, resolutions,
committee and conference reports, executive documents, and public laws.
CONGRESSIONAL RECORD STATISTICS
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2004 2005 2006
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Total Pages Printed............................................. 26,885 34,787 24,881
For the Senate.............................................. 12,642 16,393 12,362
For the House............................................... 14,243 18,394 12,519
Total Copies Printed & Distributed.............................. 882,314 1,049,463 780,302
To the Senate............................................... 227,192 295,366 210,084
To the House................................................ 331,165 397,327 326,648
To the Executive Branch and the Public...................... 323,957 356,770 243,570
Total Production Costs.......................................... $17,543,644 $16,014,706 $13,115,660
Senate Costs................................................ $7,961,741 $6,640,823 $5,006,708
House Costs................................................. $9,026,893 $8,933,244 $7,784,653
Other Costs................................................. $555,010 $440,639 $324,299
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Accessing legislative documents through the Web has become
increasingly popular. Before Senate legislation can be posted online,
it must be received in the Senate through the OPDS. Improved database
reports allow the office to report receipt of all legislative bills and
resolutions received in the Senate which can then be made available
online and accessed by other Web sites, such as LIS and Thomas, used by
Congressional staff and the public.
Customer Service
The primary responsibility of the OPDS is to provide services to
the Senate. However, the office also has a responsibility to the
general public, the press, and other government agencies. Requests for
legislative material are received at the walk-in counter, through the
mail, by fax, and electronically. During 2006, online ordering of
legislative documents increased 20 percent over the previous year. The
Legislative Hot List Link, where Members and staff can confirm arrival
of printed copies of the most sought after legislative documents
continued to be popular. The site is updated several times daily each
time new documents arrive from GPO to the Document Room. In addition,
the office handled thousands of phone calls pertaining to the Senate's
official printing, document requests and legislative questions.
Recorded messages, fax, and e-mail operate around the clock and are
processed as they are received, as are mail requests. The office
stresses prompt, courteous customer service while providing accurate
answers to Senate and public requests.
SUMMARY OF ANNUAL CUSTOMER SERVICE STATISTICS
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Congress/ Public FAX On-line Counter
Year session mail request request request
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2003..................................................... 108/1st 1,469 2,596 735 53,040
2004..................................................... 108/2nd 1,137 2,229 564 36,780
2005..................................................... 109/1st 1,369 2,326 1,464 40,105
2006..................................................... 109/2nd 1,048 1,633 1,751 26,640
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
On-Demand Publication
The office produces additional copies of legislation as needed by
producing additional copies in the DocuTech Service Center, staffed by
experienced GPO detailees, that provide Member offices and Senate
committees with on-demand printing and binding of bills and reports.
On-demand publication allows the department to cut the quantities of
documents printed directly from GPO and reduces waste. The DocuTech is
networked with GPO, allowing print files to be sent back and forth
electronically. This allows the OPDS to print necessary legislation for
the Senate floor, and other offices, in the event of a GPO COOP
situation. During 2006, the DocuTech Center produced 683 tasks for a
total of 752,174 printed pages; this represents a 29 percent increase
in the number of jobs over the previous year.
Accomplishments & Future Goals
OPDS developed new database reports on serial set publications for
the Senate Library and inventory tracking of materials housed in the
SSF were developed. Electronic proofing procedures, implemented in
early 2006, were very well received by Senate offices. Proofs of over
three hundred new and revised print jobs were routed electronically for
customer approval improving turn around time and efficiency.
The office's goals include working with GPO on their Future Digital
and Microcomp Replacement Systems to improve efficiency and help answer
the evolving needs of the Senate, as well as developing online ordering
of stationery products for Senate offices. The Office of Printing and
Document Services continues to seek new ways to use technology to
assist Members and staff with added services and improved access to
information.
13. office of public records
The Office of Public Records receives, processes, and maintains
records, reports, and other documents filed with the Secretary of the
Senate involving the Federal Election Campaign Act, as amended; the
Lobbying Disclosure Act of 1995; the Senate Code of Official Conduct:
Rule 34, Public Financial Disclosure; Rule 35, Senate Gift Rule
filings; Rule 40, Registration of Mass Mailing; Rule 41, Political Fund
Designees; and Rule 41(6), Supervisor's Reports on Individuals
Performing Senate Services; and Foreign Travel Reports.
The office provides for the inspection, review, and reproduction of
these documents. From October, 2005, through September, 2006, the
Public Records office staff assisted more than 2,400 individuals
seeking information from reports filed with the office. This figure
does not include assistance provided by telephone, nor help given to
lobbyists attempting to comply with the provisions of the Lobbying
Disclosure Act of 1995 (LDA). A total of 140,000 photocopies were sold
in the period. In addition, the office works closely with the Federal
Election Commission, the Senate Select Committee on Ethics and the
Clerk of the U.S. House of Representatives concerning the filing
requirements of the aforementioned Acts and Senate rules.
Fiscal Year 2006 Accomplishments
The office modified its lobbying e-filing program to allow Adobe
electronic forms generated by the Clerk of the House to be filed with
the Secretary.
Plans for Fiscal Year 2006
The Public Records office intends to upgrade its lobbying e-filing
program to conform with the change to IBM forms made by the Clerk of
the House so that both systems are complementary.
Automation Activities
During fiscal year 2006, the Senate Office of Public Records
developed the capacity to be able to accept Clerk-generated electronic
LDA forms. The office also upgraded its automation of the public
financial disclosure system.
Federal Election Campaign Act, as Amended
The Act requires Senate candidates to file quarterly reports.
Filings totaled 4,364 documents containing 298,639 pages.
Lobbying Disclosure Act of 1995
The Act requires semi-annual financial and lobbying activity
reports. As of September 30, 2006, 6,554 registrants represented 21,468
clients and employed 35,844 individuals who met the statutory
definition of ``lobbyist.'' The total number of individual lobbyists
disclosed on 2006 registrations and reports was 13,595. The total
number of lobbying registrations and reports processed was 46,835.
Public Financial Disclosure
The filing date for Public Financial Disclosure Reports was May 15,
2006. The reports were available to the public and press by Wednesday,
June 14th. Copies were provided to the Select Committee on Ethics and
appropriate State officials. A total of 3,029 reports and amendments
was filed containing 19,419 pages. There were 424 requests to review or
receive copies of the documents.
Senate Rule 35 (Gift Rule)
The Senate Office of Public Records has received 803 reports during
fiscal year 2006.
Registration of Mass Mailing
Senators are required to file mass mailings on a quarterly basis.
The number of pages was 623.
14. senate security
The Office of Senate Security (OSS) was established under the
Secretary of the Senate by Senate Resolution 243 (100th Congress, 1st
Session). The office is responsible for the administration of
classified information programs in Senate offices and committees. In
addition, OSS serves as the Senate's liaison to the Executive Branch in
matters relating to the security of classified information in the
Senate. This report covers the period from January 1, 2006 through
December 31, 2006.
Personnel Security
Five hundred sixty-two Senate employees held one or more security
clearances at the end of 2006. This number does not include clearances
for employees of the Architect of the Capitol nor does it include
clearances for Congressional Fellows assigned to Senate offices. OSS
also processes these clearances.
OSS processed 2,273 personnel security actions, a 3.7 percent
decrease from 2005. One hundred-seven investigations for new security
clearances were initiated last year, and 39 security clearances were
transferred from other agencies. Senate regulations, as well as some
Executive Branch regulations, require that individuals granted Top
Secret security clearances be reinvestigated at least every five years.
Staff holding Secret security clearances are reinvestigated every ten
years. During the past 12 months, reinvestigations were initiated on 81
Senate employees. OSS processed 152 routine terminations of security
clearances during the reporting period and transmitted 364 outgoing
visit requests. The remainder of the personnel security actions
consisted of updating access authorizations and compartments.
Overall, the average time required to process a Senate employee for
a security clearance has decreased from 332 days to 309 days. The
average time for investigations has decreased by 7.4 percent relative
to 2005. This is the first decrease since 2002 when the average time
was 167 days. The increase for 2002 to 2003 was 66.7 percent, 2003 to
2004 was 25.6 percent, and 2004 to 2005 was 27.7 percent. The overall
increase from 2002 to 2006 was 85 percent. The average time for an
initial investigation conducted and adjudicated by DOD is 277 days from
the date that OSS requests the investigation until the letter from DOD
granting the clearance is received in Senate Security. The average time
for DOD initial investigations decreased 9.2 percent. The periodic re-
investigation process averages 335 days, a decrease of 13 percent
relative to 2005. The average time for an initial investigation
conducted by the FBI and adjudicated by DOD is 289 days while the
periodic re-investigation process averages 387 days. The FBI
investigation with DOD adjudication times represents an increase of
12.9 percent and a decrease of 13.4 percent respectively.
One hundred ninety-nine records checks were conducted at the
request of the FBI and Customs and Immigration. One record check was
performed on behalf of Customs and Immigration. The remaining checks
were performed for the FBI. This represents a 16.7 percent decrease in
records checks completed by OSS.
Security Awareness
OSS conducted or hosted 63 security briefings for Senate staff.
Topics included: information security, counterintelligence, foreign
travel, security managers' responsibilities, office security
management, and introductory security briefings. This represents a 5
percent increase from 2005.
Document Control
OSS received or generated 2,488 classified documents consisting of
76,409 pages during calendar year 2006. This is a 10.9 percent decrease
in the number of documents received or generated in 2005. Additionally,
48,276 pages from 2,233 classified documents no longer required for the
conduct of official Senate business were destroyed. This represents a
45.3 percent decrease in destruction from 2005. OSS transferred 906
documents consisting of 23,742 pages to Senate offices or external
agencies, up 29.4 percent from 2005. These figures do not include
classified documents received directly by the Appropriations Committee,
Armed Services Committee, Foreign Relations Committee, and Select
Committee on Intelligence, in accordance with agreements between OSS
and those Committees. Overall, Senate Security completed 5,627 document
transactions and handled over 148,427 pages of classified material in
2006, a decrease of 25.7 percent.
Secure storage of classified material in the OSS vault was provided
for 107 Senators, committees, and support offices. This arrangement
minimizes the number of storage areas throughout the Capitol and Senate
office buildings, thereby affording greater security for classified
material.
Secure Meeting Facilities
OSS secure conference facilities were utilized on 1,173 occasions
by a total of 7,854 people during 2006. Use of OSS conference
facilities increased 27.6 percent over 2005 levels. Eight hundred
thirty-six meetings, briefings, or hearings were conducted in OSS'
three conference rooms. Of those, seven were ``All Senators'' briefings
and five were hearings. OSS also provided to Senators and staff secure
telephones, secure computers, secure facsimile machine, and secure
areas for reading and production of classified material on 337
occasions in 2006.
Projects and Accomplishments
The Office of Senate Security hosted the first annual Technical
Exposition for the Office of the Director of National Intelligence in
April 2006. Classified and unclassified exhibits representing the
technical and scientific accomplishments of the U.S. Intelligence
Community were shown to members of the U.S. Senate and the U.S. House
of Representatives, as well as cleared staff from throughout the
Legislative Branch. OSS personnel provided assistance with security,
site preparation, and escorting during the three months leading up to
the Expo. The office and DNI are planning another Expo in April 2007.
The Office of Senate Security is preparing to move to the Capitol
Visitors Center expansion space when it is ready for occupancy. OSS has
been coordinating with internal offices and other U.S. Government
agencies to ensure the space will be appropriate for the storage,
processing and discussion of classified material. OSS is developing
plans and procedures for use of the new space and for moving the
Senate's classified holdings to the new space in a secure and efficient
manner.
15. stationery room
The mission of the Keeper of the Stationery is to:
--Sell stationery items for use by Senate offices and other
authorized legislative organizations.
--Select a variety of stationery items to meet the needs of the
Senate environment on a day-to-day basis and maintain a
sufficient inventory of these items.
--Purchase supplies utilizing open market procurement, competitive
bid and/or GSA Federal Supply Schedules.
--Maintain individual official stationery expense accounts for
Senators, Committees, and Officers of the Senate.
--Render monthly expense statements.
--Ensure receipt of reimbursements for all purchases by the client
base via direct payments or through the certification process.
--Make payments to all vendors of record for supplies and services in
a timely manner and certify receipt of all supplies and
services.
--Provide delivery of all purchased supplies to the requesting
offices.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Fiscal Year Fiscal Year
2006 2005
Statistics Statistics
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gross Sales............................. $4,945,381 $5,247,163
Sales Transactions...................... 45,471 60,247
Purchase Orders Issued.................. 6,795 8,611
Vouchers Processed...................... 8,313 9,206
Office Deliveries....................... 6,085 NA
Number of Items Delivered............... 156,172 NA
Number of Items Sold.................... 608,104 NA
===============================
Mass Transit Media Sold................. 86,483 75,607
$20.00.............................. 72,388 64,527
$10.00.............................. 4,510 3,923
$5.00............................... 9,585 7,157
===============================
Full Time Employees (FTE)............... 13 13
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Fiscal Year 2006 Highlights and Projects
Flag Purchase Modernization Project
During fiscal year 2005, with the assistance of the Office of the
AOC and the SAA, the Stationery Room began to offer Member offices the
option of purchasing flags which had been flown over the Capitol, but
were not date or occasion specific. Approximately thirty-seven percent
of all flag requests by constituents were only to obtain a flag flown
over the Capitol. If flags could be flown in advance, significant wait
times could be reduced. In addition, the SAA's Printing, Graphics and
Direct Mail Division created artwork for a generic customizable flag
certificate, along with a CD template that could be used in the
customization process should a Member office choose. All flags which
have been pre-flown come with a Certificate of Authenticity signed by
the Architect, certifying each flag has been flown over the United
States Capitol. Over the course of fiscal year 2006, interested Member
offices were incorporated into the pre-flown Flag program. Eighty-six
Member offices participate in the program. This program has been well
received by the Senate community, with positive feedback from all
levels.
Senate Support Facility
Fiscal year 2006 saw the migration and consolidation of the
Stationery Room's multiple storage locations into one central site.
With the transfer of materials from the old facilities in February 2006
to the new SSF, product chain of custody is now maintained. The
Stationery Room is looking at ways to use the facility to its maximum
advantage and envision this as a major distribution outlet for all
products by building a stock replenishment process and improving upon
distributed services.
Product Review Committee
During fiscal year 2006, the Stationery Room developed a means to
garner a better understanding of the needs of the Senate community. The
Stationery Room created a Product Review Committee representing Member
and committee offices to provide opinion, assessment, evaluation and
feedback on products needed by the end users. While the committee is
just underway, it has become an invaluable communication tool.
Computer Modernization
The Stationery Room completed acceptance testing on its new
Microsoft Retail Point of Sale base applications along with the Great
Plains/Business Dynamics accounting system in August 2006. This project
was completed on time and under budget. The initial phase of the
applications being completed, the Stationery Room staff will look to
enhance the base system and take advantage of the various reporting
capabilities. Part of the additional enhancements will include the
feasibility of providing an e-commerce solution to the Senate community
for order processing and fulfillment.
Store Merchandising and Relocation Project
During the last quarter of fiscal year 2006, the Stationery Room
staff initiated a project for the sales area of the store. After
completing a space utilization review of the store facilities, the
Stationery Room concluded that it needed to reduce shelf quantities on
some products, while increasing quantities on others. Shelving was re-
aligned to properly display products in a more convenient customer-
oriented manner with like product groupings given high priority.
16. web technology
The Office of Web Technology is responsible for Web sites that fall
under the purview of the Secretary of the Senate, including: the Senate
Web site, www.senate.gov (except individual Senator and Committee
pages); the Secretary's Web site on Webster; an intranet site currently
used for file-sharing by Secretary staff only; and a LegBranch Web
server housing Web sites and project materials which can be accessed by
staff at other Legislative Branch agencies.
The Senate Web site--http://www. Senate.gov
The United States Senate Web site celebrated its eleven year
anniversary in 2006, as the first U.S. Senate home page on the World
Wide Web was announced October 20, 1995 on the Senate floor. From the
Senate homepage members of the public could easily find the homepages
for their own Senators. As the Web grew, so did the content and mission
of Senate.gov. The pages of information became catalogs and databases,
but the mission to provide the public with accurate and timely
information remained constant. There were more than 70 million visitors
to the Senate Web site in 2006--twenty million more than in 2005.
The Senate Web site content is maintained by over 30 contributors
from 7 departments of the Secretary's Office and 3 departments of the
Sergeant at Arms. Content Team Leaders meet regularly to share ideas
and coordinate the posting of new content.
Major Additions to the Site in 2006
A redesigned graphical interface--Highlights of the redesign are
the ``Find Your Senators'' and site-wide search boxes in the top right
corner of every page. For the first time the Senate Web site has a
site-wide search that uses the Google search features so familiar to
our visitors. The new site received favorable reviews from U.S. News
and Word Report.
A new interactive exhibit on Isaac Bassett--Isaac Bassett served
the Senate from his appointment as a page in 1831 until his death in
1895, when he was assistant doorkeeper. Bassett witnessed some of the
most turbulent and exciting times in the institution's history and he
captured his observations in copious notes which have been donated to
the Senate. An Isaac Bassett interactive exhibit has been created that
allows the visitor to choose an event, via a timeline or subject
listing, and to read a transcript of Bassett's notes about the event.
An image of the handwritten note is also available when viewing the
transcript.
A new interactive exhibit on the Senate Chamber Desks--There are
100 desks on the Senate Floor and each one has a history. The content
relative to each desk includes a textual description, list of former
occupants, digitized images of the desk and the carvings (Senators
carve their names in their desks when they leave the Senate), and notes
on the desk's condition and restoration. A Web-based interactive
presentation has been created to display this rich information about
the Senate desks.
Cloture and veto tables for the Library.
The Fine Arts Catalogue on the Web--images and text from the
Catalogue have been published on the Senate site.
Senator Bob Dole's portrait unveiling--the video and transcript of
the portrait unveiling event are posted for viewing.
Homepage feature articles published on the following topics: the
10th anniversary of the Senate Web site and the launching of the new
Web site design; the Congressional Biographical Directory Online; the
launching of the Senate Chamber Desks site; We the People: Celebrating
the American Constitution; and the publication of the United States
Catalogue of Graphic Arts.
A multimedia exhibit on the drawings of Lily Spandorf--During the
1962 Washington filming of the movie ``Advise and Consent'', freelance
artist Lily Spandorf was sent by the Washington Star to make a few pen
and ink illustrations of the production. Ms. Spandorf created a total
of 68 pen and ink and two gauche (watercolor) drawings, all of which
are now in the U.S. Senate Collection. A Flash multimedia presentation
of Spandorf's work has been created for the Web site, associating her
drawings with movie clips from the specific scene the drawing depicts.
Planned Additions to the Site in 2007
A reorganized Art section--with the addition of the Fine Arts and
Graphic Arts images the Art section of the site has grown considerably
and needs to be indexed.
A project to better organize content on www.senate.gov. The Web
team is reviewing items for possible reorganization of information on
the site.
Accomplishments of the Office of Web Technology in 2006
Upgraded Documentum CMS to 5.25 from 4.3. Encountered error which
was determined to be a software bug by Documentum who advised upgrading
to 5.3. Developed Statement of Work, requested proposals and contracted
with RWD Technologies to review current upgrade status and assist with
upgrade to version 5.3.
Helped develop requirements for a taxonomy being built by Senate
Librarians to organize information about Senators.
The Web Content Assistant analyzed Google search terms each month
and identified the need for additional Virtual Reference Desk (VRD)
subject terms. New VRD pages were built. The VRD serves as an index to
the site.
Created production standards for the VRD. The standards include how
the index will appear (in this case it is subject oriented) and what
types of links to include.
Established a system for assigning Google Keywords by analyzing the
most common words people type in the search box each month, determining
the items on the site that are most relevant to their search, and
providing links to those items on the site.
Designed the layout for the Spandorf exhibit. Organized all
pictures, loaded them into CMS, and edited accompanying text.
The Web Content Assistant audited the Senate.gov Web pages
regularly, updating and correcting links; verifying content; and
reviewing individual page designs throughout Senate.gov.
The Assistant Webmaster worked with the SAA to develop and
implement a solution for all Senate offices to use the Google search
feature on their own Websites, based on the same techniques developed
for Senate.gov, including allowing Senate offices to order their search
results by date, instead of just relevance.
Developed and implemented an XML-based solution for the Stationery
room to export catalog data from their internal system and have it
displayed on their Web site on Webster. Provided documentation and
training for the office to continue to update the information
themselves.
Established and refined workflow and approval procedures for
various postings including the feature article postings.
Created documentation on how to use the CMS to post PDFs, new
portraits, tables, feature bios, feature articles, and how to update
current postings. Documented all the changes that need to occur to the
site at the change of a Congress.
The Web Content Assistant worked with the all the content providers
to expand the style guide. This included how footnotes should appear on
the Web as well as the standards for Senators' names and the creation
of tables.
The Assistant Webmaster developed increasingly complex tables that
are shared across several Web sites (www.senate.gov, the Webster/Senate
Library site, and www.congress.gov) to deliver the most relevant
information to the intended audiences. The Xtags application was
implemented on the new version of Webster to maintain previously
developed projects.
Teamed with CRS to organize monthly meetings of the LegBranch
Webmasters Group. Hosted the meeting on Web 2.0. Recruited speakers
from Democratic Policy Committee and Republican Policy Committee who
spoke about the use of Podcasts, RSS, WML, wireless communications, and
other Web 2.0 features by their respective constituencies.
Senate.gov Usage Statistics
In 2006 over 6 million visitors a month accessed the Senate Web
site. Twenty-eight percent of them entered through the main Senate home
page while the majority came to the site via a bookmarked page or to a
specific page from a search engine. Statistics on individual page
activity show increases in many areas of the main Senate site.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
2005-2006
Title of Web Page 2005 Visits/ 2006 Visits/ Percent
Month Month Increase
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Entire Site...................... 4,512,000 6,081,000 35
Senate Home Page................. 1,388,500 1,685,000 21
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Reviewing statistics on web page usage help the content providers
better understand what information the public is seeking and how best
to improve the presentation of that data. Visitors are consistently
drawn to the following content items, listed in order of popularity.
MOST VISITED PAGES IN 2006
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2005 Visits/ 2006 Visits/
Top Pages Month Month Percent Change
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Roll Call Votes................................................. 38,504 63,099 +64
Active Legislation.............................................. 22,582 30,053 +33
Senate Leadership............................................... 21,371 19,278 -10
Bills & Resolutions............................................. 15,513 18,155 +17
Committee Hearings Scheduled.................................... 19,019 15,901 -16
Calendars & Schedules........................................... 13,077 15,574 +19
2005 Schedule................................................... 14,477 13,033 -10
Senate Organization Chart....................................... 13,203 12,438 -6
Nominations..................................................... 14,241 11,815 -17
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
PAGES WITH LARGEST PERCENT INCREASES IN VIEWERS
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2005 Visits/ 2006 Visits/
2005 Top Pages Month Month Percent Change
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Statistics & Lists.............................................. 9,334 15,981 +71
Virtual Reference Desk.......................................... 8,285 13,568 +64
Roll Call Votes................................................. 38,504 63,099 +64
State Information............................................... 11,414 15,988 +40
Active Legislation.............................................. 22,582 30,053 +33
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Visitors are interested in legislative matters with Roll Call Vote
Tallies, the Active Legislation table, and the Bill and Resolutions
section being particularly popular.
Based on their popularity in 2005, links to Statistics and Lists
and the VRD were added to the home page when the site was redesigned in
2006, further increasing their popularity by 71 percent and 64 percent
respectively.
Webster--http://webster/secretary
About 2,300 visitors a month access the Secretary's Web site on
Webster, the Senate Intranet, and statistics continue to show that the
vast majority of visitors (87 percent) go directly to the Disbursing
office section. This section contains information on Employee Benefits
(insurance, retirement, payroll, etc.) and provides access to the many
forms employees need to obtain or modify these benefits. Other popular
items include the Senate Library Web site, the Stationery Room
Catalogue, Office of Printing and Document Services Document Order and
Print Order Forms, and the Web page that lists all Secretary of the
Senate services.
legislative information system (lis) project
The LIS is a mandated system (Section 8 of the 1997 Legislative
Branch Appropriations Act, 2 U.S.C. 123e) that provides desktop access
to the content and status of legislative information and supporting
documents. The 1997 Legislative Branch Appropriations Act (2 U.S.C.
181) also established a program for providing the widest possible
exchange of information among legislative branch agencies. The long-
range goal of the LIS Project is to provide a ``comprehensive Senate
Legislative Information System'' to capture, store, manage, and
distribute Senate documents. Several components of the LIS have been
implemented, and the project is currently focused on a Senate-wide
implementation and transition to a standard system for the authoring
and exchange of legislative documents that will greatly enhance the
availability and re-use of legislative documents within the Senate and
with other legislative branch agencies. The LIS Project office manages
the project.
Background: LISAP
An April 1997 joint Senate and House report recommended
establishment of a data standards program, and in December 2000, the
Senate Committee on Rules and Administration and the Committee on House
Administration jointly accepted the Extensible Markup Language (XML) as
the primary data standard to be used for the exchange of legislative
documents and information.
Following the implementation of the LIS in January 2000, the LIS
Project Office shifted its focus to the data standards program and
established the LIS Augmentation Project (LISAP). The over-arching goal
of the LISAP is to provide a Senate-wide implementation and transition
to XML for the authoring and exchange of legislative documents.
The current focus for the LISAP is the development and
implementation of an XML authoring system for legislative documents
produced by the Office of the Senate Legislative Counsel (SLC) and the
Office of the Enrolling Clerk. The XML authoring application is called
LEXA, an acronym for the Legislative Editing in XML Application. LEXA
replaces the DOS-based XyWrite software used by drafters to embed
locator codes into legislative documents for printing. The XML codes
inserted by LEXA provide more information about the document and can be
used for printing, searching and displaying a document. LEXA features
many automated functions that provide a more efficient and consistent
document authoring process. The LIS Project Office has worked very
closely with the SLC and the Enrolling Clerk to create an application
that meets the needs for legislative drafting.
LISAP: 2006
Throughout 2006 additional features and fixes were added to LEXA,
enabling the SLC to use the application for more and more of their
drafting requests. Ninety-five percent of introduced bills produced in
the SLC were drafted in XML. Some of the new functionality added to
LEXA in the last year included the following:
--Ability to create and print several additional styles.
--A one-click feature to reintroduce one type of document as another
type of document, for example, taking the language from a bill
and creating an amendment.
--Ability to specify and print all document stages.
--A feature to enter a prescribed 3- or 4-letter abbreviation into a
document and have it resolve to a long name or phrase.
--Ability to create amendments to appropriations bills.
--Ability to create motions.
LEXA developers also worked with the Office of the Enrolling Clerk
to add engrossing and enrolling features and to provide for the exact
formatting and printing requirements for documents created by that
office. Several hours of training were provided to the staff, and the
Enrolling Clerks began working in LEXA at the beginning of the 110th
Congress. With the addition of the documents produced by the Office of
the Enrolling Clerk, all stages of a measure can be produced in XML.
Support for LEXA users remains an important priority. The LIS
Project office provides support for LEXA via the LEXA HelpLine and LEXA
Web site. The HelpLine is provided through a single phone number that
rings on all the phones in the office, and the Web site is located on a
server accessible by the legislative branch. The Web site, http://
legbranch.senate.gov/lis/lexa, is used to distribute updates of the
application to GPO and provides access to release notes, the reference
manual, and other user aids. The 2004 Legislative Branch Appropriations
Act directed GPO to provide support for LEXA much as the office has for
XyWrite. GPO continues to work toward augmenting the support provided
by the LIS Project Office. Senate staff members in the LIS Project
Office do development and provide support for LEXA.
GPO maintains the software module that converts a Senate XML
document to locator for printing through Microcomp, and in 2006, the
module was expanded to also print House XML documents. GPO is also
nearing completion of a tool to create and print tables. This software
will be used by both the House and Senate, providing another module
that is common to both applications. The House and Senate software
development groups continue to work closely with GPO and the Library of
Congress to reach agreement on technical authoring issues and
standards, thereby eliminating the need for additional processing when
documents are exchanged.
The LEXA Reference Manual was updated by the LIS office in early
2006, and a 2007 update is underway. The manual provides screen shots
and step-by-step instructions for all LEXA features. The Office also
trained new SLC staff and the Enrolling Clerks on LEXA and provided
several demonstrations on new LEXA features throughout the year.
The LIS Project Office, the SLC, and the SAA's Systems Development
Services group have worked together for the past several years to
implement a document management system (DMS) in the SLC. One obstacle
has been the need for the SLC to continue to use XyWrite for certain
documents. XyWrite is DOS-based software that does not work well in a
Windows or database environment. In 2006, the team identified and
purchased DMS software that will work with both LEXA and XyWrite
documents. The Systems Development Services group is working with the
SLC systems integrator to implement the software, and the LIS Project
office will assist in the integration with LEXA. The DMS will provide a
powerful tracking, management, and delivery tool for the SLC.
LISAP: 2007
The LIS Project office will continue to work with the House, GPO,
and the Library of Congress on projects and issues that impact the
legislative process and data standards for exchange. These groups are
currently participating in two projects with GPO--one to define
requirements for replacing the Microcomp composition software and
another to improve the content submission and exchange processes.
The Office of the Enrolling Clerk will use LEXA to produce
engrossed and enrolled bills in XML. The LIS Project office will
continue to work with the SLC and the Office of the Enrolling Clerk to
refine and enhance LEXA so that more and more of the documents produced
by those offices will be done in XML. Once all of the documents can be
produced in XML using LEXA, those offices will be able to stop using
XyWrite. Since XyWrite is not compatible with other Windows software,
moving away from it will allow the offices to use more modern
technologies for all functions. Other Senate offices that do drafting
with XyWrite may begin using LEXA, including the Committee on
Appropriations.
The legislative process yields other types of documents such as the
Senate and Executive Journals and the Legislative and Executive
Calendars. Much of the data and information included in these documents
is already captured in and distributed through the LIS/DMS database
used by the clerks in the Office of the Secretary. The LIS/DMS captures
data that relates to legislation including bill and resolution numbers,
amendment numbers, sponsors, co-sponsors, and committees of referral.
This information is currently entered into the database and verified by
the clerks and then keyed into the respective documents and re-verified
at GPO before printing. An interface between this database and the
electronic documents could mutually exchange data. For example, the
LIS/DMS database could insert the bill number, additional co-sponsors,
and committee of referral into an introduced bill while the bill draft
document could supply the official and short titles of the bill to the
database.
The Congressional Record, like the Journals and Calendars, includes
data that is contained in and reported by the LIS/DMS database.
Preliminary DTDs have been designed for these documents, and
applications could be built to construct XML document components by
extracting and tagging the LIS/DMS data. These applications would
provide a faster, more consistent assembly of these documents and would
enhance the ability to index and search their contents. The LIS Project
office will coordinate with the Systems Development Services Branch of
the Office of the Sergeant at Arms to begin design and development of
XML applications and interfaces for the LIS/DMS and legislative
documents. As more and more legislative data and documents are provided
in XML formats that use common elements across all document types, the
Library of Congress will be able to expand the LIS Retrieval System to
provide more content-specific searches.
Senator Landrieu. Thank you very much. And, I do have a few
questions. And, what we're going to try to do is to finish this
portion of the hearing in about 10 or 15 minutes, and then go
on to the Library of Congress. We may have votes called, but
we're going to try to complete the hearing before 11 o'clock,
if we can.
PRIMARY GOALS
Let me ask you, Madam Secretary, what are your three
primary goals in your tenure? I'm sure you've had some time now
to think about the three things that you would like to
accomplish as your personal goals, on what you can leave, or
contribute during your time. Just list them for the
subcommittee if you would.
Ms. Erickson. First of all, I'd like to build on the strong
leadership of my predecessor, Emily Reynolds. But three things
that immediately come to mind, I want to continue to push more
information to the web, as I mentioned in my statement. I'd
like our Stationery Room to offer e-commerce options to Senate
offices. I think that Senate office administrators could find
that it would be beneficial to them to be able to purchase
office supplies online from our Stationery Room.
In addition, I'd like to revamp our Secretary's website to
push more information onto Webster to make it easier for the
Senate community to access and understand the services that we
provide.
Second of all, my predecessor spent a great deal of time
working on continuity of operations planning. And, that's
something that I want to build on, not only continuity of
operations planning, but continuity of Government planning. I
hope we never become complacent in our preparations, and that
we will always be ready in a minute's notice to support the
Chamber under any circumstance.
It also relates to our Senate Disbursing Office. We
practice at least once a year with the Sergeant at Arms from a
remote location, making sure that we can process our payroll
and vouchers for Senate offices. And, that's something that I'd
really like to step up, to do more than once a year.
And my third goal is to implement the paperless voucher
system, another program that I think would be extremely popular
for office administrators. My understanding is that the project
is at a critical stage. We're working with our oversight
committee, the Rules and Administration Committee, to work out
issues related to electronic signatures.
Those are my three goals.
Senator Landrieu. Well, let me encourage you along all
three goals that you've outlined, and particularly the second
one. Having gone through, of course the recent and still very
harsh experience of Hurricane Katrina, having to watch
governments, to maintain their integrity in very desperate
circumstances, and having had the experience of 9/11. It is a
very, very important aspect of your work, to be able to
maintain the functions of this Senate under any and all
circumstances. And, I would imagine that the bulk of that work
falls on your shoulders, the responsibility along with, of
course, whatever, the military and the Capitol Police could
bring to bear to that situation. So, I want to thank you.
SENATE EMPLOYMENT STUDY
Let me ask just about the Senate employment study. Are you
in the process of such a study? Our employees are working long
hours and weekends. Have we completed our pay study, which was
authorized by this subcommittee? Can you give us some detail
about the outcome of that study?
Ms. Erickson. I'd be happy to do so.
Your subcommittee appropriated, I believe, $80,000 for the
Office of the Secretary to complete a pay study. We
competitively bid the project to a contractor who conducted a
survey. It's my understanding 81 Senate offices participated in
the payroll survey. They were asked such questions related to
not only the rate of pay for employees and their benefits, but
also to the organizational structure of their respective
office.
The results were compiled, analyzed, and a report was
distributed to every Member office, and committee in June of
last year. This past January, we provided a follow-up report to
Senate offices that provided a comparison of Senate and House
salaries. It was warmly received by the Senate community,
particularly the offices of new Members who were in the process
of hiring staff. And, I'd be happy to provide you with a
written copy of the report if you'd like additional details of
the study.
[The information follows:]
SALARY COMPARISON FOR SIMILAR POSITIONS IN THE U.S. SENATE AND THE U.S. HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Number of 25th 50th 75th
Position Chamber Positions Minimum Average Maximum Percentile Percentile Percentile
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Chief of Staff......................... Senate.............. 84 $114,000 $151,767 $160,659 $147,000 $157,150 $160,659
Chief of Staff......................... House............... 125 $87,000 $129,736 $160,000 $116,000 $130,000 $148,500
Legislative Director................... Senate.............. 77 $85,000 $116,952 $160,659 $102,186 $120,000 $127,830
Legislative Director................... House............... 100 $42,000 $76,490 $120,000 $67,000 $77,750 $85,000
Counsel................................ Senate.............. 61 $42,000 $95,210 $155,000 $75,500 $95,000 $110,865
Counsel................................ House............... 7 $62,400 $83,771 $130,000 $65,000 $80,000 $89,000
Director of Special Projects and/or Senate.............. 51 $24,000 $52,995 $103,000 $37,324 $49,825 $65,000
Grants.
Grants and Projects Coordinator........ House............... 18 $22,000 $48,949 $67,000 $37,250 $54,500 $60,837
Legislative Assistant.................. Senate.............. 406 $34,000 $66,789 $150,000 $52,000 $65,000 $77,580
Legislative Aide....................... House............... 164 $28,000 $43,433 $76,500 $36,000 $41,000 $50,000
Legislative Correspondent.............. Senate.............. 348 $20,000 $32,802 $75,000 $29,000 $32,000 $36,000
Legislative Correspondent.............. House............... 71 $25,000 $31,807 $43,000 $29,000 $31,000 $34,000
Communications Director................ Senate.............. 69 $52,000 $95,050 $160,659 $82,752 $94,620 $104,500
Press Secretary/Communications Director House............... 87 $32,000 $58,756 $125,000 $45,000 $55,000 $68,250
\1\.
Press Secretary........................ Senate.............. 80 $40,000 $66,027 $110,784 $54,000 $63,000 $76,169
Press Secretary/Communications Director House............... 87 $32,000 $58,756 $125,000 $45,000 $55,000 $68,250
\1\.
Executive Assistant.................... Senate.............. 58 $29,000 $68,060 $121,000 $50,259 $68,750 $81,625
Executive Assistant.................... House............... 30 $15,000 $51,257 $107,000 $39,000 $48,750 $63,875
Scheduler (Washington, D.C.)........... Senate.............. 74 $28,500 $63,634 $128,000 $50,000 $59,698 $75,000
Scheduler (Washington, D.C.)........... House............... 46 $24,000 $48,394 $99,000 $37,875 $46,350 $55,625
Systems Administrator.................. Senate.............. 77 $24,000 $60,955 $105,000 $50,000 $60,000 $75,420
Systems Administrator.................. House............... 11 $20,000 $39,898 $62,000 $31,000 $40,000 $45,500
Administrative Director/Office Manager. Senate.............. 68 $31,500 $78,266 $149,700 $67,006 $78,000 $89,500
Office Manager......................... House............... 39 $21,000 $52,922 $107,200 $36,000 $50,000 $64,000
Receptionist/Staff Assistant \2\....... Senate.............. 325 $10,712 $29,664 $72,000 $25,860 $28,000 $31,027
Staff Assistant (Washington, D.C.)..... House............... 86 $18,000 $29,872 $71,000 $25,000 $28,000 $30,000
Staff Assistant (District)............. House............... 77 $16,006 $30,883 $79,966 $25,000 $28,500 $33,000
Constituent Services Representative/ Senate.............. 398 $21,000 $38,631 $84,821 $31,000 $36,204 $44,092
Caseworker.
Constituent Services Representative/ House............... 231 $13,500 $40,814 $115,000 $31,000 $40,000 $46,500
Caseworker.
State Director......................... Senate.............. 75 $60,000 $104,748 $160,659 $90,000 $103,500 $116,248
District Director...................... House............... 72 $39,200 $78,526 $150,000 $63,000 $77,841 $91,000
Field Representative................... Senate.............. 340 $19,000 $50,742 $104,000 $41,000 $49,100 $60,000
Field Representative................... House............... 100 $25,000 $46,508 $75,000 $37,125 $45,000 $55,000
State Scheduler........................ Senate.............. 48 $28,500 $49,886 $89,000 $38,000 $46,500 $61,217
District Scheduler..................... House............... 34 $28,000 $46,366 $80,000 $33,000 $43,500 $61,065
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
\1\ The House study did not distinguish between Communications Director and Press Secretary. House data for these positions reflect the combined Press
Secretary/Communications Director position.
\2\ The Senate study did not distinguish between Staff Assistants in Washington, D.C. and State offices, while the House study did make this
distinction.
81 offices participated in the Senate study and 141 offices participated in the House study.
Sources:
2006 U.S. Senate Employment, Compensation, Hiring and Benefits Study, Office of the Secretary of the Senate (June 28, 2006).
2006 House Compensation Study: Guide for the 110th Congress, Chief Administrative Office, U.S. House of Representatives (November 13, 2006).
The 2006 U.S. Senate Employment, Compensation, Hiring and
Benefits Study--June 28, 2006 is available on the web at:
http://webster.senate.gov/library/catalogs/PDF/
senate_compensation_report_FINAL_7-26-06.pdf
Senator Landrieu. Okay, I would. And we won't go into the
details now, but I'm going to review it to see what we can do
to make sure that our workforce remains competitive.
STUDENT LOAN REIMBURSEMENT PROGRAM
And, one other question, then I'll turn it over, the
student loan reimbursement program is something that's just
recently come to my attention. I understand that there's a
program that works in a way that allows staffers--I'm not sure
if it's just for Members' offices, or for anyone in the
Senate--to see a reduction in student loans to help some of the
young, I would imagine, younger employees coming in. Can you
give me an update about that program and if it's based on need?
Or is it distributed equally to the States based on population,
or just request?
Ms. Erickson. It's a program run through our Senate
Disbursing Office, and I believe the funding is based on 2
percent of the administrative and clerical portion of the
Member's account, 2 percent of the account of all others. I'd
be happy to have Chris Doby follow-up with you on details of
that. It's my understanding that 96 percent of our 140 Senate
accounting locations, which includes Senate offices,
committees, Secretary of the Senate, and Sergeant at Arms
offices participate in the program. We have approximately 1,100
employees that are participating in the program. In
conversations that I've had with Senate office administrators,
they tell me that it's been an important tool for not only
attracting staff, but also retaining staff in their offices.
Senator Landrieu. Thank you.
Senator Allard.
Senator Allard. Again, Nancy, I'd like to congratulate you
on your position.
Coming to the office, what do you view, at this point, your
greatest challenges to be?
Ms. Erickson. I would say maintaining a high level of
customer service. And, I would say, speaking from someone who
worked in a Senate office for 16 years and 2 years in a
Sergeant at Arms office, I think it's easy to take for granted
the services that Secretary of the Senate, and for that matter,
the Sergeant at Arms provides. And the staff, for the most
part, works quietly behind the scenes, but their work is
critical, for, in----
Senator Allard. Is there any particular area you can think
of that we need to work on?
Ms. Erickson. Not an area, I don't see any glaring
problems, Senator. I think our biggest challenge is just
maintaining and meeting the high demands that the Senate
community should justifiably expect from us.
Senator Allard. I think technology changes would be the
challenge.
Ms. Erickson. Right. And continuing to move information, as
I said, that's one of my priorities, to move more and more
information to the web.
WEBSTER
Senator Allard. Now, Webster, that's the intranet. Is that
completely blocked off from the Internet or do people outside
the Senate have access to Webster?
Ms. Erickson. Yes, Webster is an internal site.
Senator Allard. So it's completely walled off?
Ms. Erickson. Right.
Senator Allard. Okay.
MERIT INCREASES
You mentioned in your testimony, you wanted some funding
for merit increases. How do you go about determining whether
somebody qualifies for a merit increase? Do you have a set
protocol that you use?
Ms. Erickson. We do. Our human resource director oversees
that merit program and works closely with our department
directors. There are rigorous goals that people have to meet in
order to be eligible for a merit increase. But, it's something
that we like to have to reward people who, in our opinion, have
gone above and beyond what is expected of them to help the
Senate community.
Senator Allard. Are you having to use merit increases to
get qualified people into the job? Do you see what I'm saying?
The standard base pay may not be quite enough----
Ms. Erickson. Right.
Senator Allard [continuing]. So they say, ``Well, you're
here 6 months, we'll be able to provide some substantial merit-
based ----''
Ms. Erickson. Exactly. Well, it is an important recruiting
tool, and an incentive for people that know that that may be
available if they exceed expectations. So, it has been an
important tool to not only attract, but to retain talented
staff who have many options--particularly, Senator, people in
the technology field which is very competitive in the private
sector, and so that's been an important tool for us to keep
quality people.
Senator Allard. When you use the merit system, do you use
more than just longevity as the standard?
Ms. Erickson. Correct, exactly.
Senator Allard. Okay, and how often are you having to use
the merit pay? Do most employees qualify, or 10 percent, or 20
percent?
Ms. Erickson. I don't have that data with me, Senator. I'd
be happy to provide that to you in writing.
Senator Allard. I think that would be of interest.
Ms. Erickson. I'd be happy to do that.
Senator Allard. Okay, very good.
[The information follows:]
United States Senate,
Office of the Secretary,
Washington, DC, May 23, 2007.
The Honorable Wayne Allard,
Ranking Member, Appropriations Subcommittee on the Legislative Branch,
United States Senate, Washington, D.C. 20510.
Dear Senator Allard: Thank you for the courtesies you extended to
me during my testimony before your Subcommittee earlier this month. I
appreciated the opportunity to discuss the work of the Secretary's
office and our plans for the upcoming year. You had requested
additional information regarding the merit program employed by the
Office of the Secretary, and I hope the information provided below
adequately addresses any questions you may have.
In September 1997, the office developed and implemented an Employee
Feedback and Development Plan (EFDP), which is a formal merit review
program. Each staff member is provided annually with specific
performance objectives on which their performance will be evaluated
throughout the year. Staff members are evaluated on factors such as
quality of work, initiative, resourcefulness, dependability,
reliability, and communication skills. In addition, managers are
evaluated on their leadership skills, decision making, and ability to
plan, schedule and budget the needs of their departments. To facilitate
communication between managers and their staff, managers are encouraged
to meet with each staff member quarterly to discuss progress, specific
projects and any issues that may impede the employee's progress
throughout the year.
Our Human Resources Office administers the program and works
closely with me and my executive staff to determine our annual merit
budget, which usually ranges from three to five percent of our overall
salary budget. All staff are evaluated in September each year with the
potential for a performance-based merit increase awarded in October.
Increases range from zero to the maximum percent the Secretary
approves, and they are based on the employee's performance as
documented in the EFDP by the employee's manager.
As is the case with other employee-centered programs offered by the
Office and the Secretary the goal of the EFDP is to develop, motivate
and retain the highest caliber professional staff to serve the needs of
the Senate.
I will be happy to provide you with any other information you may
need about this merit review program.
Nancy Erickson,
Secretary of the Senate.
CROSSTRAINING
Senator Allard. I was pleased to see you worked on
crosstraining. I think that's efficient--somebody's absent,
have somebody else step in and carry on their responsibilities.
So, I want to compliment you on focusing on crosstraining.
Ms. Erickson. I appreciate that.
Senator Allard. You obviously want to have your experts in
various areas, but if for some reason or other they can't make
it to work, you have people who can fill in.
Ms. Erickson. Exactly. And, you'll notice that at the
rostrum in the Senate Chamber, the faces change periodically
for that very purpose, to make sure that people understand, can
step in and do someone else's duty.
Senator Allard. Very good.
Thank you, Madam Chairman.
Senator Landrieu. Thank you. That finalizes the questions
that I have. I just want to state for the record that I'd like
to focus some of my attention, Madam Secretary, on the quality
of the Capitol tours, and talk with you about that, and about
the access to Senate recordings through web-based technologies.
And, I want to continue to pursue that. To make sure that our
pay and payroll are adequately supporting a first-class
professional staff for the Senate. Your plans in terms of
disaster preparedness and emergency preparedness are extremely,
extremely important.
And, then as we open this new Capitol Visitor Center, as I
said before, despite all the problems that we've had which have
been well publicized, it really is an extraordinary space, that
I think is going to be a great gift to the American people.
And, we want to make sure that the statues and artwork
reflect the true contributions of all Americans, even those who
contributed a great deal in the early part of our country,
women and minority Americans that weren't, by virtue of their
sex or gender, even able to run for an office here. But, they
nonetheless, contributed greatly to the work of this Capitol
and what this Capitol represents. So, I'm looking forward to
working with you and others.
And, if that is--Senator Allard, do you have anything else?
Senator Allard. I don't.
Senator Landrieu. Okay. Thank you very much.
Ms. Erickson. Thank you very much.
LIBRARY OF CONGRESS
STATEMENT OF DR. JAMES H. BILLINGTON, LIBRARIAN OF
CONGRESS
ACCOMPANIED BY JO ANN JENKINS, CHIEF OPERATING OFFICER
STATEMENT OF SENATOR MARY L. LANDRIEU
Senator Landrieu. Dr. Billington, if you will come forward.
Thank you Dr. Billington, and welcome. We are very pleased
to have you here this morning and recognize your 20th year as
the Librarian of Congress. Your budget request is $652 million,
which is an increase, roughly, of about $100 million, or 19
percent, above the current year. Your request includes $45
million for the construction of a new logistics facility at
Fort Meade. Of course you know, the Architect of the Capitol
(AOC) did not include this among his many priorities, so we
want to hear some testimony from you about why you believe this
is a high priority.
There are several other large items in your request, such
as $21 million to restore funding for the National Digital
Information Infrastructure Preservation Program and $19 million
for the first of four installments of the Digital Talking Book
Program, which I know has support from members of the visually
impaired community throughout the country. This is a very
important, significant investment in the future of audio book
programs. We want to make sure we use our resources wisely, and
take advantage of the absolute best technology available.
As I've said in previous hearings, and it bears repeating
today, I think the subcommittee is going to really struggle
with reaching some of these requests. And, I don't want to
mislead you in any way, however, we do want to give you an
opportunity, obviously, to state your best case and to ask you
questions about it. And, please don't interpret that these
comments in any way indicate that this Chair doesn't support
the great work that you do. But we have budget constraints that
we're under and we just need to really focus on some of these
extra requests.
Senator Allard.
Senator Allard. I don't have any comment. I'd like to hear
Dr. Billington's testimony.
Senator Landrieu. Thank you.
Dr. Billington.
OPENING STATEMENT OF THE LIBRARIAN
Dr. Billington. We have a fuller submission for the record,
but I appreciate the opportunity to present briefly the Library
of Congress' 2008 budget request, and to thank the Congress for
creating and sustaining the largest and most wide-ranging
collection of knowledge in human history, a great record of
American creativity and a distinct world leadership role for
education on the Internet.
The Library's request includes four critical priorities.
The first--and the largest part of our increase, nearly one-
half--is simply to sustain current services by funding
mandatory pay raises and unavoidable price level increases.
We're currently doing a very great deal more work than 15
years ago, before we began superimposing the digital on the
analog universe, but with 640 fewer full-time employees. If
mandated pay raises are not fully funded, we will almost
certainly have to cut back on some services.
LOGISTICS CENTER AT FORT MEADE
Because of the life, safety, and environmental conditions
of our present Landover center, we are forced, once again, to
request funding for a logistics center at Fort Meade--but at a
reduced level, that is $12.2 million less than was submitted
through the Architect of the Capitol's budget last year.
DIGITAL TALKING BOOKS
There's a special importance to the next two priorities,
which are key elements in the digital transformation of the
Library. After 10 years of planning and research, we must
launch, this year, our 4-year initiative to modernize access to
reading for the blind and physically handicapped.
Blind people read, on average, 35 books a year--many more
than sighted people. They depend heavily on the Library of
Congress' unique collection, particularly of talking books,
which is equivalent in size to a mid-sized public library. And
it is made available free of charge through local libraries all
over America. But it needs long-discussed, new digital players
that can replace cassette-type players which are nearing
obsolescence, and also a new mechanism for distribution--flash
memory cartridges.
ACQUISITIONS
Finally, there is an urgent need to shore up the first and
most basic need of any library, which is acquisitions. This is
particularly true for the National Library, which is--in many
ways--the strategic information reserve of the United States.
It's a treasure chest of material not preserved anywhere else,
at a time when more and more of our economic competitiveness,
our basic security, and our civic health depend on accurate
information.
We need a $2 million increase in our basic book budget,
which has been steadily eroded in purchasing power.
NATIONAL DIGITAL INFORMATION INFRASTRUCTURE AND PRESERVATION PROGRAM
RESCISSION
We must have the minimal funds needed to sustain our
congressionally mandated role of leading a national program by
forming a network of private and public partners to set
national standards for preserving the exploding world of
material available only in highly perishable digital form, and
begin sorting out and preserving what's most important.
Congress was farsighted in the year 2000, appropriating
$100 million in no-year funding to create the National Digital
Information Infrastructure and Preservation Program, known as
NDIIPP, and requiring that $75 million of the Federal
appropriation be matched by partners. The NDIIPP Program is the
most sweeping strategic change that this Library has undertaken
in its entire 207-year history. For the first time ever, we are
transforming the way we collect and preserve content, and
sharing stewardship responsibility and cost with trusted
partners. Without significant restoration of the funds that
were rescinded this year, we will be unable to continue to
build the network at a time when networks are the way of
working for the future. If we let this initiative end now, we
will not be able to resurrect it later.
Forty-seven million dollars--nearly one-half of the
original $100 million appropriation--was rescinded, and an
additional $37 million was lost in matching funds promised from
more than 50 network partners. Faced with the prospect of the
$84 million overall loss for this program, we have carefully
scrubbed our request for restoration down to the bare essential
of $21.5 million.
The loss of the NDIIPP funds would have long-term
consequences for the Library's ability to preserve materials of
importance for our economy and security, as well as the record
of our culture, which is increasingly recorded now, only in
digital form.
We need this program to serve the growing information needs
of the Congress, and to keep us from drifting toward a slippery
slope, in which the Library would become just a museum of the
book on Capitol Hill, rather than the backbone of a dynamic
network for preserving and making useful for our Nation, new
digital as well as traditional analog material.
WORKING WITH PARTNERS
Louisiana has been a major focus of NDIIPP partners who
have worked with archivists and librarians across the country
to identify hundreds of websites documenting aspects of the
Katrina tragedy. These websites, as preserved, will give us all
information needed to better understand this tragedy, and to
improve our country's response to future natural disasters.
In emergencies such as Katrina, we provided information to
Congress and salvage training in the affected region. This very
week, when we heard that the Georgetown branch of the D.C.
Public Library was ablaze, our preservation staff responded
immediately, helping locate freezers in which to store books
until they can be treated, providing guidance on next steps to
save the collections.
PREPARED STATEMENTS
We deeply appreciate, Madam Chairman, the support that
Congress has given the Library over the years--for preserving
and making accessible our massive written and printed
collections, as well as our unequaled audiovisual collections,
which are now acquiring their permanent preservation center
with the capacity to store 25 years' more accumulation at
nearby Culpeper, Virginia, thanks to funding from the Packard
Humanities Institute, the largest private donation, by far,
ever made to the Library of Congress. We need to do the same
for digital material together with our private and public
network of partners.
I'm prepared to answer your questions.
Senator Landrieu. Thank you, Dr. Billington.
[The statements follow:]
Prepared Statement of James H. Billington
Madam Chairwoman, Senator Allard, and other members of the
Subcommittee: I appreciate the opportunity to appear before you today
to discuss the past accomplishments and future goals of the Library of
Congress in the context of our fiscal year 2008 budget request. I ask
for your continued support to ensure that the Library maintains its
prestigious place as the world's largest repository of human knowledge
and the main research arm of the United States Congress.
With all the distinction that this institution has achieved in the
print world, it now faces the unprecedented challenge of sustaining its
leadership amidst the revolutionary changes of the digital world.
Information-seekers have many ways of finding what they need, but they
are often overwhelmed or misled by the profusion of unfiltered and
sometimes inaccurate information on the Internet. The Library of
Congress is redefining its role in this new environment.
The budget request we have submitted to you includes the following
basic assumptions:
--There is no change in the Library's historic mission of acquiring,
preserving, and making its materials accessible and useful to
the Congress and the nation. But the amount of information and
the explosion in the number of creators are driving the
greatest revolution in the generation and communication of
knowledge since the advent of the printing press. The Library
must seamlessly blend new digital materials into the
traditional artifactual collections so that knowledge and
information can be objectively and comprehensively provided by
a fully integrated library.
--The Library of Congress must continue to build comprehensive,
world-wide collections in all formats so that Members of
Congress, scholars, school students, and the American people
will have access to valid, high-quality information for their
work, their research, and their civic participation.
--The Library must actively seek new and innovative ways to
recognize, highlight, and celebrate the knowledge and
creativity that the Congress has charged us to preserve for
more than 200 years.
--A comprehensive institutional workforce transformation will be
required for staff to continue providing the highest levels of
service to the Congress and to the public. The Library has
developed an agency-wide framework for program assessment of
every division and support office. Congressional support has
already enabled us to reengineer copyright functions and to
create a state of the art National Audiovisual Conservation
Center. We are developing new roles for key staff to become
objective ``knowledge navigators'' who can make knowledge
useful from both the artifactual and the digital world.
the library and its programs
The Library of Congress is the world's largest repository of human
knowledge and the main research arm of the United States Congress. It
directly serves not only the Congress, but the entire nation with the
most important commodity of our time: information. The Library's
diverse programs sustain its responsibility to foster a free and
informed society by building, preserving, and providing resources for
human creativity, wisdom and achievement. Through these programs, the
Library strives to place its resources at the fingertips of our elected
representatives, the American people, and the world for their mutual
prosperity, enlightenment, and inspiration.
The Library of Congress collections are made up of approximately
135 million artifactual items in more than 470 languages including: 32
million books (among them more than 5,000 printed before the year
1500); 14 million photographs and other visual items; 5.3 million maps;
2.8 million audio materials; 981,000 films, television, and video
items; 5.5 million pieces of music; 59.5 million manuscripts; and
hundreds of thousands of scientific and government documents.
Under the Library's four major appropriations, the Library funds
the following major services:
Library of Congress, S&E
Acquisitions.--The Library staff adds more than 13,000 items to the
collections every day. The Library collects not only regularly
published materials, but also reports that have limited distribution,
international ephemera that illuminate other cultures and socio-
political movements, and special collections that have been carefully
assessed and selected by our curators. The collections, and the
information they contain provide important support for the many
services the Library provides to the Congress and the nation.
Cataloging.--The Library produces bibliographic records and related
products and develops policy and standards for libraries and
bibliographic utilities in all fifty states, the District of Columbia,
and territories--cataloging more than 345,000 books and serials in
fiscal year 2006--services that save America's libraries millions of
dollars annually (the money it would cost them if they had to catalog
the books and other materials themselves).
Research and Reference.--The Library responds to, at no cost to
users, nearly one million information requests a year from across the
nation, including more than 500,000 in-person requests in the 20
reading rooms open to the public in Washington, D.C. In addition, the
Library responds to some 56,000 interlibrary loan requests from across
the nation and more than 25,000 requests for book loans from the
Congress each year.
Online Access Services.--The Library is at the forefront of
providing comprehensive online digital access services, the conversion
of analog materials into digital form, Web archiving, the provision of
the Library's web based digital library services, and education
outreach services that encourage use of the Library's online primary
sources. The Library's online presence during 2006 resulted in 5
billion hits. There are now more than 22 million digital items
represented on the Library's web sites, including materials digitized
from the collections and exhibitions, program activities, and
interpretive information. Over half of these digital items reside in
the Library's virtual historical collections, American Memory. The
Library's web site offers electronic versions of many resources of
historical research and educational value that no other institution
provides. In addition, the Library already has captured a total of 56
terabytes of content from the Web, and this volume continues to grow
significantly. This total represents more than 1 billion documents
downloaded from the Web, the equivalent of digital text information
from more than 55 million books (1 megabyte per book of text only).
American Creativity.--The Library manages the largest, most varied,
and most important archival collection of American creativity--
including motion pictures, sound recordings, maps, prints, photographs,
manuscripts, music, and folklore covering a wide range of ethnic and
geographic communities. The Library provides reference assistance to
researchers and the general public, conducts field research, and
promotes the preservation of American culture throughout the United
States.
Preservation.--The Library develops and manages a program to
preserve the diverse materials and formats in the Library's
collections. The program provides a full range of prospective and
retrospective preservation treatment for hundreds of thousands of items
a year, conducts research into new technologies, emphasizes prevention
techniques including proper environmental storage and training for
emergency situations, conserves and preserves materials, and reformats
materials to more stable media. The Library plays a key role in
developing national and international standards that support the work
of federal, state, and local agencies in preserving the nation's
cultural heritage.
Reading Promotion and Outreach.--The Library promotes books,
reading, and literacy through the Library's Center for the Book, its
affiliated centers in fifty states and the District of Columbia, and
nearly one hundred national organizational partners. The Library
encourages knowledge and use of its collections through other outreach
programs (cable TV, lectures, publications, conferences and symposia,
exhibitions, poetry readings--all primarily supported by private
funding) and through the Library's virtual presence on the Web. The
Library also gives some 90,000 surplus books annually to qualified
libraries and nonprofit educational institutions through its nationwide
donation program.
Digital Initiatives.--The Library oversees and coordinates cross-
institutional digital initiatives, including the National Digital
Information Infrastructure and Preservation Program (NDIIPP). The
vision of NDIIPP is to ensure access over time to a rich body of
digital content through the establishment of a national network of
committed partners, collaborating in a digital preservation
architecture with defined roles and responsibilities.
Law Library.--The Law Library program provides direct research
service to the Congress in international and comparative law. It serves
as the National Law Library. In addition to Members and Committee
staffs of the Congress and the Congressional Research Service, the Law
Library provides officers of the legislative branch, Justices of the
Supreme Court and other judges, members of the Departments of State and
Justice, and other federal agencies with bibliographic and
informational services, background papers, comparative legal studies,
legal interpretations, and translations. In support of this mission,
the Law Library has amassed the largest collection of authoritative
legal sources in the world, including more than 2.5 million volumes as
well as almost 134,000 digital items. As its congressional priorities
permit, the Law Library makes its collections and services available to
a diverse community of users--the foreign diplomatic corps,
international organizations, members of the bench and bar, educational
institutions, non-governmental libraries, legal service organizations,
and the general public--directly serving more than 100,000 users
annually and offering information to the global public through its
online services, including its Global Legal Information Network (GLIN).
Copyright Office, S&E
The Copyright Office (CO) administers the U.S. copyright laws,
provides copyright policy analysis to the Congress and executive branch
agencies, actively promotes international protections for intellectual
property created by U.S. citizens, and provides public information and
education on copyright. In fiscal year 2006, the CO registered almost
521,000 claims to copyright, accompanied by more than 825,000 deposit
copies of work; transferred more than 1.1 million registered and non-
registered works to the Library, valued at more than $41.2 million;
recorded 13,016 documents containing more than 350,000 titles; logged
more than 31 million external electronic transactions to its web site;
responded to nearly 339,000 in-person, telephone, and email requests
for information; and collected $227 million in royalty fees and
distributed more than $191 million in royalties to copyright owners.
Registration fees and authorized reductions from royalty receipts fund
almost half of the CO. Copies of works received through the copyright
system form the core of the Library's immense Americana collections,
which provide the primary record of American creativity.
The Copyright Royalty Board (CRB), which is comprised of three
Copyright Royalty Judges and their staff, administers the copyright
statutory license and determines the rates and terms for the purpose of
(a) distributing hundreds of millions of dollars in royalties that are
collected under various compulsory license provisions of the copyright
law, and (b) adjusting the royalty rates of these licensing provisions.
The CO currently provides administrative support to the CRJs in budget
preparation and human resource management.
Congressional Research Service, S&E
The Congressional Research Service (CRS) assists all Members and
committees of the Congress with its deliberations and legislative
decisions by providing objective, authoritative, non-partisan, and
confidential research and analysis. As a shared resource, serving the
Congress exclusively, CRS experts work alongside the Congress
throughout all stages of the legislative process and provide integrated
and interdisciplinary analyses and insights in all areas of legislative
activity. These services are provided by confidential individual policy
consultations and memoranda; analytical reports; seminars; and a secure
CRS web site available to the Congress. In 2006, CRS delivered more
than 933,000 research responses and services.
Books for the Blind and Physically Handicapped, S&E
The National Library for the Blind and Physically Handicapped (NLS/
BPH), manages a free national reading program for more than 794,000
blind and physically handicapped people--circulating, at no cost to
users, approximately 25 million items in fiscal year 2006. A
cooperating network of 131 regional and sub-regional (local) libraries
distribute the machines and library materials provided by the Library
of Congress. The U.S. Postal Service receives an appropriation to
support postage-free mail for magazines, books, and machines which are
sent directly to readers. Reading materials (books and magazines) and
playback machines are sent to a total readership of 794,000 comprising
more than 500,000 audio and braille readers registered individually, in
addition to more than 200,000 eligible individuals located in 32,000
institutions.
the library's fiscal year 2008 budget request
As the Library's budget was submitted prior to the enactment of the
fiscal year 2007 full-year continuing resolution, the fiscal year 2008
request is based on the total fiscal year 2006 operating level. As a
result, the fiscal year 2008 budget request is unique in that it
includes (1) adjustments for fiscal year 2007 and fiscal year 2008
mandatory pay and price level increases, (2) the resubmission of most
fiscal year 2007 program increases, and (3) several new fiscal year
2008 program increases. This request covers two years of costs needed
to keep the Library on schedule with its programs.
In fiscal year 2008, the Library requests a total budget of
$703.339 million ($661.616 million in net appropriations and $41.723
million in authority to use receipts), which is an increase of $99.716
million above the fiscal year 2007 (2006) level. The total includes
$43.9 million for the construction of the Library of Congress Fort
Meade Logistics Center, proposed for transfer to the Architect of the
Capitol. Funding also includes $45.947 million in mandatory pay and
price level increases and $28.118 million in program increases
(excluding the $43.9 million for the Logistics Center), offset by
$18.249 million in non-recurring costs.
The requested funding supports 4,244 full-time equivalents (FTEs),
a net decrease of 58 FTEs below the current authorized level of 4,302.
Fiscal year 2008 funding is allocated as follows:
--Library of Congress, S&E ($467.452 million/2,888 FTEs), which
includes:
--National Library ($324.294 million/2,259 FTEs);
--National Library--Basic
--Purchase of Library Materials (GENPAC)
--Office of Strategic Initiatives
--Cataloging Distribution Service
--Law Library ($13.394 million/101 FTEs)
--Management Support Services ($129.764 million/528 FTEs)
--Copyright Office, S&E ($51.562 million/523 FTEs)
--Congressional Research Service, S&E ($108.702 million/705 FTEs)
--Books for the Blind and Physically Handicapped, S&E ($75.623
million/128 FTEs)
the library's funding priorities
Mandatory Pay and Price Level increases
The Library is requesting an additional $45.947 million to maintain
current services. This is the amount needed to support the
annualization of the fiscal year 2006 pay raise, the fiscal year 2007
pay raise and annualization in fiscal year 2008, the fiscal year 2008
pay raise, within-grade increases, and unavoidable inflation and vendor
price increases for the period fiscal year 2007-2008. These funds are
needed simply to sustain current business operations and to prevent a
reduction in staff that would severely affect the Library's ability to
manage its programs in support of its mission and strategic objectives.
Unfunded Mandates
The Library is requesting $2.005 million for one unfunded mandate:
the Department of State (DOS) Capital Security Cost-Sharing Program.
In fiscal year 2005, the DOS, mandated by the executive branch,
began its 14-year program to finance the construction of approximately
150 embassy compounds, requiring increasing contributions from all
agencies with an overseas presence, including the Library. The
Library's yearly assessment was $1.2 million in fiscal year 2005 and
$2.4 million in fiscal year 2006-2007. The proposed increase for fiscal
year 2008 is $2.005 million. If funding is not provided for the next
phase of the program, the Library will have insufficient resources to
operate its overseas offices. This would result in the curtailment--and
in some cases, termination--of international acquisitions programs in
areas that are of increasing importance to the nation (Brazil, Egypt,
Kenya, India, Pakistan, and Indonesia).
Major Ongoing Projects
The Library is requesting a net total of $1.771 million for three
ongoing major projects that are either in their last year of
development or on a time-sensitive schedule that must be maintained if
the entire project is to succeed.
--Acquisitions (GENPAC/Electronic Materials).--Advances in technology
have opened opportunities for the Library to acquire materials
from parts of the world about which, until recently, there had
been little access to primary sources. National interest,
especially with respect to security and trade, dictates that we
acquire emerging electronic publications and other difficult-
to-find resources that document other cultures and nations. The
GENPAC appropriation, which funds the purchase of all-important
current collections materials, declined precipitously in its
purchasing power during the 1990s. Consistent with our previous
budget request for a multi-year, $4.2 million base increase to
the GENPAC budget, the Library is requesting the next
incremental adjustment of $2 million, which will bring the
total base adjustment up to $3.3 million. Funding is needed to
help keep pace with the greatly increased cost of serial and
electronic materials, that risks eroding the comprehensiveness
and value of the Library's collections.
--National Audio-Visual Conservation Center (NAVCC), Culpeper, VA.--A
five-year plan for the completion of NAVCC was included in the
Library's fiscal year 2004 budget. Fiscal year 2008 represents
the fifth year in the Library's five-year cost model, which is
adjusted annually to align with shifts in the construction
schedule of the Packard Humanities Institute and the Library's
occupancy schedule. In 2007, construction will be completed;
the entire property transferred to the government; staff
relocations will begin; and digital preservation equipment and
systems will be purchased and integrated into the conservation
facility. Funding is needed in fiscal year 2008 to continue
purchasing equipment for the facility as well as for operations
support. The fiscal year 2008 total funding of $13.617 million
reflects a net decrease of $1.429 million and 5 FTEs from the
base.
--Global Legal Information Network (GLIN).--The Law Library's GLIN is
a multinational, cooperative legal database with members of the
network representing countries in Africa, Asia, Europe, and the
Americas. In fiscal year 2003, the Congress provided the
Library with a five-year appropriation to implement the
technical upgrade, to digitize and incorporate retrospective
legal material, and to engage in targeted recruitment to expand
the diversity and number of nations contributing legal
materials to the GLIN database. All goals have been met. To
maintain this world-class legal information resource, the
Library requests that $1.2 million be added to the Law Library
base in fiscal year 2008. Funding is required to continue
operating GLIN and cover ongoing costs associated with software
licensing and upgrades, system hosting, technology refreshment,
content expansion, and membership recruitment.
In addition, the Library's fiscal year 2008 budget did not include
a request for the National Digital Information Infrastructure and
Preservation Program (NDIIPP), as the budget was submitted prior to the
rescission of $47 million as part of the fiscal year 2007 continuing
resolution. The Library is seeking $21.5 million to partially restore
funding for NDIIPP. The fiscal year 2007 rescission of $47 million
endangers another $37 million in matching funds already committed by
pending partners.
New Projects
The Library is requesting $24.342 million for several new critical
initiatives as follows:
--Digital Talking Book Program.--A four-year, $76.4 million
initiative is needed to implement a revolutionary change from
analog to digital technology that has been projected and
planned since 1990. In brief, the change consists of replacing
cassette tape players with Digital Talking Book (DTB) players
and introducing a new medium (flash cartridges) for
distributing the DTBs. This request is critical, as the
technology currently used will be obsolete in a few years'
time. This change is also being demanded by the users of the
service. The new technology has been proposed after wide and
deep consultation with users and technology experts. In fiscal
year 2008, the Library is requesting $19.1 million, to remain
available in the NLS base until fiscal year 2011--the last year
of the implementation schedule. Funding is requested in both
annual ($14.454 million) and no-year funds ($4.646 million) in
fiscal year 2008, with the mix changing each succeeding fiscal
year, as appropriate.
--Copyright Records Preservation.--A six-year, $6 million initiative
is needed to image digitally 70 million pages of pre-1978
public records that are deteriorating, jeopardizing the
mandatory preservation of, and access to, these unique records
of American creativity. In fiscal year 2008, the Library is
requesting the first $1 million--in offsetting collections
authority, which will permit the scanning of 10 million page
images.
--Abraham Lincoln Bicentennial Exhibition.--The Library's Abraham
Lincoln Bicentennial Exhibition in 2009 will be a centerpiece
of the nationwide celebration to mark the bicentennial of
Lincoln's birth. The Library will draw on its unparalleled
Lincoln materials to focus on Lincoln's rise to national
prominence and the thinking and writing that underlie his
career. A total of $1.442 million will be needed for this
project in fiscal year 2008, and with multi-year (3-year)
authority. Fiscal year 2008 funding will support the design and
implementation of the exhibition and travel needed to visit
other venues and/or other institutions that will be lending
materials to the Library exhibition.
--Escape Hoods.--A one-time cost of $1.189 million is needed to
purchase NIOSH-approved escape hoods for approximately 6,200
non-Library staff (researchers, contractors, and other visitors
to the Library) and 110 cabinets to store the hoods throughout
the Library. Procuring and providing escape hoods for
contractors and visitors is consistent with the policy set by
the USCP for the Capitol Hill complex.
--Custodial Services.--A total of $517,000 in contract funds is
requested for custodial services support and includes funding
for six contract custodial quality control inspectors and
increased costs related to new space at Fort Meade (Modules 2-
4). The Library's facilities on Capitol Hill comprises four
million square feet, with no independent inspectors monitoring
its custodial contract (industry standards reflect at least one
inspector per 500,000 square feet of facility). Based on
industry standards, the Library would require a total of eight
inspectors, though the Library is only requesting six. Library
space at Fort Meade will increase by 83,000 square feet between
fiscal year 2006-2008, increasing the base cost of the
custodial service contract.
--Legislative Branch-Wide Payroll Formulation Software System.--The
Library is requesting a total of $500,000 to support a
legislative branch-wide pilot program to procure and implement
a payroll budget formulation software system that will allow a
name-by-name calculation of payroll costs using a standard
calculation methodology for all legislative branch agencies.
This request is the result of congressional guidance to the
Legislative Branch Financial Managers Council (LBFMC) to
develop a standard methodology for formulating payroll costs
within and across the legislative branch agencies. Since the
Library has one of the largest staffs in the legislative
branch, the LBFMC, with congressional approval, selected the
Library to pilot the system, with funding for all legislative
branch agencies to be requested in subsequent years--after
testing and implementation are finalized at the Library.
Consistent with guidance, the software and subsequent
formulation of payroll costs will be managed by each agency's
central budget office to ensure consistency within each agency.
--Library-Wide Contracts Management Support.--Currently, the Office
of Contracts has a total working capacity of 22 FTEs (comprised
of in-house staff and contractors). Based on a GSA workload
analysis model that was applied to the Library's fiscal year
2005 contract actions, a total of 26 FTEs is needed to support
the Library's contract workload. Since 2001, the volume and
complexity of the Library's contracting workload have increased
significantly. The average annual dollar value of contract
actions administered per contract specialist increased from
$2.9 million in fiscal year 2001 to more than $13.8 million in
fiscal year 2005. That trend is expected to become more
pronounced in fiscal year 2007 and beyond. Funding of $318,000
is requested to support the salaries and benefits of an
additional three FTEs in the Office of Contracts for a total
working capacity of 25 FTEs. The three additional FTEs will be
absorbed within the Library's FTE base.
--Workforce Transformation Project.--Renewal and development of the
Library's workforce are essential to retrain staff with the
necessary skills for the digital age, and to capture for the
future the vast knowledge of large numbers of experienced staff
who are near retirement. In fiscal year 2008, the Library will
begin a program to enhance digital competencies, leadership
skills, career development, recruitment, and other workforce
counseling and services. These activities are particularly
important for sustaining the Library's commitment to a diverse
workforce. Funding of $276,000 is requested to support these
initiatives.
Other Program Changes or Requests
Library of Congress Fort Meade Logistics Center.--The Library is
requesting $43.9 million, to be transferred to the Architect of the
Capitol, for the construction of the Library of Congress Fort Meade
Logistics Center. Current deplorable life safety and environmental
conditions at the Landover Center are unacceptable and present
extremely high risk to staff and collections. The proposed Logistics
Center is a 162,000 square foot environmentally controlled facility
supporting the day-to-day mission critical operating requirements of
the Library. The new facility will consolidate storage and inventory
and supply from multiple leased facilities and Library buildings on
Capitol Hill and will also benefit from the synergy and centralized
security of the Fort Meade master plan. Alternatives have been
extensively evaluated, and all are more costly than the proposed
construction--which will result in immediate savings of approximately
$3 million per year after consolidation at Fort Meade.
Digital Collections and Educational Curricula Program--In 2005,
Congress created and passed the Library of Congress Digital Collections
and Educational Curricula Act. Beginning in fiscal year 2006, the Act
moved the administrative and programmatic ownership of the Adventure of
the American Mind program (AAM) from the Educational and Research
Consortium to the Library. Of the $6.016 million requested in fiscal
year 2008 (fiscal year 2006-2007 enacted level adjusted for mandatory
pay and price level increases), $2.006 million will fund administrative
support costs, with the balance of $4.010 million supporting grant
awards. In addition, the Library will begin developing standards-based,
field-tested curricula, using a train-the-trainer model to create a
network of partners from all parts of the country.
architect of the capitol--library of congress buildings and grounds
The Architect of the Capitol (AOC) is responsible for the
structural and mechanical care and maintenance of the Library's
buildings and grounds. In coordination with the Library, the AOC is
requesting a fiscal year 2008 budget of $42.788 million to support life
safety, deferred maintenance, and upgrades to the Library's buildings
on Capitol Hill. The deferment of maintenance and upgrades require
projects to be completed concurrently, often at higher costs.
Deferments and delays have also created longer lists of projects. The
cost increase is compounded by inflationary pressures and by the
steadily growing risks in health, safety, and security to the Library's
staff and collections. The cost of maintenance and upgrades will
increase exponentially if the Library cannot stop, or at least slow
down, the rate of deterioration of its buildings.
proposed changes to legislative language
The Library has proposed language to improve employment options
elsewhere in the Federal Government for Library staff. The first
provision confers competitive status to Library employees who have
successfully completed their probationary period at the Library--the
basic eligibility to be non-competitively selected to fill vacancies in
the competitive service of the Federal Government. This will enable
Library staff to apply for positions in the executive branch on an
equal footing with ``career'' executive branch employees. A related
provision would enhance the employability of Library employees
displaced because of a Reduction-in-Force (RIF) or failure to accept a
transfer to an alternative work location. This provision would give
separated staff selection priority for competitive service positions,
comparable to that enjoyed by separated employees from other federal
agencies.
The Library also proposes new appropriation language to address the
requirement specified in the Cooperative Acquisitions Program Revolving
Fund legislation (CAP), Public Law 105-55, that the revolving fund
receive its own audit by March 31 following the end of each fiscal
year. The Library requests that the March 31 audit requirement be
rescinded and that the CAP be subject to the same audit requirement as
the Library's other revolving funds.
conclusion
We are deeply grateful for what Congress has already created and
admirably sustained. New investments will enable us to continue
providing the Congress with comprehensive nonpartisan research, and the
nation with the wonderful learning resources that digital technology is
delivering to schools, libraries and homes. Appropriations for today's
Library will be investments in tomorrow's minds, in our future
creativity, and in America's global leadership well into the
information age.
Thank you, Madam Chairwoman.
______
Open World Leadership Center
Madam Chairwoman, Mr. Allard, and other Members of the
Subcommittee, I appreciate the opportunity to submit testimony on the
Open World Leadership Center's budget request for fiscal year 2008. The
Center, whose board of trustees I chair, conducts the only exchange
program in the U.S. legislative branch and has hosted 11,794 leaders
from Russia, Ukraine, Georgia, Moldova, and other post-Soviet states to
date. All of us at Open World are very grateful for the continued
support in the legislative branch and for congressional participation
in the program and on our governing board. We look forward to working
with you on the future of Open World.
Open World has a U.S. hosting network of hundreds of local
nongovernmental and governmental organizations and more than six
thousand volunteer host families, enabling us to continue to bring
large numbers of emerging young post-Soviet leaders to the United
States. Program participants come to discuss topical issues of mutual
interest and benefit, such as ways of containing the avian flu,
developing environmentally responsible public policy, and improving
educational curricula in primary and secondary schools. They meet with
Americans who share their interests and are often eager to partner with
them on collaborative projects.
The following statement by U.S. District Judge Stephen P. Friot of
Oklahoma, who hosted five prominent Russian judges for Open World in
2006, effectively captures the impact of this program on both U.S.
hosts and foreign visitors: ``The opportunity to learn about the
judicial system of the Russian Federation made hosting Open World
delegates one of the most enriching professional experiences I have
ever had. Russian and American judges face similar problems, and
programs like Open World help us overcome them by providing the
opportunity to learn with each other and from each other.''
In 2006, after seven years of operation, Open World assessed its
accomplishments and completed a new strategic plan under the leadership
of former U.S. Ambassador to Russia James F. Collins, one of our
longest-serving trustees. The plan envisions expanding the Open World
Program to all the countries of Eurasia \1\ and the Baltic States by
fiscal year 2011. Expansion programs are already under way in five new
countries: Azerbaijan, Georgia, Moldova, Kyrgyzstan, and Tajikistan.
One result of this expansion is that Open World will reach many more
Muslims. Some 30 million Muslims live in the countries participating in
Open World 2007, more than double the Open World 2006 figure of 14
million.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\1\ Eurasia here means Russia, Ukraine, Belarus, Moldova, Armenia,
Georgia, Azerbaijan, Turkmenistan, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan,
and Kyrgyzstan.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
The Center's budget request of $14.4 million for fiscal year 2008
(Appendix A) reflects an increase of $0.54 million (4.0 percent) over
fiscal year 2007 funding. This funding will enable the Center to
continue its proven mission of hosting young leaders from Russia and
Ukraine; conduct programs in our five new expansion countries, in
accordance with recommendations from Members of Congress and directives
from the Board of Trustees; and respond to any requests for small-
scale, preliminary expansion to additional countries made by the Board
of Trustees in consultation with the Appropriations Committees.
program mission and strategic plan
The Open World strategic plan, completed in 2006, adopted the
following mission statement:
To enhance understanding and capabilities for cooperation between
the United States and the countries of Eurasia and the Baltic States by
developing a network of leaders in the region who have gained
significant, firsthand exposure to America's democratic, accountable
government and its free-market system.
In light of this mission, Open World will continue to bring
emerging leaders from this region to the United States, while
endeavoring to foster lasting ties and ongoing cooperation between Open
World delegates and their American hosts and professional counterparts.
The program seeks to nurture civic and political environments where
civil society develops not only from the top down, but also from the
ground up and the periphery in. This goal is furthered by developing a
network of leaders who regularly communicate and collaborate with
fellow citizens and American peers on concrete projects.
The Open World strategic plan focuses on building and strengthening
a network of American and foreign community leaders through both
enhancing existing ties and forming new ones. It also stresses the
importance of measuring progress quantitatively by numbers of
partnerships, joint projects, and ripple effects, and by tracking how
they grow and strengthen.
Open World's core competency lies in identifying promising young
leaders, matching them with capable and appropriate U.S. host
organizations, and networking them with their American counterparts.
Open World has developed close coordination with U.S. Embassies and
various nominating organizations. Wherever possible, Open World tries
to complement other U.S. government-funded programs as well as other
initiatives in Open World countries that involve U.S. citizens.
For example, Open World joined with the U.S.-Ukraine Foundation to
help solidify relations between Omaha, Nebraska, and Artemivsk,
Ukraine, which had previously been paired under a foundation program.
In December 2006, community leaders in Omaha hosted a delegation of
city administrators from Artemivsk, which applied to become a sister
city of Omaha as a direct result of the visit. A delegation of Omaha
city representatives (including university faculty and students) will
make a return visit to Artemivsk in May 2007. Omahans have raised funds
in the United States to help renovate an orphanage in Artemivsk this
year; and for the first time, a group from the Omaha Ukrainian diaspora
is visiting Artemivsk to build ties.
West Jordan, Utah, the sister city of Votkinsk, Russia, provides
another example of such an initiative. To help develop projects based
on this sister-city tie, Open World made it possible for a
competitively selected medical team from Votkinsk to visit West Jordan
in September 2006 to learn more about U.S. emergency medical care and
community health fairs. One month after returning to Votkinsk, the Open
World delegates replicated a community health fair. They invited the
mayor of West Jordan as well as a health team from Jordan Valley
Hospital to take part in the event. More than 600 Votkinsk citizens
attended this one-day event and learned about Utah's ties to Votkinsk.
Sister Cities International's Utah state coordinator and veteran Open
World host Jennifer Andelin had this to say after the trip: ``Open
World is definitely a program that is positively impacting both Russia
and Utah. I often refer to Open World as the `glue' that holds the
Utah/Russia partnerships together.''
calendar year 2006 activities
In 2006, Open World brought 1,142 Russians and 223 Ukrainians to
the United States for high-level professional programs in 46 U.S.
states and the District of Columbia. Out of these: 228 delegates
studied rule of law; 279 delegates studied accountable governance; 216
delegates studied women as leaders issues; and 345 delegates studied
health, social issues, the environment, and education.
The Open World 2006 programs for Russia and Ukraine focused on
overarching themes like accountable governance and rule of law, as well
as critical challenges that face both countries and America as well,
such as AIDS prevention and emergency preparedness. For instance, a
team of Russian avian flu experts came to meet with their counterparts
at the Food and Drug Administration, the National Institutes of Health
(NIH), and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and spoke at
the 2nd Bird Flu Summit in Washington, D.C. The trip initiated an
ongoing dialogue between the NIH and Russian laboratories that will
lead to cooperative projects as well as a formal cooperative
partnership agreement to be signed in spring 2007. (On March 10, 2007,
another Open World delegation of Russian infectious disease
epidemiologists joined the State of North Carolina, the Scian
Institute, and the National Peace Foundation in a ``Community
Preparedness Planning Template Project'' partnership designed to help
small and medium-sized communities in the United States and elsewhere
develop emergency response plans to deal with pandemics.)
In another example, four high-level government physicians from
Russia involved in HIV/AIDS prevention, TB control, forensic medicine,
and prison health care visited New Orleans in fall 2006 to learn about
operations at counterpart agencies in Louisiana. The delegates toured
and had briefings at the Orleans Parish Jail and the state penitentiary
in St. Gabriel, took part in informative discussions with the state
epidemiologist and the head of the state Tuberculosis Control Program,
and visited the Jefferson Parish Forensic Center in Harvey. Staff of
the Louisiana State University Health Science Center introduced the
Russians to the center's medical training and research programs and
juvenile justice program. The delegates praised the program for giving
them the opportunity to interact with Louisiana professionals who
``have the same positions and work . . . on the same problems'' as they
do in Russia.
Open World 2006 continued the rule of law program, which has
benefited so much from the involvement of U.S. Supreme Court justices
and many other prominent members of the American judiciary and has
brought nearly 1,100 Russian and Ukrainian judges to the United States.
A highlight of last year's program was an exchange for five Ukrainian
judges hosted by U.S. District Judge David R. Herndon of East St.
Louis, Illinois. Not only did the Ukrainians observe the workings of
the U.S. legal system, they also discussed what they saw with key
actors in the judicial process. Judge Herndon arranged for them to
observe him conduct several sentencings, after which he held a Q-and-A
session that included the counsel involved in the sentencing hearings.
After observing a jury trial at the Madison County (Illinois)
Courthouse, the visiting judges had a ``postmortem'' with members of
the defense's legal team. The Ukrainians also participated in the
quarterly administrative meeting for all Southern District of Illinois
judges and court staff, giving them invaluable insights into judicial
administration in the United States. And during a tour of the Federal
Correctional Institution and Camp in Greenville, Illinois, the
Ukrainians were able to ask questions not only of the warden but of
inmates as well--something still not readily allowed for visitors to
their own country.
Open World 2006 also continued the focus on accountable local
governance that had been added as a program theme in 2005. The Russians
and Ukrainians who participated in these exchanges received practical
advice from their American counterparts and onsite insights into how to
make local government more open, responsive, and efficient. For
example, several small-town mayors from Ukraine spent part of their
Open World exchange visiting rural communities outside Lincoln,
Nebraska, to see firsthand how these towns used public/private economic
development projects to improve quality of life and retain population.
Four Russian municipal executives hosted in Parker, Colorado, reviewed
the town government's budget and operations with the mayor and two of
his top staff, then sat in as the proposed 2007 budget was presented
for first reading to the Parker Town Council. Delegates from the
formerly closed nuclear city of Zheleznogorsk, Russia, met with the
planning directors for their Tennessee sister communities of Alcoa,
Maryville, and Blount County to brainstorm ways of making Zheleznogorsk
more accessible for trade and travel. And in Springfield, Illinois,
Ukrainian city officials interested in zoning issues met with the
city's zoning administrator for an interactive session complete with
maps and blueprints.
open world in america
Open World delegates are hosted by a large and dedicated group of
American citizens who live in cities, towns, and rural communities
throughout the United States:
--Since Open World's inception in 1999, more than 6,000 U.S. families
have hosted participants in 1,575-plus communities in all 50
states.
--Open World's 2006 host families lived in 227 different
congressional districts.
American hosts' generosity toward and enthusiasm for Open World are
a mainstay of the program. In 2006, interested host communities' demand
for Open World visitors was more than double Open World's actual number
of program participants. U.S. hosting organizations were prepared to
host more than 2,300 Russian participants, well above our funded
hosting capacity of 1,150 Russian participants. Americans' enthusiasm
for the Open World Program is reflected in their generous giving in
2006 of an estimated $1.6 million worth of in-kind contributions in
terms of free accommodations and meals.
The blossoming relationship between Los Alamos, New Mexico, and the
formerly closed nuclear research city of Sarov, Russia, offers other
examples of the dedication of Open World's American hosts. In September
2006, Open World brought four delegates from Sarov to Los Alamos. As a
result of the trip, a videoconference site was organized using
equipment donated to Sarov by citizens of Los Alamos. Videoconferences
are being used both to organize a 2007 trip to Sarov by Los Alamos
firefighters and police officers to discuss how to control wildfire (a
major issue of concern in both communities), and to make plans for six
children from Los Alamos to attend a summer camp outside Sarov.
Open World delegates have impacted American communities by sharing
ideas with their professional counterparts, university faculty and
students, governors and state legislators, emergency response crews,
and other American citizens in a variety of settings, including group
discussions, Rotary Club breakfasts, and town hall meetings.
One Rotarian, Wayne R. Oquin of Houston, Texas, had this to say
about the impact of Open World on him as a host:
On a personal note, I have never been one to push the international
side of Rotary. I'm recognized as a community service Rotarian. I must
admit that the Open World Program has changed my perspective. I was
very apprehensive about my role as an Open World coordinator for my
District. It really turned out to be easy, informative and extremely
rewarding to me personally. I can honestly say that my time with this
Open World delegation has been my most enjoyable week ever spent as a
Rotarian.
results and impact of program
Open World delegates return to their countries and apply their Open
World experience to improve their local communities and regions. For
example, an elementary school principal from Tver, Russia, was hosted
in November 2004 by the Paso Robles (California) Rotary Club. Upon her
return, she instituted a set of reforms based on what she had seen at
the Georgia Brown Elementary School in Paso Robles. Among other
projects, she started a board of trustees that was chaired by the
mother of one of the students at her school. The board, in turn, worked
with the principal to add electives to the school curricula, including
a course on principles of democracy and election legislation. As a
result of these reforms, the Russian Ministry of Education awarded the
school a one million ruble prize as one of the ``Best Schools of the
Year'' for 2006.
In another instance, a city administrator from Ulan-Ude visited
Louisiana and was inspired to launch a campaign in support of NGOs in
her region. During a meeting with the Louisiana Office of Family
Support, she was particularly impressed by the role of nongovernmental
community organizations such as Louisiana Eastern European Adoptive
Families. Upon her return, she teamed up with the first deputy
chairperson of her department, another Open World alumna, to promote
NGO development in Ulan-Ude. As a result of their teamwork, on October
3, 2006, the City of Ulan-Ude declared 2007 ``The Year of Civic
Initiatives'' and allocated 2.8 million rubles (approximately $106,000)
to be distributed among 32 local NGOs to organize 100 different
activities and programs throughout this year.
Sometimes results take time to come to fruition. A judge from
Barnaul, Russia, visiting Washington, D.C., in 2003 was particularly
impressed by the use of information technology in the Superior Court of
the District of Columbia. Upon her return, she started to take computer
classes and, in 2005, was instrumental in instituting the use of web
cameras and computerized court records in her region's supreme court.
In another example, the director of a Yekaterinburg refugee aid
organization and a Native American Open World host--who first met
during the director's 2004 Open World visit--just partnered on a March
14 videoconference between Native American children in Oklahoma and
indigenous children in Ufa-Shigiri, Russia. The videoconference, which
was co-hosted by the U.S. Consulate in Yekaterinburg, is intended to be
the first in a series of events that will allow these children to share
information about their lives, cultures, and aspirations for their
communities.
scope of program
In addition to the qualitative assessments described above, the
Center also tracks quantitative performance measures to ensure that
Open World is focusing on a geographically and professionally broad
cross-section of emerging leaders who might not otherwise have the
opportunity to visit the United States:
--Delegates have come from all the political regions of Russia,
Ukraine, and Lithuania, and from 13 of Uzbekistan's 14
political regions.
--88 percent of Russian participants live outside Moscow and St.
Petersburg.
--More than 6,500 federal, regional, and local government officials
have participated, including 157 members of parliament.
--The average age of Open World delegates is 38.
--93 percent of delegates are first-time visitors to the United
States.
--51 percent of delegates are women.
open world 2007 and plans for 2008
In calendar year 2007 we plan to continue bringing Russian
political, civic, and cultural leaders, as well as Ukrainian political
and civic leaders, to the United States. In addition, through Open
World, at least 175 leaders from Georgia, Moldova, Azerbaijan,
Tajikistan, and Kyrgyzstan will visit the United States in 2007,
virtually all for the first time. Chicago and Atlanta welcomed the
first Open World Georgian delegations in early March. The Chicago
visitors, all regional and city officials, reported that one of their
favorite sessions was a morning spent at the village hall of suburban
Bellwood, where they received a comprehensive overview of the town
government, participated in lengthy Q-and-A with the mayor and other
Bellwood officials, and toured town departments and facilities. Open
World's first Moldovan delegations also arrived last month: one, a
delegation of senior government and NGO officials, met with their
counterparts in Washington, D.C., to explore ways to curb human
trafficking. The other group, composed of one federal and three
municipal officials, studied public finance with city administrators
and economic experts in the Research Triangle area of North Carolina.
Open World administrative activities in 2007 include developing
annual plans for 2007-2011 as part of the strategic planning process,
and finalizing all assessment tools to measure program successes. Open
World will explore ways to recognize some of our most dedicated U.S.
hosts, and the Board will consider additional countries for possible
inclusion in the 2008 expansion program.
fiscal year 2008 budget request
The budget request supports hosting and other programmatic
activities at a level of approximately 1,400 participants total. Actual
allocations of hosting to individual countries will be determined by
the Board of Trustees in consultation with the Appropriations
Committees. The requested funding support is also needed to cover
anticipated fiscal year 2008 pay increases and the Department of
State's obligatory Capital Security Cost Sharing charge for the
Center's two Foreign National Staff attached to the U.S. Embassy in
Moscow.
Major categories of requested funding are:
--Personnel Compensation and Benefits ($1.379 million)
--Contracts ($8.075 million--awarded to U.S.-based entities) that
include:
--Coordinating the delegate nomination and vetting process
--Obtaining visas and other travel documents
--Arranging and paying for air travel
--Coordinating with grantees and placing delegates
--Providing health insurance for participants
--Grants ($4.6 million--awarded to U.S. host organizations) that
include the cost of providing:
--Professional programming for delegates
--Meals outside of those provided by home hosts
--Local transportation
--Professional interpretation
--Cultural activities
--Administrative support
conclusion
The fiscal year 2008 budget request will enable the Open World
Leadership Center to continue to make major contributions to the
deepening understanding of democracy, civil society, and free
enterprise in a region of vital importance to the Congress and the
nation. This Subcommittee's interest and support have enabled this
unique program to obtain gratifying results and a special status in the
successor states of the USSR.
I thank the Subcommittee for its continued support of the Open
World Program.
OPEN WORLD LEADERSHIP CENTER BUDGET FISCAL YEAR 2008
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Fiscal Year
Description 2007 Estimated
Obligations
------------------------------------------------------------------------
11.1 Personnel Compensation............................ $1,085,000
12.1 Personnel Benefits................................ 293,700
21.0 Travel............................................ 97,500
22.0 Transportation.................................... 2,000
23.0 Rent, Comm., Utilities............................ 6,100
24.0 Printing.......................................... 2,100
25.1 Other Services/Contracts.......................... 8,309,500
26.0 Supplies.......................................... 4,100
31.0 Equipment......................................... ..............
41.0 Grants............................................ 4,600,000
---------------
TOTAL, Fiscal Year 2008 Budget Request............ 14,400,000
------------------------------------------------------------------------
______
Prepared Statement of Daniel P. Mulhollan, Director, Congressional
Research Service
Madam Chairwoman and Members of the Committee: Thank you for the
opportunity to appear before you today to present the fiscal year 2008
budget request for the Congressional Research Service (CRS). I come to
you with great appreciation for the support you have given us in past
years. Having worked closely alongside Congress for more than 13 years
now in my capacity as Director of CRS, I know full well the fiscal
pressures under which you must operate, and that frame your
deliberations.
fiscal year 2008 budget request
The CRS fiscal year 2008 budget request is $108,702,000. This
request covers mandatory pay increases for CRS staff, as well as price
level increases due to inflation for the goods and services we require
in the course of doing our work. We are not asking for any funds for
new initiatives or program growth and are undertaking all of our
initiatives within current funding.
CRS is appreciative of Congress' continuing support. Even in these
times of constrained resources we have managed to sustain our full
services to the Congress, serving every Member and congressional
committee. Our highest priority is to ensure that Congress has
continued access to the nation's best thinking on policy issues, and to
that end we devote almost 90 percent of our budget to personnel. Since
1994 we have successfully increased the number of analysts within the
organization from 313 to 343, and they along with our information
professionals represent 75 percent of our total staff. At the same
time, the overall number of CRS staff has declined by about 10 percent.
The pressures and evolving priorities of Congress drive CRS' short-
and long-range planning. We strive to strengthen our analytic capacity
and the quality of our analysis. We evaluate a host of factors in an
effort to target and improve our analyses, including: institutional
changes within Congress; demands on Members' time; turnover of Members
and staff; complexity and interdependencies of policy issues before the
Congress; need for creative new solutions to policy questions; cultural
shifts in the United States and abroad; global integration; continuing
rapid advances in technology; and growth in information sources.
We stand in direct service to Congress. We continually review our
services to improve access, streamline operations, and increase our
efficiency. We are: enhancing our website so that you have targeted
access to the analysis you need; providing our staff with the research
tools they need to accomplish their work; protecting the safety of our
staff and ensuring that, if disaster strikes, CRS' services to the
Congress will remain available; looking for economies within the
organization and efficient ways of undertaking our mission; and
minimizing our non-personnel costs through systematic assessments of
each program activity and support function.
research agenda
Congress turns to CRS daily. In fiscal year 2006 we provided over
900,000 services to the Congress. These included more than 65,000
customized products and services such as memoranda, telephone and in-
person briefings. In addition, CRS created over 800 new reports,
bringing the total number of reports available to the Congress to over
5,800, all available through the CRS website.
As in previous years, in the months before the start of the 110th
Congress, our experts from across CRS got together, assessed events
here in the United States and around the world, and working closely
with every congressional committee, determined the issues that would
most likely face this Congress. The result of this and ongoing work is
the creation and maintenance of a robust and evolving research agenda
framed around almost 150 policy issues. We continue to work alongside
you as you identify and clarify policy problems, explore policy
options, monitor and assess program implementation, and conduct
oversight.
CRS approaches its work with a commitment to serving the Congress
and a spirit of collaboration, resulting in research and analyses that
are creative, interdisciplinary and insightful. As Congress conducts
its deliberations, CRS makes every effort to provide the best thinking
on the problems that congressional lawmakers address. To meet these
demands, CRS staff must have access to the best research and
information resources to provide authoritative analysis whenever and
however Congress requires assistance. Thus the Service invests in
education and training for staff members to stay current in their
respective disciplines, and ensures that staff are challenged and
informed by interactions with colleagues in other disciplines.
All this, of course, means nothing unless our analysts also
understand the intricacies of the legislative process and remain
sensitive to the competing demands on time that Members of Congress
juggle day after day. CRS' analysts are therefore educated about the
workings of the Congress so that they have a command of Congress as an
institution--its rules and procedures--and an understanding of
Congress' processes in enacting legislation and in conducting
oversight.
core values
As Congress adjusts to the changes in the world and CRS realigns
its services to meet those changes, our commitment to our core values
does not waiver. CRS analysis is renowned for being confidential,
objective and authoritative. These core values underscore our service
to Congress and remain stable regardless of the changes around us.
In today's marketplace of ideas, we strive to outpace all others.
CRS is unique among the legislative branch agencies and like no other
think tank, government bureau, or policy organization in the world.
According to the guiding principles that Congress set forth when it
established CRS in 1914, our sole purpose is to support the United
States Congress, serving equally both chambers and both parties on all
issues.
I came to this subcommittee in 1996 asking for assistance in
addressing the challenge that half of CRS staff would be eligible to
retire by 2006. Well, the future is here and thanks to the support the
Congress provided for our succession planning, we hired one-third of
our staff in the past four years. They are all enthusiastic, highly
credentialed individuals, dedicated to public service. Our more tenured
staff work closely with these new employees to transfer their
institutional memory and expertise in the legislative framework. I tell
all new employees that it is an honor to work for the Congress. But it
is also a weighty responsibility. And so honoring and applying our core
values becomes at once a reward, a challenge, an obligation.
CRS holds confidentiality as its first core value and highest
priority. When working with CRS, Congress can access information,
dispute it, ask questions about it, knowing that questions and comments
are held in the strictest confidence. I am frequently told by Members
of Congress that the promise of confidentiality is what keeps them
coming back to utilize our services. Members know they can come to us
to float an unusual idea or explore issues, and they can do so without
question, challenge, or disclosure.
Our second value is objectivity. Because our work is objective and
non-partisan, we sit in a unique position. We focus all our efforts on
getting you, the Congress, what you need, when you need it--and in a
form that works for you. CRS works one-on-one with Members and
committees to address specific questions as they arise. Those who
choose to reference or distribute our work can do so with confidence,
knowing each report we produce is objective and fair.
As CRS provides authoritative and confidential assistance, we are
vigilant about our ability to analyze issues without bias or unexamined
assumptions. Our outstanding reputation for objective and nonpartisan
analysis is hard-won by every one of our policy experts, each and every
day.
Finally, CRS ensures that the research and analysis it provides are
authoritative. Rigorous research methodologies must be free of built-in
bias. Every critical assumption must be presented, explained, and
justified. Data anomalies must be investigated and rechecked for
appropriateness and applicability. Primary resources are used whenever
available, all statements of fact are double- or triple-checked, all
sources are documented and appropriately caveated. We at CRS understand
that our research and analysis must be authoritative and above reproach
if it is to continue to serve as the foundation upon which Congress
engages in debate.
Such assurance is critical. For example, as Congress sought to
improve preparation for and response to future catastrophes, such as a
national flu pandemic, CRS experts assisted with appropriations
legislation and oversight. When the House and Senate continued to
confront the myriad issues stemming from the government's response to
Hurricane Katrina, CRS experts analyzed flood insurance reform and the
funding of infrastructure repairs on highways, bridges, ports, and
airports. Analysts used mapping software to estimate the
characteristics of individuals most likely affected by the storm. We
examined the entire range of federal agencies' preparedness and
response. For example, in addition to extensive examinations of such
agencies as the Federal Emergency Management Agency and the Army Corps
of Engineers, CRS prepared analyses on the Department of Housing and
Urban Affairs' role in responding to past disasters. This provided
precedents and an analytic framework for further consideration of
disaster-related housing needs and use of Section 8 housing vouchers.
management initiatives
In the coming years, CRS will continue to align research capacity
to meet congressional needs, to improve congressional access to our
services, and to develop tools for our research managers and staff to
facilitate their work. This year we will launch a new authoring and
publishing system that will reduce the time devoted to writing and
publishing reports and memoranda, thus freeing up the time available to
CRS analysts to undertake their research. This new tool will
standardize the presentation format and enhance graphic capabilities.
In a world of ever-evolving technologies and a constant need for
information, CRS is forefront. We plan to enhance our online services--
be it podcasts, webcasts, or interactive discussions. For example,
mapping and spatial software will allow Congress to manipulate data to
determine the possible implications of legislative options for specific
populations, regions, industries or economic sectors. In addition to
providing Congress with analysis, this next step would make analytic
tools available for Congress and staff to use. Another example is a
legacy series that will capture the knowledge and institutional memory
of our experts before they retire, further preserving their valuable
analysis for the Congress and their successors.
conclusion
I wish to thank the Congress for its continuing support for CRS. In
keeping with the current fiscal realities, the CRS budget request for
fiscal year 2008 does not seek additional funds to support program
growth. The Service seeks your support for the mandatory pay increases
for CRS staff and price-level increases for goods and services.
These funds will allow CRS to continue serving the legislative
needs of the 110th Congress.
______
Prepared Statement of Marybeth Peters, The Register of Copyrights,
Copyright Office
Madam Chairwoman, Senator Allard, and other members of the
Subcommittee: Thank you for the opportunity to present the Copyright
Office's fiscal year 2008 budget request.
The Copyright Office is completing its reengineering project which
you have generously supported for the past seven years. In fiscal year
2008 we are returning $10.1 million in non-recurring funding from the
Basic Fund that was used for this project. Renewal receipts are
decreasing by $850,000. Our mandatory and price level request is $3.4
million, and we request a temporary $1 million increase in offsetting
collections authority to use receipts in the no-year account to fund
the Office's Records Preservation Project. The net effect of these
requests is a $6.6 million decrease in the Copyright Office Basic fund.
In addition, we request a $5.6 million decrease in permanent net
appropriations spending authority and a corresponding permanent
increase in offsetting collections spending authority due to the July
1, 2006, fee increases that bring in more annual receipts. The net
impact on the total spending authority is zero.
The Office requests the elimination of the CARP fund since these
program activities have been transferred to the Copyright Royalty
Judges, an independent entity under the Librarian of Congress. We also
request mandatories and price levels for the Licensing Division.
I will discuss these requests in more detail, after I provide some
brief highlights of the Office's work and an overview of our
accomplishments in reengineering.
review of copyright office work
Policy and Legal Activities
We continue to work closely with the Senate Committee on the
Judiciary; this year the focus is on ``orphan works,'' that is
photographs, text and other content for which a user cannot identify or
locate the copyright owner. At the request of Senators Leahy and Hatch,
the Office conducted a year long study of the problems and potential
solutions. Our report, delivered in January 2006, recommended a new
section 514 which would allow a good faith user to proceed to use such
a work following a reasonably diligent search to locate the copyright
owner. If the copyright owner emerged, he would receive reasonable
compensation from the user, except in one limited situation. Although
no bill was introduced in the Senate last year, the Senate Subcommittee
on Intellectual Property held a hearing on April 6, 2006, on our
recommended solution; the Associate Register for Policy and
International Affairs, the primary drafter of the report, represented
the Office. We expect a bill to be introduced in the Senate in the not
to distant future, and we are hopeful that it will be enacted.
The Copyright Office participated in numerous multilateral,
regional, and bilateral negotiations and U.S. delegations to meetings
of international organizations in fiscal year 2006. This included
heading the U.S. delegation to the 14th and 15th sessions of the World
Intellectual Property Organization's Standing Committee on Copyright
and Related Rights, which considered the draft basic proposal for a
treaty on the protection of broadcasting organizations.
The Office also continued to assist the Justice Department in a
number of important court cases related to copyright or with
significant copyright implications, including cases on the
copyrightability of settlement prices, the constitutionality of various
provisions of the copyright law, refusal to register certain claims,
and Supreme Court cases raising antitrust issues.
Registration and Recordation
During fiscal year 2006, the Copyright Office received 594,125
claims to copyright covering more than a million works and registered
520,906 claims, including 20,434 registrations submitted
electronically. We recorded 13,016 documents covering more than 350,000
titles of works. During the year, the Office transferred 1,120,791
copies of registered and nonregistered works valued at more than $41
million to the Library of Congress for its collections.
Public Information and Education
The Office logged more than 31 million external hits on key pages
of its website during the year--a six percent increase over the
previous year. In fiscal year 2006, the Office responded to 338,831
requests for direct reference services, and assisted 8,886 members of
the public in person, taking in 12,758 registration applications and
2,463 documents for recordation. The Office answered 106,141 telephone
inquiries, 8,380 letter requests, and 29,795 email requests for
information from the public.
In response to public requests, the Office searched 12,792 titles
and prepared 832 search reports and assisted 8,886 visitors to the
Copyright Card Catalog. The Office published twenty issues of NewsNet,
an electronic news update about the Copyright Office and copyright-
related activities, to 6,333 subscribers.
Licensing Activities
The Licensing Division collected nearly $227 million in royalty
payments during fiscal year 2006 and distributed royalties totaling
more than $191 million. The division worked on developing options for
electronic filing for cable Statements of Account to be tested in a
pilot e-filing program, scheduled for fiscal year 2007.
reengineering program
The Copyright Office has many to thank for the support we have had
during the past seven years for our Reengineering Program initiative.
We especially thank the Committee for the support you have given us
through appropriations; we thank the Architect of the Capitol for their
dedication to completing the facilities work on time and within budget;
and we thank the Library's infrastructure units, the labor
organizations, and our own staff, whose support has been crucial to our
success.
Online service is at the heart of improvements coming to the Office
as part of this major reengineering effort. The Copyright Office of the
future is scheduled to arrive this year with the full implementation of
eCO, the electronic Copyright Office, which combines the efficiency and
cost savings of an integrated, enterprise-wide information system with
the reach of the World Wide Web. The eCO system will improve the
timeliness of our services, increase public access to copyright
records, and provide better tracking of individual items in the
workflow. At the same time, eCO will greatly enhance our ability to
acquire digital works for the Library's collections. This is
particularly important since we expect the number of ``born digital''
works submitted for deposit to trend upward indefinitely.
The Office's implementation efforts in fiscal year 2006 continued
to focus on the three components that support the reengineered
processes: information technology, facilities, and organization.
Because the three components are interconnected and the Office must
provide uninterrupted customer service, the Office will implement all
components at one time when it switches to new processes in 2007.
Information Technology
At that time, the Office will release eCO Service to the public who
can submit applications, deposits, and fees electronically through a
portal on the Copyright Office website. This will reduce the paperwork
and the effort involved in submitting an application and, as a further
incentive, we are proposing to offer a reduced fee for this online
registration. A copy of the work being registered can also be uploaded
along with the electronic application or submitted separately in hard
copy according to the Library's best edition regulation. In addition to
reducing the burden for the applicant, online registration will also
reduce the cost to the Copyright Office in the long term. For
applicants who choose not to use the eCO Service, we will also put in
place the capability to process paper applications.
Enhanced online search capability for Copyright Office records will
be implemented in 2007 for searching registrations and recordations
created since 1978. The eCO Search feature will have the look and feel
of the Library's bibliographic record system. The copyright record will
clearly delineate the information provided by the applicant and the
bibliographic information taken from the deposit copy.
During fiscal year 2008, the Office will refine the information
technology processes through adjustments and reconfiguration of the
software. Despite the testing and pilot processing that has been done
and will continue, the first year of use may be a challenging year as
the system is exercised under full load. A help desk will be available
to staff and the public to assist them in their use of the new system.
Organization
On the organization front, the Copyright Office presented its
reorganization package to the Library's Office of Human Resources
Services on November 20, 2006. The package included the plan for the
reorganization and 125 new position descriptions that were created to
align job duties with our new business processes under reengineering.
The Librarian reviewed and approved the reorganization package and
implementation will begin almost immediately in order to have staffing
completed in time for the move back to the Madison Building. The Office
must bargain any impact of the reorganization with the labor
organizations.
Training has already begun to provide staff with skills needed in
their new positions and will intensify in the spring of 2007. For the
past 16 months, examiners and catalogers have been cross-trained to be
able to perform both duties in the new registration specialist
position. The Office hired a Training Specialist in 2006 and she
refined the Training Plan to include methods for training 35 trainers
who will in turn train the staff in eCO. Training in soft skills, such
as effective communication and team building, was required of the
entire staff involved in the reorganization.
Facilities
The project passed two major milestones in fiscal year 2006. First,
nearly all staff and contractors moved to swing space locations to
permit the renovation of Copyright Office space in the Madison
Building. Approximately 75 percent moved to temporary swing space in
Crystal City in July 2006; others moved to swing space within the
Capitol Hill complex; and a few remained in place until the new space
was ready for occupancy. Second, after years of planning, the Architect
of the Capitol began the renovation of Copyright Office space in the
Madison Building. The Architect of the Capitol is making great progress
and remains on schedule to complete the renovation of Copyright Office
space in the Madison Building this year. Of particular note, the new
Copyright Public Record Reading Room, which houses the Office's card
catalog comprising some 30,000 individual catalog drawers in 1,234
cabinets, opened to the public on December 11th of last year. Most
Office staff that remained on Capitol Hill during the renovation have
already moved into their newly renovated space, and staff currently
working in temporary office space in Crystal City will move back to the
Madison Building beginning June 1 and ending August 10, 2007.
fiscal year 2008 budget request
Reengineering
No new funding is needed for reengineering in fiscal year 2008.
Rather, the Office is reducing its offsetting collections authority for
reengineering by $6.1 million and its net appropriation authority by
$4,036,000 for a total reduction of $10.1 million since most of the
reengineering program will be completed in fiscal year 2007 except for
the IT system, which will be completed in fiscal year 2008 with
adjustments and reconfiguration of the software as necessary.
Renewal Receipts
With respect to renewal registrations, the Office is reducing its
offsetting collections authority by $850,000 and reducing staff by five
due to the fact that the number of renewal registrations will decrease
significantly in fiscal year 2007 and remain at that level or lower
from that point on.
When renewal registration was required, the Office annually
registered approximately 52,000 claims. Since the enactment of the
automatic renewal provision in 1992, the number of renewal claims has
decreased each year. In fiscal year 2006, the Office received
approximately 8,782 renewal claims bringing in fees of approximately
$531,305. In fiscal year 2007, we believe that amount will drop to
about $150,000 and continue at that level or lower in fiscal year 2008
and thereafter.
Adjustment of Fees
The Office requests an increase in offsetting collections spending
authority of $5.6 million that is matched by a reduction in net
appropriation spending authority of $5.6 million due to an increase in
its fees in July 2006. In accordance with 708 of the copyright law,
the Office completed a cost study and, for services specifically
enumerated in 708(a)(1)-(9) (statutory fees), submitted the cost
study and proposed fee schedule increase to Congress on March 1, 2006.
The major change was the increase in the basic registration fee from
$30 to $45. Congress took no action and the Office implemented the new
fees. The new fees are projected to bring in an additional $5.6 million
in receipts.
On February 21, 2007, the Office submitted a second cost study,
entitled ``Analysis and Proposed Copyright Fee Adjustments,'' to
Congress. The key proposal is a lower fee of $35 for electronic
registration. The Copyright Office plans to implement the use of the
lower fee service on or after July 1, 2007, to coincide with its
transition to the new, reengineered processes and the initiation of eCO
Service. The lower fee for electronic filings has been proposed for two
reasons. First, the proposed fee adjustment for basic registration
filings is being adopted in anticipation of lower processing costs
which will be realized once the Office has had an opportunity to fully
integrate the new processes. Electronic filings will be processed in
fewer steps than paper filings and thus represent a savings to the
Office. Moreover, a lower fee will provide applicants with a strong
incentive to file electronically.
The impact of electronic filing on the Office will not be known for
at least one year. Until that time the Office will be unable to project
any fee or staff adjustments.
Copyright Records Preservation
The Office requests $1 million in offsetting collections authority
to use no-year receipts to fund the digitization of 70 million pre-1978
copyright records. The key objectives of this record digitization
project are (1) disaster preparedness preservation of pre-1978 public
records and (2) provision of online access to those public records.
Copyright records are vital to the mission of the Library and the
Copyright Office and they are important to the public and the copyright
industries that are a significant part of the global economy. The pre-
1978 records document the ownership and copyright status of millions of
creative works. Loss of these sole-copy public records due to a site
disaster would trigger a complex and expensive intellectual property
ownership dilemma.
The first stage would cost approximately $6 million over a six year
period and would achieve the preservation goal and very basic online
access. The second stage would add item level indexing, enhanced
searching and retrieval, costing between $5 million and $65 million
depending on the extent of fields indexed.
CARP
With respect to CARP, the Office is reducing its offsetting
collections authority by $297,000 and terminating the CARP Fund.
conclusion
Madam Chairwoman, I ask you to support the fiscal year 2008
Copyright Office budget request for the Basic and Licensing
Appropriations of $50.1 million for a permanent decrease in the
Copyright appropriations of $6.6 million. Our request includes a non-
recurring funding for the Records Preservation Project.
I thank the Congress for its past support of the Copyright Office
requests and for your consideration of this request in this challenging
time of transition and progress.
LIBRARY ROLE IN DYNAMIC INFORMATION AGE
Senator Landrieu. The vote was just called, but we have
about 10 or 15 minutes before we have to walk over, so we'll
address our questions, and then anything that you all want to
submit for the record, please do. And I want to meet with you
all personally, in some depth, about some of these issues.
Because I want to go on record, as the Chair of this
subcommittee that, I don't believe the Library of Congress
should be a museum for books.
I believe it should be a leader in a dynamic information
age, and I want to support you in that. And I realize that
we've had quite a few setbacks with the continuing resolution
last year.
But we've got to find a path, reasonable path, forward, and
I'm committed to help you do that. I'm not exactly sure how
we're going to do it, but I'm personally committed to help you
figure it out.
BOOKS FOR THE BLIND
I also want to say, since our time is short, that I've
worked with the Federation of the Blind personally now for many
years. I'm very familiar with some of their leaders that are
here today. I realize that the machine that exists today is
very outdated. Millions of visually impaired and handicapped
individuals have to use this machine now, and the fact is that
there are not many players that even use this kind of
technology. It reminds me of what my father still uses to
listen to music. He doesn't even have--you know, not every
household has an iPod.
But we need to move up, and I want to help you with that.
Again, we want to be careful, though, in purchasing
technologies with them changing so rapidly, that we'll be in 2
years, stuck with something that's outdated. So, I'd like to
ask you more questions about that at a later date.
Senator Allard, what are some of your questions?
Senator Allard. Thank you, Madam Chairman.
EVOLVING MISSION
You know, I don't want to see us just collecting books for
the sake of collecting books, but I think you need to keep
original, old editions, so that you have a good database of
information. And, I think you can use technology to make that
available for the public.
And I know that Dr. Billington has a huge challenge in
prioritizing everything that's going to come into that Library,
and how he's going to store it, and what he's making it
available to the public electronically, and I sympathize with
you. I know that in order to try and meet that challenge,
you've been doing some strategic planning, and I want to
compliment you on that effort. You've come up, I understand,
with a new 5-year strategic plan, and you have used that to
develop your 2008 budget, as I understand.
NEW STRATEGIC PLAN
Dr. Billington. Yes, it's informed by it, but we will
derive the 2009 budget from it. The 2008 budget has already
been informed by the new plan, with a reduction, for instance,
from 18 organization-centric goals of our previous plan to just
five strategic goals that are Library-wide. So, we're getting
the value of synergy, and we're deriving performance
evaluations from the plan. I know that GPRA is an interest of
yours----
Senator Allard. Here's my question, Dr. Billington--I'd
like to have some specific examples of items which were not
included in the budget as a result of your strategic planning,
can you provide us with those?
Dr. Billington. I'm sorry, I didn't quite understand the
question.
Senator Allard. Well, when you set your strategic plan in
place----
Dr. Billington. Yes.
Senator Allard [continuing]. Like you said, you started
with a list of 18 goals----
Dr. Billington. Sure.
BUDGET AND LIBRARY-WIDE GOALS
Senator Allard [continuing]. And you reduced that down to
five or so. I'd like to have an understanding of how you
arrived at the five that you have, or however many that you
have, but in order to get an understanding of how you arrived
at it, my question is this--what items did you not include in
your strategic plan?
Senator Landrieu. And, Doctor, if you want to answer that
you can, both of you can----
Dr. Billington. Well, Jo Ann Jenkins, our Chief Operating
Officer--she certainly can. If you're looking for a detailed
answer for the record----
Senator Allard. That's probably enough.
Dr. Billington. All I would say, in a general way, is that
we removed goals that were unit-specific, rather than Library-
wide. And therefore, in accordance with the five central
strategic goals--content, customer, outreach, organization, and
workforce--performance will be determined in accordance with
those goals, rather than with the greater multiplicity of goals
focused on individual organizations.
Now, Ms. Jenkins may wish to add to something more on that,
but we will give you a full account of exactly what was, what
was eliminated as a result of this reduction in goals.
Senator Allard. Okay.
Dr. Billington. With the increase in accountability,
together with the reduction of goals.
Senator Allard. And I realize that's a complicated
question, and you probably won't be able to provide us in
full----
Ms. Jenkins. We'll be more than happy to provide more
detailed information for the record. We have a very extensive
budget process, and provide recommendations to the executive
committee. We weed out probably 80 percent of all requests
before we come to the Appropriations Committee to request
funds. We'll be more than happy to share.
Senator Allard. And, like I say, I know you have a huge
challenge, and I am very empathetic to----
Dr. Billington. The result was reached in a process in
which everybody--including myself and Ms. Jenkins--were active
participants. All levels of the Library were represented.
Senator Allard. Well, that's important.
Dr. Billington. Yes, sir.
Senator Allard. I want to compliment you on that effort,
and----
Dr. Billington. We'll get you those specifics.
PERFORMANCE-BASED BUDGETING
Senator Allard. Now, the inspector general, when he did the
report on your performance-based budgeting, he stated that
you're off to a good start, but yet, there's still challenges
ahead that we've got to deal with, and anybody that's worked
with performance-based budgeting, knows that it isn't perfect
the first time you do it. It's something that grows, and it's
something that you learn to work with as you move forward.
I noticed that the Financial Officer disagreed with many of
the report's recommendations. For the record, can you provide
me a detailed description of how the Library will implement
those recommendations from the inspector general?
Dr. Billington. Ms. Jenkins.
Ms. Jenkins. The inspector general and myself and the Chief
Financial Officer (CFO) have met on all of the recommendations
that the inspector general reported. I believe that we have
reached agreement on how we will implement the recommendations
that the inspector general has put forward, from doing
performance-based budgeting to how that falls into our annual
performance planning. We have already automated for the Library
the entire, what we call the AP3, annual program performance
planning process, so it is now automated. The point that we're
trying to reach is the new levels of documentation of dollar
requests to which we can link specific performance indicators,
and we're trying to work with the financial accounting system
as to how we might track that. I think the inspector general
and CFO and myself have reached an agreement of how we will
reach that point that we can all live with.
NATIONAL DIGITAL INFORMATION INFRASTRUCTURE AND PRESERVATION PROGRAM
RESCISSION AND OTHER PRIORITIES
Senator Allard. Very good. And, I appreciate your initial
efforts on that.
Now, one more question.
You've asked for $21.5 million to be included in fiscal
year 2008 for the NDIIPP, the National Digital Information
Infrastructure and Preservation Program. With that being
included, your total budget would increase by about 22 percent
over the budget we're dealing with now, that's excluding that
rescission.
Are there lower-priority activities that you could cut from
your budget?
Dr. Billington. There are other things in the budget that
we didn't mention, because we tried to focus on several key
priorities.
But, I think projects like the Lincoln Exhibit are
essential. We've been cooperating with the Commission for the
Lincoln Bicentennial, and we have the basic Lincoln collection,
all online, so everyone can get to it. There are other elements
of the budget, I'm prepared to respond to them, but that was
one I would particularly mention, because, like other needs, it
cannot really wait. More than just the Library is involved.
Senator Allard. Well, you know, my staff may come back to
you on that.
Dr. Billington. Yes, we'd be happy to----
Senator Allard. The subcommittee staff may come back, and
try to work with you on that as we kind of filter through this
budget, so we can give you the maximum amount we can afford,
and get your highest priorities taken care of. And I think both
of us are very sensitive to the challenges you face. It's an
important institution in this country, but we want to come up
with the best program, and so----
Dr. Billington. We appreciate that, Senator.
Senator Allard. Thank you.
ADDITIONAL COMMITTEE QUESTIONS
Senator Landrieu. We thank you very much for your testimony
this morning, and look forward to working with you on the new
initiatives that you've outlined. And, again, I know that
you've got a very tough job, Dr. Billington, in working with
professional staff to expand the focus of the Library in a new
and emerging technological age. You've got a lot of demands on
you, but I've got confidence in your leadership and look
forward to working with you.
[The following questions were not asked at the hearing, but
were submitted to the Library for response subsequent to the
hearing:
Questions Submitted by Senator Wayne Allard
performance-based budgeting
Question. The Library's Inspector General released a report in
October on LOC's efforts in performance-based budgeting. The IG found
that LOC's efforts were ``a good start but much work remains.'' The IG
found that ``the Library's overall budget base is not being
``scrubbed.'' Given the enormous increase you are requesting, it is
critical the Library look at its ``base'' resources and determine
whether certain activities are not providing the outcomes we desire.
What are your plans to go back and more carefully assess the base
budget?
Answer. The Library of Congress has fully embraced the call to
implement the spirit of GPRA. We recently revised the Library's
Strategic Plan which engaged the Library's senior leadership, including
the Librarian, the Chief Operating Officer, the Executive Committee,
and senior managers, as well as a cross-section of the Library's
subject experts. This process represented an unprecedented level of
collaboration, cooperation, consultation and communication across the
Library. The new Strategic Plan focuses on long-term strategic results
with five Library-wide goals, replacing the previous strategic plan,
which had 18 organization-specific goals.
Since completing the new draft Strategic Plan, the Library has
implemented strategy mapping for all Library Service/Support Units to
link the draft Strategic Plan to our organizations' annual program
performance plans. We have also developed an automated database system
for managing the annual program performance plan process and ensuring
the strategy mapping links are retained in the annual plans. Finally,
we are developing a Management Dashboard to track monthly progress in
key Library infrastructure operations. The dashboard approach to
managing the Library's Strategic Plan and related goals, outcomes and
performance targets will eventually be implemented Library-wide.
The efforts detailed above represent the many significant steps the
Library has already taken to implement the spirit of GPRA, steps that
will ultimately lead to implementing performance-based budgeting (PBB).
Although the IG report indicated that ``much work still remains,'' the
Library has provided a plan for the next steps in implementing PBB, and
the IG has accepted the plan.
Implementing PBB is an iterative process, one that must be built on
a solid foundation. The Library has established that foundation in our
new draft Strategic Plan, in our Library-wide strategy mapping efforts,
in our automation of the annual program performance planning process,
and in our more recent efforts to use dashboards to reinforce
accountability to the Strategic Plan and to demonstrating results.
Other efforts will include a current Library initiative to improve
workforce performance management. The Workforce Performance Management
Initiative (WPMI) will ensure that workforce planning and management
takes the links between the Library's Strategic Plan and organizations'
annual performance plans and extends those linkages to the annual
performance plans of individual employees. This initiative will be
coordinated Library-wide, ensuring that workforce performance
management is a central element in the workforce transformation process
for the Library.
Another PBB next step will be the Library's effort to use the
direction of the new Strategic Plan and the structure of the annual
performance plans as the roadmap for formulating the fiscal year 2009
budget request. The five strategic plan goals will provide a framework
for analyzing, prioritizing, realigning (where necessary) and defending
both our base budget and any new and expanded requests. The annual
plans will provide strategies and measurable performance targets which
will be the basis for demonstrating results.
The budget formulation process will require each organization to
develop resource requirements in accordance with their annual program
performance plans and to identify base savings to offset the new and
expanded resource needs. Budget requests will be reviewed and approved
(or denied) by the Library's Operations Committee, under the direction
of the Chief Operating Officer, with recommendations for approval by
the Library's Executive Committee and the Librarian. In short, the
Library's fiscal year 2009 and future budget requests will fully
incorporate both the scrubbing of the base budget and the alignment of
resource needs with the goals of the Library's Strategic Plan.
Although we are outlining future steps for implementing the spirit
of GPRA at the Library and a more carefully mapped-out format for
performance-based budgeting, the Library can provide a number of
current examples of how we have been engaged in ongoing efforts to
``scrub'' our base budget numbers before going to Congress to request
additional resources. With respect to the ``enormous increase'' we have
requested in our fiscal year 2008 budget, we would argue that the
combined big-ticket items coming together in this one fiscal year's
(fiscal year 2008) budget request is the result of an unplanned and
unfortunate synchronicity of competing program priorities. Funds
requested for the Digital Talking Books request have been in planning,
with the full knowledge of the Appropriations Committees, for almost 17
years. The NDIIPP funding request comes as a result of the rescission
of $47 million in no-year funding that the Library was on the verge of
obligating. The Logistics Center request was a scrubbed resubmission of
the Library's fiscal year 2007 budget request. No amount of internal
base-budget scrubbing would enable the Library to simply reprogram and
absorb these important budget requests.
Finally, while the Library has set as its number one priority to
maintain current services funding levels, this funding request does
represent the results of a scrubbed budget at many levels throughout
the Library. Some examples of our internal efforts to analyze and
reprioritize our base budgets follow:
National Library--Basic (Library Services)
Library Services' internal budget development process is designed
to meet its highest priorities in an increasingly tight fiscal climate.
Library Services divisions submit itemized requests for all budget
needs, including contracts, travel, equipment, and new hires. Funding
for employees currently occupying positions are considered part of the
base.
Through this approach, Library Services has denied an approximate
total of $28 million in internal personal and non-personal requests for
the past three fiscal years. They have also limited over 215 vacancy
requests to internal postings; thus moving existing staff into
positions where the need was greatest, rather than hiring new staff
from outside the Library.
As part of the fiscal year 2007 Operating Plan, Library Services
moved $3.65 million from personnel compensation to GenPac acquisitions
to permit the purchase of collections now available that would
otherwise be lost to the Library and the Nation. Some of the planned
acquisitions are electronic resources that are needed to meet
Congressional needs, such as Jane's Information Group (definitive
reference source on defense, geopolitics, transport and police),
Science Direct (science, technology, and medicine full-text database),
and Historical Newspapers (online versions of New York Times and The
Washington Post). Secondly, special materials that are now in the hands
of private collectors are coming available and the Library must
purchase them now. Examples of such collections are the Tony Schwartz
Recorded Sound Collection, a unique collection of 30 years' worth of
off-air recordings of the sounds of New York City, everything from
street noises to campaign films and tapes, to speeches and press
conferences; the papers and photographs of African-American
photographer, Gordon Parks; and the Zinmann Collection of Americana, a
collection of rare American Colonial pamphlets.
Congressional Research Service
CRS incurs a significant personnel cost for research analysts
moving through our career ladder promotion plan (GS 11-GS 15) that is
not requested in the fiscal year 2008 budget. In order to fund this
cost, CRS eliminated lower priority pay requirements in the amount of
$155,000.
Rather than requesting additional funding from Congress, CRS made
major reductions to its Workspace Transformation Project for improving
space utilization and providing a more efficient office layout. The
desired plan would have required more than $1.5 million in supplemental
funding, with approximately half of that amount needed in the first two
years.
The manpower costs for support personnel are being reduced by
satisfying near-term needs with individuals hired in positions that
have NTE limits of one year or less. This provides the opportunity to
accomplish the work while taking steps to improve efficiency and reduce
future manpower requirements. Three individuals were hired on this
basis in fiscal year 2007 and the money needed for their pay and
benefits was budgeted for research analysts in fiscal year 2008.
Law Library
Each year the Library of Congress has attempted to identify and use
savings from all sources within the Library's S&E account to address an
urgently needed reclassification project critical to providing public
access to a significant portion of the Law Library's historic
collection.
Other Library S&E
While the Library has requested funding (including mandatory pay
and price level increases) to maintain current services funding levels,
the Library has repeatedly scoured its base funding in order to
identify resources to fund high priority initiatives internally and
without seeking additional funding from Congress. The following are
among the many examples of such scrubbing of the Library's base budget:
--This year the Library identified the need to perform an agency-wide
supervisory training program for all Library managers. This
program will cost the Library a total of $345,000, none of
which has been included in the budget request.
--Re-equipping the preservation lab in the Madison building.
Equipment required to establish a preservation research and
testing laboratory that meets requirements for a national
preservation program. All upgrades of preservation lab have
been accomplished with base funding--$2 million.
--Purchase of shelving and shelf equipment required to help maintain
the Library's collections and to help protect against potential
damage caused by improper housing of materials--$850,000.
--Books for the Blind and Physically Handicapped program purchase of
spare parts for cassette players. Manufacturer will no longer
make spare parts for these players. Purchase of existing spare
parts will provide sufficient inventory for cassette players as
Library transitions from analog to digital technology--$3.28
million.
--Contractual service support to automate the Library's patient
management system, to include digitization of medical records--
$145,000.
--Improve the Library's environmental and hazardous materials program
to meet regulations and requirements on handling and disposal
of hazardous waste--$80,000.
--Purchase of Escape Hoods for Library staff--$737,000.
--Human Resources contract for support for retirement benefit
counseling--$73,000.
--Purchase of digital video recorders to replace analog recorders in
reading rooms. Digital video recording technology enhances
security of collections and efficiency of staff time--$250,000.
Finally, as part of an effort to develop an enhanced budget
justification, the Library commits to identifying within the fiscal
year 2009 (and future) justifications, those specific areas of the
budget where programs and initiatives are being reduced in order that
other higher priority programs and initiatives may be funded.
ndiipp
Question. Dr. Billington, I understand that restoring funds to the
National Digital Information Infrastructure and Preservation Program is
now your highest priority. You have asked that $21.5 million be
included in fiscal year 2008 for NDIIPP. This would bring your total
budget to $682 million--a 22 percent increase over fiscal year 2007--
excluding the 2007 rescission. Are there lower-priority activities
which you could cut from your budget?
What has been accomplished to date with NDIIPP?
What would you do with the $21.5 million you are requesting?
Answer. The accomplishments of the national program to preserve the
nation's digital heritage are many.
National Digital Preservation Network.--The NDIIPP network of
partners has grown to 67 and, with restored funding, will grow to well
over 100 and include projects to assist the states in preserving
critical state records. This national network, which was Congress's
vision for NDIIPP, supports the catalytic basis for NDIIPP and ensures
that the sum of what is achieved is greater than the individual parts.
The Library is also working with other federal agencies such as GPO and
NARA and with the private sector.
Selecting, Collecting and Preserving Content.--Approximately 230
terabytes of born-digital information has been saved by current
partners and the Library. NDIIPP has worked with the Congressional
Research Service and Law Library to identify content of particular
interest to the national legislature. For example:
--The current partners are collecting and preserving information of
interest to Congress such as geospatial information, social
science datasets, foreign news broadcasts, judicial proceedings
and political Web sites.
--The Library has itself collected Web sites relating to national
elections, the Iraq war and Hurricane Katrina.
Technical Architecture.--To enable this information to be securely
saved, partners have identified models and standards that are flexible
and reliable, yet can be used by other institutions. For example:
--The San Diego Supercomputer Center (SDSC) is working with NDIIPP to
test the reliability of third-party storage of digital
materials. SDSC will host partners' digital content and
guarantee data integrity and access. This will enable the
NDIIPP partners to remotely access, manage, process, and
analyze that content.
Digital Preservation Research.--In concert with the National
Science Foundation, the Library has developed the first digital-
preservation research grants program. Ten university teams are:
--Working to ensure that what is preserved today does not become
inaccessible in the future due to format obsolescence.
--Exploring challenging topics, such as preserving rich oceanographic
data from hundreds of deep-sea submersible missions; automating
methods to describe digital objects and place them in secure
archival storage; testing how to preserve digital video when it
is first created; preserving complex three-dimensional digital
content such as engineering drawings.
Informing the Public.--The work of NDIIPP has helped to promote a
national conversation on the importance of preserving born digital
content--not only for archival institutions but also for the general
public. For example, major articles on NDIIPP and digital preservation
have appeared in:
--The Atlantic Monthly (September 2006)
--The Washington Times (April 26, 2007)
--National Public Radio's ``All Things Considered'' interviewed Laura
Campbell (October 2004) on NDIIPP
--New York Times (September 2004).
Outreach efforts have included:
--Workshops for all 50 states and territories
--Workshops for commercial content distributors and owners
--Workshops for archival institutions
--Workshops with computer scientists and technology companies to
address technical challenges.
The new NDIIPP Web site, which has been refocused to appeal to a
broader public, now offers a section on ``Preserving Your Digital
Memories'' at http://www.digitalpreservation.gov/you/
digitalmemories.html.
The $21.5 million would ensure the future viability of NDIIPP for
both current and future partners, by providing funding for:
--Current partners: to continue to select, collect and preserve
important born-digital content; and to continue development of
a technical infrastructure to provide tools and services to
support the network's preservation activities.
--Future partners: States Demonstration Projects will comprise four
multi-state initiatives to develop digital archives of at-risk
digital content needed as part of a national digital
collection. The goal is to build digital repositories among the
states and share in costs by leveraging scarce resources.
books for the blind
Question. GAO recently completed a review of the Library's $75
million plan to convert its books for the blind to digital format. No
one could disagree that the old cassette players are cumbersome and
outdated and need to be replaced with new technology. However, GAO
found that the Library's planning and analysis for the new digital
talking book was insufficient. The program is already underway, with
books being converted to the new ``flash memory'' format. Do GAO's
findings impact your $19 million budget request?
Is it too late to consider GAO's concerns?
What specifically will you do to incorporate GAO's recommendations?
Answer. The Digital Talking Books program has been carefully
planned over the last decade. Congress has been informed throughout the
process, and based on the plans for converting to digital technology,
the last order has been placed for analog machines. The $19 million
budget request will allow us to produce a sufficient number of new
digital players to meet the first year's needs of the users who depend
upon this service. The full $76.4 million is required to fulfill the
total requirement and to meet the legislative mandate of NLS.
We are carefully considering GAO's concerns. Deanna Marcum,
Associate Librarian for Library Services, met with Linda Koontz, head
of the GAO audit team, and Carrie Apostolou, Senate clerk, in April to
discuss the best way to proceed in light of the GAO briefing to the
Appropriations clerks. Ms. Koontz acknowledged that the flash
technology selected for the program is appropriate but noted that NLS
has not adequately analyzed commercial options and different
distribution systems.
The Library's chief concern is that the program is already in
progress. The last order for analog machines has been placed, and
without manufacturing new digital machines, we cannot provide equipment
to everyone who needs it.
Ms. Marcum agreed that the Library will carefully analyze the
broader questions raised by GAO, i.e., how can the new system
accommodate rapidly changing technology. GAO is concerned that it is
not practical today to try to design a system that has a long life span
and believes that the commercial sector is more likely than government
entities to incorporate technological improvements more quickly.
GAO was also concerned that NLS assumed the existing distribution
system rather than considering new methods. It is the case that NLS
assumed the continuing existence of the network of participating
libraries having an active role in the Digital Talking Books program.
The Library will consider other methods of distribution, but it will
also analyze the non-financial, non-technological aspects of having
such a network in place to serve the blind and physically handicapped
communities.
One of the questions that has been raised consistently is the size
of the user population. The Library is conducting the necessary
research to provide a definitive answer. The Library is also working
with experts to predict the likely changes in the user population over
the next several years.
These analyses will be carried out as quickly as possible, but they
must not impede the ongoing program of manufacturing new digital
players to meet immediate and critical needs of our users. Blind and
physically handicapped individuals have been eagerly awaiting this new
technology, and we cannot slow progress.
crs documents on ``gallery watch''
Question. CRS does not make its documents available to the public--
an issue some members have had concerns with. Yet a private
organization--``Gallery Watch''--has been able to retrieve CRS reports
and make them available to their subscribers. Please explain how these
taxpayer-funded reports end up being sold through Gallery Watch and
whether you are concerned about it.
Answer. Availability of CRS Products to the Public.--As set forth
in the Legislative Reorganization Acts, CRS was established as a shared
Legislative Branch resource, serving all Members and committees with
authoritative, objective, and non-partisan expertise across the full
range of legislative policy issues. It does so in a confidential
relationship--a congressional expectation that is clear not only from
the legislative history of its creation, but also from annual statutory
restrictions placed on publication of its work. The prohibition on
publication of CRS products without oversight committee approval has
appeared in the annual appropriations acts for the Legislative Branch
for more than fifty years. This provision is intended to preserve the
role of CRS as a confidential resource solely available to the
Congress. The appropriations acts, supplemented by congressional
guidance that CRS has received over the years and supported by judicial
opinions, leaves to the Members and committees the decision whether, on
a selective basis, to place CRS products in the public domain. Members
have long made CRS products available to interested persons either
directly, by inclusion in congressional publications, or more recently
through their office or committee web sites.
Wholesale public dissemination raises several policy, legal, and
institutional concerns. Principle among these is the danger of placing
CRS, a support agency, in an intermediate position between Members and
their constituents instead of preserving the direct relationship
between constituents and their elected representatives. This threatens
the dialog on policy issues between Members and those they represent
that was envisioned by the Constitution. Further, there is a
significant risk that wide publication could over time affect the
mission and congressional focus of the Service, resulting in products
being written with a large public audience in mind and no longer
focused solely on congressional needs. Wholesale dissemination would
inevitably generate a significant number of comments, questions, and
concerns from the public regarding content. In addition to placing a
burden on congressional offices, responding to such correspondence
would require CRS to shift significant resources away from direct
service to the Congress.
There is also a very real concern that the current judicial and
administrative perception of CRS as adjunct congressional staff might
be altered by congressional authorization of systematic release of CRS
products. Such action might put at risk speech or debate protections
critical to the maintenance of confidentiality. The Speech or Debate
Clause of the Constitution has been interpreted to grant broad immunity
to Members and their aides when activity occurs in the performance of
``legislative acts.'' Widespread dissemination of products to the
general public would likely be viewed by the courts as an exercise of
Congress' representational or informing function for which speech or
debate immunity would not be available. Of major concern has been the
extent to which a policy permitting significant public dissemination of
CRS products might render the protection that the Service currently
enjoys under the umbrella of this constitutional protection of Members
inapplicable to communications with CRS. Stated simply, if the Service
were to become generally known to frequently distribute products
directly to the general public, it might lose these constitutional
protections regarding even its confidential work, doing irreparable
harm to its working relationship with congressional clients.
A frequent lament of proponents of public access to CRS work is
that taxpayers fund CRS and therefore deserve to have access to its
products. This is an effective ``sound bite'', but the reality is that
Congress appropriates funds for CRS to ensure the most effective
research and analytical support for its legislative activities. Just as
with Member and committee office staff, Congress' confidential
relationship with CRS is critical to that support. It is in this way
that Congress and the American taxpayer get the most for their
investment.
GalleryWatch.--CRS does not know how GalleryWatch (which is in
partnership with Penny Hill Press) obtains its reports. Over the years
the Service has made efforts to determine whether the source of CRS
products for outside parties is internal to the organization or
elsewhere in the congressional community. Whenever CRS has done so (on
one occasion at the request of an oversight committee and on another at
its own initiative, and with the help of the Library's Office of the
Inspector General), the Service has been assured that there was no
evidence of improper activities by its own or other Library employees.
CRS also has found no basis for concern that its electronic systems
might have been compromised and that access to its products has been
gained through intrusion into CRS or library systems that are well
protected by firewalls. As a result of these efforts, CRS has concluded
that it is likely, though not certain, that the source is a person or
persons with access to the CapNet and the CRS Web Site, who thereby is
able to download products and convey them to a third party (e.g.,
GalleryWatch). The source could therefore work in any congressional
office or for one of the Legislative Branch sister agencies--i.e.,
anyone with access to the CRS Website.
CRS products are not copyrighted, and are not in the public domain
unless and until released by a Member or his/her staff. Any effort to
curtail or punish an identified congressional source of the report's
dissemination would likely require proof that not only were the
products provided, but also evidence of additional factors such as
receiving payment for the service, unlawful use of government
equipment, use of official time, violation of ethics rules, etc.
As to the comprehensiveness of the GalleryWatch inventory, it
appears that they have a regular source that provides reasonably timely
copies of our reports. There are gaps however, and some reports do not
reflect the most recent updating. CRS continues to have concerns
regarding this phenomenon, but it believes that even though many of its
reports are made available in this way, it is still in the interest of
the Congress to preserve the direct communication between Members and
their constituents regarding their policy deliberations and positions.
The Service also believes that it is important to preserve an
enforceable policy of confidentiality and the role of CRS experts as
adjunct staff.
crs earmark reporting policy
Question. Recently CRS changed its policy with regard to reporting
on earmarks. Can you explain what the policy is and why it was changed?
Answer. On February 22, 2007, Director Mulhollan issued a new
policy statement explaining why CRS will no longer identify earmarks
for individual programs, activities, entities, or individuals. It also
stated that, at the request of Congress, CRS can provide information on
the allocation or distribution of funds for programs and activities
where the allocation or distribution is clear from the public
documents, such as the Appropriations Committee reports or the
Administration's budget justifications. CRS also will continue to
conduct research in the Legislative Information System and other
automated systems to identify where funding is specified for particular
entities noting limitations of this methodology.
Recent congressional and executive actions make it unnecessary and
impractical for CRS to attempt to identify earmarks in appropriations
or other laws. In January 2007, the House, Senate, and Office of
Management and Budget (OMB) took actions to define, compile, and
disclose comprehensive information on earmarks. Specifically, the House
agreed to a rules change (H. Res. 6, 404); the Senate passed a bill
including rules changes, which has been sent to the House (S. 1, 103);
and OMB issued a memorandum for the heads of departments and agencies.
CRS determined that these developments made obsolete their research
using definitions and methodologies different than those contained in
the legislation and OMB memorandum. Additionally, it is not possible
for CRS to conduct research on earmarks using the definitions set out
by the House, Senate, and OMB. For instance, the House and Senate
definition of earmark is (in part) that it is a provision or report
language included primarily at the request of a Member, a criterion of
which CRS would not have knowledge.
When Congress has determined to use committees or other sub-
entities in enforcement of its rules, it has clearly defined their
roles (e.g., the two ethics committees, or an impeachment investigatory
entity). The congressional rulemaking process is enshrined in the
Constitution; Article I, sec. 5, empowers each House to ``determine the
rules of its proceedings.'' The courts have held that Congress is the
arbiter of the scope and interpretation of its own rules and the
exercise of its rulemaking authority is insulated to a large degree
from judicial review and other outside interference. Separation of
powers animates this balance but it also serves to underscore the
plenary nature of congressional rules in ordering the internal
operations of Congress, its Members and subunits. The House rule and
the Senate proposed rule (contained in S. 1) governing earmarks, vest
the responsibilities in the committees and subcommittees. It would not
be appropriate for CRS--an entity of the Congress that serves as its
adjunct staff--to embark on work that would duplicate the
responsibilities described in the rules and, even worse, potentially
cause confusion in an area in which the body is seeking clarity.
There is another aspect of earmark research that was considered in
establishing this new policy. Earmarks are being defined by both Houses
as provisions that are requested by specific Members. The reports
required of the requesting Member and the committees include
identification of the Member and related financial interests in the
project or activity of the Member and his or her family. Thus, each
earmark is linked to the Member requesting it, and the rules place
certain obligations on that Member which become part of the public
record. CRS is prohibited by a long-standing direction of the Joint
Committee on the Library from doing research concerning a Member at the
behest of another Member. We studiously avoid being placed in a
position of collecting information on specific Members or their
activities, even basic reference information. While we do at times
assist the ethics committees or special investigatory committees with
questions of law and the applicability of rules of conduct, our work is
carefully generalized and is prepared in a way that is not linked to
individual Members.
teaching with primary sources
Question. In 2006, permanent authorization was included in the
legislative branch appropriations bill for the ``Teaching with Primary
Sources'' program--formerly known as Adventure of the American Mind.
This program has been very successful in Colorado, first at Metro State
University and now at Northern Colorado University, teaching educators
how to use the Library of Congress' online material in their
curriculum. Can you describe how you plan to change the program, to
broaden its reach to more teachers nationwide?
Answer. The Library seeks to broaden the Teaching with Primary
Sources (TPS) program by piloting a regional-center model to award a
large number of small grants to new partners in neighboring states,
encouraging geographic growth of the program. These regional centers
will be located at Metro State University, at Illinois State
University, at Waynesburg College in Pennsylvania, and at a location to
be determined in the South.
Additionally, an exportable TPS program curriculum will be
published this fall and available for download on the TPS Web site,
allowing all interested educational institutions to implement the
program. An online version of the TPS course will be piloted this
summer and available to educators nationwide this fall.
logistics center
Question. The Library is requesting $43.9 million for a logistics
facility. This project was included in last year's AOC budget request
but did not get funded. During last year's hearing, we raised questions
about the high cost of the proposed facility. We understand that costs
have been reduced, but most of the reductions are due to cost
deferrals. Does the Library have any further plans to look at the total
cost of the proposed logistics center?
Answer. At the request of the Senate Appropriations Clerk during
the fiscal year 2007 budget cycle and in response to concerns expressed
by the Library's Inspector General, the Library worked closely with the
Architect of the Capitol to review and reduce where possible the
Library's program and facility requirements, construction costs, and
AOC markup costs. Reductions of $12.2 million are reflected in the
$43.9 million fiscal year 2008 budget request. A recap of actual cost
reductions and deferrals appears below.
Looking for ways to further reduce the total project cost in fiscal
year 2008, the Library and the AOC have again reviewed the construction
cost estimate, contingencies, and markup to ensure all possible savings
have been identified. To this end, the AOC has agreed to consider a
construction management plan that utilizes AOC staff rather than
outsourcing. The Library is confident the AOC can successfully execute
the project with in-house staff, and cites recent and sustained success
in construction of Library projects at Fort Meade, NAVCC and the
Copyright Office renovation project on Capitol Hill as evidence
thereof.
Recap of actual cost reductions and deferrals captured in the
fiscal year 2007 budget cycle:
--LOC program reductions of $3 million include elimination of a water
leak detection system, elimination of COOP space fit-out, and
removal of furnishings, folding partitions and appliances.
--AOC markup reductions of $2.4 million were achieved by
restructuring some aspects of project oversight. The U.S. Army
Corps of Engineers reduced their fee for construction
management by accepting a flat fee rather than a percentage of
construction cost, saving $825,474. The AOC plans to hire two
temporary employees for project management rather than
outsourcing this service, saving $1,605,563. The AOC has agreed
to consider all possible savings that could be realized using
in-house staff rather than outsourcing. As outlined above, we
are confident the AOC can successfully execute the project
using internal resources.
--Eliminating shelving from the contract for construction reduces
initial cost by $6.81 million and results in cost reductions of
$430,000. Savings are realized by purchasing shelving in fiscal
year 2010 under a separate AOC contract--outside of the
contract for construction--resulting in cost deferral of $6.38
million (includes cost escalation to fiscal year 2010).
--The $43.9 million fiscal year 2008 budget request reflects $12.2
million in LOC and AOC reductions, plus an amount added for
cost escalation resulting from delay.
space utilization
Question. Three years ago, the Library's Inspector General
recommended there be an evaluation of the space utilization in reading
rooms. Today this evaluation still has not been completed. What
progress has the Library made so far in addressing the recommendations
in that IG report? What are the Library's milestones for completing
this evaluation and making decisions on better utilizing reading room
space?
Answer. In March 2004, the Library of Congress' Office of the
Inspector General issued Final Audit Report No. 2003-PA-104, Reading
Room Space Allocations Should be Re-evaluated. To produce the report,
the IG staff conducted a careful audit of floor space considerations in
the Library's 23 reading rooms, 16 of which are under the jurisdiction
of Library Services. They noted a significant decline in the numbers of
patrons visiting the reading rooms since 1993 and as a result,
concluded that an underutilization of floor space may have resulted
from this decline. However, a lack of consistent and useful statistical
data collected by the Library made it difficult to reach definitive
conclusions and make strong recommendations as to the potential
reallocation of reading room floor space--based on costs, benefits, and
other considerations--to offices and collections storage.
The Report's first general recommendation was: obtain more accurate
and useful reading room usage data. As a result, on January 3, 2006,
all Library Services reading rooms instituted a similar method to
measure utilization, resulting in the accumulation of consistent data.
All readers are requested to sign in using a daily register kept at the
entry of all reading rooms. The register records the patron's name, the
time and date of entry, and in many cases his/her research subject. The
number of readers accessing the collections through the various reading
rooms is now based strictly on the number of daily registrants; hourly
counts are no longer made, nor are directional queries tabulated. All
divisions report quarterly statistics related to reading room use in an
accurate, consistent, and useful manner. Management is now in a
position to compare statistics fairly and to make informed decisions as
to resource allocation.
The second general recommendation was: analyze reading room
requirements. In the 2004 report, the auditors stated that (a) reading
room space should be used more efficiently, and (b) Saturday hours
should be reconsidered. Efficiency is an essential goal in our public
service of the Library's collections--the largest repository of
recorded knowledge in the widest variety of languages and formats in
human history. Library Services' 16 reading rooms serve the Library's
general, area studies, and special format collections--some 129.5
million items (excluding the Law Library). As points of access to these
vast and disparate collections, the reading rooms are complex
organizations of human and material resources, not measurable only in
terms of floor space.
Each individual reading room--for example, the Geography and Map
and the Local History and Genealogy rooms--not only serves research
materials specific to a subject or a format, but also, through a
dedicated staff of scholarly experts, provides in-depth reference
services to patrons. Since the Library collects and makes accessible
information resources in some 470 ancient and modern languages, the
reference and subject specialists of the four international area
studies divisions speak, read, and provide assistance in a wide variety
of languages. In the African and Middle Eastern Division reading room,
recognized as a major world resource center for information on Africa,
the Middle East, the Caucasus, and Central Asia, multilingual staff
members serve materials from 78 countries recorded in some 35 different
languages. Their colleagues in the Asian Division reading room serve
textual materials in some 100 languages.
Moreover, a majority of the individual reading rooms are
deliberately co-located with the collections they serve, not only to
ensure efficiency of public service, but also to provide maximum
security for Gold and Platinum-level collections. For example, the
Prints and Photographs Division has custody of pictorial materials with
a value of $2.2 billion. Its collections storage areas are highly
secured and reference staff in the adjacent reading room is carefully
trained in format-specific, safe handling techniques, and also in
observing patrons to ensure items are not damaged through use or lost
through theft. The same conditions of public service efficiency and
collections security apply equally to the Music, Manuscript, Map, and
Rare Book division reading rooms. The Main Reading Room in the
Jefferson Building and the Science and Business Reading Room in the
Adams Building do not serve secured, high value special collections.
Instead, they are the access points for the general collections.
In recent years, a decline in on-site readership has been
experienced by all research libraries. In the digital age, much
information (not all of it accurate or authentic) can be easily
obtained via the Internet. However, only a tiny fraction of the
Library's collections have been digitized. For example, some 11 million
digital images of primary source documents (i.e., photographs,
manuscript pages, maps) are available online, but only 2,000 of the
Library's 29 million books have been scanned so that their full text
can be read remotely. To gain full access to the nation's strategic
reserve of recorded knowledge, readers must still come to Congress'
library and to its various and specialized reading rooms. To make those
available resources more widely known and attractive to the American
people, the Library in general--and in particular the divisions of the
Collections and Services Directorate--must increase public outreach.
As a destination, the Library of Congress will be transformed once
the tunnel from the Capitol Visitor Center is opened. The number of
visitors is estimated to double to 2.8 million. New exhibits and
educational experiences in the Jefferson Building will greatly expand
the public's knowledge of the Library's magnificent resources. With the
inauguration of the New Visitor Experience (NVE) in 2008, we intend to
offer scheduled tours of the Jefferson Building reading rooms to make
people aware of the Library's unsurpassed collections and reference
services. This will likely have a direct impact in augmenting the
number of readers, but we will need to verify such an increase through
statistical analysis. The NVE will provide new ways to assess and
optimize reading room space.
Nonetheless, Library Services has already studied ways to make more
efficient use of existing reading room space throughout the Library.
However, we recognize the reprogramming of specialized spaces to new
programmatic uses--including the installation of wireless technology to
enable patrons to access Internet-based information resources such as
electronic databases--will be a highly complicated and expensive task.
Large collections will have to be shifted within a stack environment
that is already overcrowded. But plans are now underway to enlarge the
Performing Arts Reading Room--to date, serving Music Division
collections--to incorporate service of the motion picture and recorded
sound collections of the Motion Picture, Broadcasting & Recorded Sound
Division, whose staff is presently being relocated to the Library of
Congress' Packard Campus (NAVCC) in Culpeper, Virginia. Options to
consolidate some separate reading rooms into the Main Reading Room are
also being explored, as is the possibility of creating a centralized
service point for all distributed microform collections. However, given
the overriding need to provide efficient and secure service of the
Library's disparate collections, and specialized and multilingual
reference assistance, there will always be a requirement to have
numerous reading rooms.
One of the recommendations of the Final Audit Report was to develop
a decision model for determining reading room, as well as office and
collections storage, space requirements. However, Library Services
decided to continue to use existing pragmatic decision models for
determining such requirements. Determining the efficient use of all
Library spaces, both on-site and off, will soon be enhanced by the
introduction of a new, electronic planning tool--a Web-based Computer
Assisted Facility Management (CAFM) program--now being populated with
data and tested by Facility Design & Construction, Facility Services,
Integrated Support Services.
The single most important milestone for completing an evaluation of
reading room space is the effect on the Library's programs of the NVE,
due to open in the Jefferson Building in 2008. With the increase in
visitors and an expanded awareness of the Library's research resources,
we anticipate a rise in readership and need to at least maintain
current levels of service in the reading rooms. At the same time, there
may be an institutional demand for more existing spaces to be
programmed for exhibits. This will necessitate re-evaluating the use of
present reading rooms. Square footage is but one of a complex of
resources and requirements to ensure effective service in a reading
room. Nonetheless, it is a primary consideration for Library Services
as we continually adjust our collections and public service in an
environment of physical, societal and technological change.
CONCLUSION OF HEARINGS
Senator Landrieu. Meeting recessed.
[Whereupon, at 10:49 a.m., Thursday, May 3, the hearings
were concluded, and the subcommittee was recessed, to reconvene
subject to the call of the Chair.]