[Senate Hearing 114-]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
LEGISLATIVE BRANCH APPROPRIATIONS FOR FISCAL YEAR 2017
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U.S. Senate,
Subcommittee of the Committee on Appropriations,
Washington, DC.
DEPARTMENTAL WITNESSES
[Clerk's note.--The subcommittee did not hold formal
hearings for the Government Publishing Office, Office of
Compliance, Open World Leadership Center, and the Office of the
Secretary of the Senate. Following are the statements submitted
by them:]
U.S. GOVERNMENT PUBLISHING OFFICE
Prepared Statement of Davita Vance-Cooks, Director
gpo's appropriations request for fiscal year 2017
Madam Chairwoman and Members of the Subcommittee on Legislative
Branch Appropriations, I have the honor to transmit herewith the
appropriations request of the U.S. Government Publishing Office (GPO)
for fiscal year 2017.
The U.S. Government Publishing Office.--As an agency of the
Legislative Branch, the U.S. Government Publishing Office (GPO) is the
OFFICIAL, DIGITAL, SECURE resource for producing, procuring,
cataloging, indexing, authenticating, disseminating, and preserving the
official information products of the Federal Government.
Under Title 44 of the U.S. Code, GPO is responsible for publishing
the information products of all three branches of the Federal
Government, including the official publications of Congress and the
White House, U.S. passports for the Department of State, and the
official publications of other Federal agencies and the courts. Once
primarily a printing operation, we are now an integrated publishing
operation and carry out our mission using an expanding range of digital
as well as conventional formats. Congress and the President recognized
this change in our operations in the Consolidated and Continuing
Appropriations Act for Fiscal Year 2015 (Public Law 113-235), which
contains a provision re-designating GPO's official name as the
Government Publishing Office. GPO currently employs about 1,700 staff.
Along with sales of publications in digital and tangible formats to
the public, GPO supports openness and transparency in Government by
providing permanent public access to Federal Government information at
no charge through our Federal Digital System (FDsys, at www.fdsys.gov),
which today makes more than 1 million Federal titles available online
from both GPO and links to servers in other agencies. In 2015 FDsys
averaged 47 million retrievals per month, with a spike up to 52.9
million retrievals in August 2015. We also provide public access to
Government information through partnerships with 1,159 Federal,
academic, public, law, and other libraries nationwide participating in
the Federal Depository Library Program.
In addition to GPO's Web site, gpo.gov, we communicate with the
public routinely via Facebook facebook.com/USGPO, Twitter twitter.com/
USGPO, YouTube youtube.
com/user/gpoprinter, Instagram instagram.com/usgpo, LinkedIn
linkedin.com/
company/u.s.-government-printing-office, and Pinterest pinterest.com/
usgpo/.
History.--From the Mayflower Compact to the Declaration of
Independence and the papers leading to the creation and ratification of
the Constitution, America has always been a nation based on documents,
and our governmental tradition reflects that fact. Article I, section 5
of the Constitution requires that ``each House shall keep a journal of
its proceedings and from time to time publish the same.'' After years
of struggling with the problems associated with various systems of
contracting for its printed documents, in 1860 Congress created the
Government Printing Office as its official printer. GPO first opened
its doors for business on March 4, 1861, the same day Abraham Lincoln
was inaugurated as the 16th President of the United States.
Since that time, GPO has produced and distributed the official
version of every great American state paper and an uncounted number of
other Government publications, documents, and forms. These documents
include the Emancipation Proclamation, the legislative publications and
acts of Congress, Social Security cards, Medicare and Medicaid
information, census forms, tax forms, citizenship forms, passports,
military histories ranging from the Official Records of the War of the
Rebellion to the latest accounts of our forces in Afghanistan, the 9/11
Commission Report, Presidential inaugural addresses, and Supreme Court
opinions. GPO's work to keep America informed goes on today, in both
digital as well as print forms.
Strategic Vision.--GPO has transformed from a print-centric to a
content-centric publishing operation. This digital transformation is
consistent with the goals outlined in President Obama's roadmap for a
digital Government (Digital Government: Building a 21st Century
Platform to Better Serve the American People, May 2012). It is also
consistent with the recommendations submitted to Congress by the
National Academy of Public Administration (Rebooting the Government
Printing Office: Keeping America Informed in the Digital Age, January
2013).
In fiscal year 2017 and the years ahead, GPO will continue to
develop an integrated, diversified product and services portfolio that
focuses primarily on digital. Tangible print will continue to be
required because of official use, archival purposes, authenticity,
specific industry requirements, and segments of the population that
either have limited or no access to digital formats, though we
anticipated that its use will continue to decline.
Strategic Plan.--GPO's strategic plan, which is available for
public review at gpo.gov/about, is built around four goals: satisfying
our stakeholders, offering products and services, strengthening our
organizational foundation, and engaging our workforce. The plan
provides the blueprint for how GPO will continue to achieve its mission
of Keeping America Informed with an emphasis on being OFFICIAL,
DIGITAL, SECURE. GPO's senior managers convene at the beginning of each
fiscal year to review the plan and approve it before it is issued.
GPO's customers are involved in the digital world and understand
technological change. Accordingly, it is important that GPO fosters an
environment that embraces change and innovation, which leads to new
ways of thinking, new work processes, and the development of new
products and services for GPO's customers. Tangible printing at GPO is
declining while there has been an exponential growth in digital
requirements by Congress and Federal agencies. Moreover, the public--
including the library and Government information user communities--has
signaled its strong desire for increased access to Government
information digitally.
GPO has changed to anticipate and accommodate those requirements.
The content received from Congress and Federal agencies needs to be
managed through a life cycle process that supports the primary
requirement to make the digital version of publications permanently
available online, and to print only when required or otherwise
necessary. This policy is consistent with the President's Executive
order on printing issued in November 2011.
In transforming its business model, GPO is focusing on managing
content for customer and public use both today and tomorrow. GPO uses
its extensive experience and expertise with digital systems to provide
both permanent public access to Government information in a variety of
formats and the most efficient and effective means for printing when
required, all within a secure setting that is responsive to the
customer's needs.
Technology Transformation.--GPO has continually transformed itself
throughout its history by adapting to changing technologies. In the
ink-on-paper era, this meant moving from hand-set to machine
typesetting, from slower to high-speed presses, and from hand to
automated bookbinding. These changes were significant for their time.
Yet those changes pale by comparison with the transformation that
accompanied our incorporation of electronic information technologies,
which began more than 50 years ago in 1962 when the Joint Committee on
Printing directed the agency to implement a new system of computer-
based composition. That order led to the development of GPO's first
electronic photocomposition system, which by the early 1980's had
completely supplanted machine-based hot metal typesetting. Following
the enactment of the GPO Electronic Information Access Enhancement Act
in 1993, the databases generated by our composition system were
uploaded to the Internet via GPO's first Web site, GPO Access, vastly
expanding the agency's information dissemination capabilities. Those
functions continue today with FDsys and our newly introduced site
govinfo on a more robust and comprehensive scale.
While transforming to an increasingly digital footing, GPO
continues to provide an array of printing services to support the needs
of Congress, Federal agencies, and the public. GPO is retooling its
print operations to utilize a smaller, more flexible, more digitally-
based equipment profile than previously. In fiscal year 2015 we put
into operation our new zero make-ready (ZMR) press to support
congressional and Federal agency publishing requirements. As previously
reported, this new press will allow us to eventually phase out three
outdated presses installed in 1979. We are continually reviewing
product and equipment options to ensure that our publishing activities
are conducted with the most efficient, effective technologies
available.
As a result of these sweeping technology changes--digital products,
equipment, and processes--GPO is now fundamentally different from what
it was as recently as a generation ago. It is smaller, leaner, and
equipped with digital production capabilities that are the foundation
of the information systems relied upon daily by Congress, Federal
agencies, and the public to ensure open and transparent Government in
the digital era. As we prepare GPO for the Government information
environment and technology challenges of the future, our transformation
is continuing with the development of new ways of delivering Government
information, including apps and bulk data download files.
Appropriations Request.--We are requesting funding for our three
appropriated accounts: the Congressional Publishing Appropriation, the
appropriation for the Public Information Programs of the Superintendent
of Documents, and the appropriation to our Business Operations
Revolving Fund, which serves as an addition to working capital in the
Fund for specified projects. The Congressional Publishing and Public
Information Programs accounts fund GPO's provision of congressional
information products and services as authorized by law and our
provision of public access to congressional and other Government
information products through statutorily-authorized information
dissemination programs.
All other GPO programs and activities--including the production of
U.S. passports for the Department of State as well as secure
credentials as requisitioned by Federal agencies, the production and
procurement of other information products and services for Federal
agencies, the sales of Government information products and services to
the public, and related operations--are financed on a reimbursable
basis through GPO's Business Operations Revolving Fund, which is
authorized through the annual Legislative Branch Appropriations bill.
We are requesting a total of $117,068,000 for fiscal year 2017.
This is the same as the level of funding approved for fiscal year 2016
in Public Law 114-113. Total GPO appropriations have declined by nearly
21 percent since fiscal year 2010 and are currently at their lowest
level since then. Our continued transition to digital technologies and
products has increased our productivity and reduced costs.
Additionally, maintaining financial controls on our overhead costs,
coupled with a buyout in fiscal year 2015 that reduced GPO's workforce
by 103 positions, has helped make this funding request possible.
Finally, the utilization of the unexpended balances of prior year
appropriations, which we are able to transfer to GPO's Business
Operations Revolving fund with the approval of the Appropriations
Committees, has made it possible in recent years to hold the line on
the level of new funding we request.
Total Appropriations to GPO
Fiscal Year 2010-2016
Fiscal Year Appropriation
2010 $147,461,000
2011 $135,067,324
2012 $126,200,000
2013 $117,533,423
2014 $119,300,000
2015 $119,993,000
2016 $117,068,000
Our fiscal year 2017 request will enable us to:
--meet projected requirements for congressional publishing;
--fund the operation of the public information programs of the
Superintendent of Documents; and
--develop information technology including IT security and perform
facilities maintenance and repairs that support our
congressional publishing and public information programs
operations.
Congressional Publishing Appropriation.--We are requesting
$79,736,000 for this account, the same level approved for fiscal year
2016 in Public Law 114-113 and every year since fiscal year 2014. This
appropriation--which is for the production of congressional documents
and information products that are essential to the legislative process
in Congress, such as the Congressional Record, bills, reports,
hearings, and other documents--has declined by nearly 15 percent since
fiscal year 2010, as the result of our continuing transition to digital
technology and products as well as actions taken in cooperation with
the House of Representatives and the Senate to control congressional
publishing costs. Unspent prior year balances from this account that
have been transferred to GPO's Business Operations Revolving Fund are
available for the purposes of this account.
Congressional Publishing Appropriation
Fiscal Year 2010-2016
Fiscal Year Appropriation
2010 $93,768,000
2011 $93,580,464
2012 $90,700,000
2013 $82,129,576
2014 $79,736,000
2015 $79,736,000
2016 $79,736,000
House Report 114-110, accompanying the Legislative Branch
Appropriations bill for fiscal year 2016, requires the presentation of
budget requirements from a zero base. However, GPO has no control over
the workload requirements of the Congressional Publishing
Appropriation. These are determined by the legislative activities and
requirements of the House of Representatives and the Senate as
authorized by the applicable provisions of Title 44, U.S.C. GPO
utilizes historical data incorporating other relevant factors to
develop estimates of likely congressional publishing requirements.
These requirements are used as the basis of the budget presentation for
this account.
The estimated requirements for fiscal year 2017 include a projected
price level increase of $2,125,000, primarily to cover employee pay
increases equivalent with those paid government-wide. Offsetting this
will be a $5,403,000 decrease in program requirements attributable to
anticipated volume decreases for the Congressional Record,
miscellaneous publications, miscellaneous publishing and services,
business and committee calendars, and hearings.
As shown on page E-3 of our budget justification for fiscal year
2017, the unexpended balances of prior year appropriations that have
been transferred to GPO's Business Operations Revolving Fund will be
used to offset anticipated requirements for fiscal year 2016 and 2017,
so that appropriation requirements for those years can remain stable at
$79,736,000 each year. Compared to fiscal year 2016, we project there
will be a decrease of $3,278,000 in the need for this funding. The
balance of these funds is earmarked for GPO's critically important
Composition System Replacement (CSR) project, involving the development
of an XML- based composition system to replace our 30+ year-old
Microcomp system used in the preparation of congressional documents for
digital and print access.
Public Information Programs of the Superintendent of Documents.--We
are requesting $29,500,000 for this account, representing a decrease of
$1,000,000 or 3.3 percent from the amount approved for fiscal year 2016
in Public Law 114-113. This appropriation, which is primarily for the
operation of the Federal Depository Library Program, has declined by
more than 27 percent since fiscal year 2010, as the result of our
continuing transition to digital technology and products which has made
the increased dissemination of official Government information to the
public less costly and more efficient. The requested amount is based on
the outcome of using zero-based budgeting to determine the proper
levels of funding needed to perform program activities at minimum
levels, as directed by House Report 114-110.
Public Information Programs of the Superintendent of Documents
Appropriation
Fiscal Year 2010-2016
Fiscal Year Appropriation
2010 $40,911,000
2011 $39,831,178
2012 $35,000,000
2013 $31,437,000
2014 $31,500,000
2015 $31,500,000
2016 $30,500,000
The funding we are requesting for fiscal year 2017 will cover
mandatory pay and related cost increases of $389,000. Merit and other
pay increases are included for 94 FTE's, the same as for fiscal year
2016. In addition, the requested funding covers projected price level
increases of $28,000, including ongoing systems maintenance and FDsys
operating expenses.
As with our Congressional Publishing Appropriation, unspent
balances of prior year appropriations that have been transferred to
GPO's Business Operations Revolving Fund will be used to offset
anticipated requirements for fiscal year 2016 and 2017. These
requirements include projects to continue transitioning GPO's Public
Information Programs to an increasingly digital basis, including the
modernization of legacy IT systems, automation of depository
distribution, the replacement of GPO's Integrated Library System, bulk
harvesting and content management, enhanced Web-based applications, and
the development of metadata and parsers for the digitized Congressional
Record and Federal Register. The use of these funds enables GPO to
reduce its appropriations requirements while continuing to perform
essential services and carry out digital transformation projects.
Business Operations Revolving Fund.--Appropriations to this account
are for working capital used for information technology projects and
facilities repairs. We are requesting $7,832,000 for fiscal year 2017,
to remain available until expended. This compares with $6,832,000 that
was appropriated for fiscal year 2016. Since fiscal year 2013, the
projects funded by appropriations to this account have consistently
included improvements to GPO's FDsys, which has expanded public access
to congressional and other Government information products in digital
formats while decreasing the costs of distributing traditional print
formats, as well as other essential IT projects. Our request this year
includes necessary expenses associated with enhancing the cybersecurity
of GPO's IT systems in the wake of successful cyberattacks this past
year on the Office of Personnel Management and other Government
systems. We also fund necessary physical infrastructure projects
through appropriations to this account.
Appropriations to the Business Operations Revolving Fund
Fiscal Year 2010-2016
Fiscal Year Appropriation
2010 $12,782,000
2011 $ 1,655,682
2012 $ 500,000
2013 $ 3,966,847
2014 $ 8,064,000
2015 $ 8,757,000
2016 $ 6,832,000
Information Technology Projects for Fiscal Year 2017--$5,875,000
FDsys Projects--$4,175,000
--General System and Collection Development ($3,400,000).--
Development of new FDsys features to support identified needs
of key stakeholders, including developing new content
collections, increasing content in existing collections,
enhancing the accessibility of content, and increasing the
discoverability of information.
--NextGen FDsys Public Website ($450,000).--Completion of development
and switchover to FDsys NextGen to support a responsive user
interface, search engine replacement, publication linking, user
interface improvements, and content curation.
--FDsys Infrastructure ($325,000).--Infrastructure for the hardware,
storage, and environments to manage system performance as FDsys
content and usage continues to grow.
Information Technology Security--$1,700,000
--Security Enhancements for Advanced Persistent Threat
($1,500,000).--Required for enhanced technologies and services
to combat, detect, and prevent advanced persistent threats
(including sophisticated nation-state actors) from compromising
GPO IT systems.
--Wireless Intrusion Prevention ($100,000).--Required to provide
enhance ability to prevent and detect intrusion attempts
specifically targeted at wireless systems at GPO.
--Log Collector (Tech Refresh) ($100,000).--Required to replace old
and near obsolete log collector systems in order to have
sufficient audit trail logs for security investigations and
detection/prevention of intrusion attempts.
Facilities Infrastructure Projects for Fiscal Year 2017--$1,957,000
--Elevator Repairs ($1,000,000).--Elevators 39, 40, and 41 comprise
the main vertical artery for Plant Operations to move
congressional products between press and bindery operations.
They also support employee life/safety by providing a means for
evacuation of medical emergencies.
--Emergency Power Generator ($500,000).--The power blackout by PEPCO
in summer 2015 exposed the need for an upgrade to GPO's
emergency generators to support expanded lighting and other
electrical requirements.
--Uninterrupted Power Supply for Data Center ($257,000).--The current
UPS design and equipment are both obsolete. To ensure uptime
and equipment integrity in GPO's data center, these systems
need to be replaced.
--Upgrade Electrical Panels/Wiring ($200,000).--This will address the
obsolete and often deteriorating condition of the central power
distribution feeds that are original to the GPO building
complex (the newest building of which dates to 1940). The
outdated wiring represents a safety hazard.
Chairwoman Capito and members of the subcommittee, we thank you for
your continued support and for the funding for GPO included in Public
Law 114-113. We look forward to working with you and your staff in your
consideration of our appropriations request for fiscal year 2017.
OFFICE OF COMPLIANCE
Prepared Statement of Barbara J. Sapin, Executive Director
fiscal year 2017 budget request
Madam Chairwoman Capito, Ranking Member Schatz, and Members of the
Legislative Branch Subcommittee, thank you for allowing me the
opportunity to submit for the record, this statement regarding the
budget request for fiscal year 2017 for the Congressional Office of
Compliance (OOC).
Before I get to the budget request, I want to express our
appreciation for your support for the mission and efforts of the OOC.
This year marks the twentieth anniversary of the OOC's existence. For
two decades, our little known independent agency has advanced workplace
rights for employees of the Legislative Branch, and helped make offices
on Capitol Hill safer places to work and visit.
Congress created the Office of Compliance to administer the
Congressional Accountability Act of 1995 (CAA) and the 13 Federal
workplace laws incorporated in the law. We ensure the integrity of a
dispute resolution system; carry out an education and training program
that assists employing offices and covered employees in understanding
their rights and responsibilities under the CAA; advise Congress on
needed changes and amendments to the CAA; and investigate and enforce
the CAA's occupational safety and health protections, public access
rights for persons with disabilities, and unfair labor practice
provisions.
The Office of Compliance is requesting $4,315,151 for fiscal year
2017 operations, which represents a 9 percent increase from the fiscal
year 2016 enacted level. Of the additional $356,161 that is being
requested, 79.89 percent reflects a projected increase in personnel,
benefits and other personnel compensation. The remaining fiscal year
2017 budget request focuses on supporting the most important aspects of
the statutory functions of the Office of Compliance and improving the
delivery of services to the covered community.
Administrative Dispute Resolution Program
The centerpiece of the CAA is the model confidential administrative
dispute resolution (ADR) process--counseling, mediation and
adjudicative hearings and appeals. The OOC staff is committed to
administering an effective ADR program by providing a neutral,
efficient and confidential process for resolving workplace disputes at
the lowest level. We strive to ensure that stakeholders have full
access to the ADR procedures.
In fiscal year 2016, we began the process of replacing our outdated
case handling system with a new and more comprehensive case management
system (CMS) which recently went live. As we continue to finalize the
new CMS, we look forward to being able to create more efficient reports
that will help the OOC spot trends and develop necessary training. Our
budget request contains funds that are necessary to create and maintain
an e-filing system that would be integrated with this new case
management system. This functionality will not only provide for more
streamlined service delivery by our Office to the Congressional
community, but will lend itself to timelier dispute resolution as well
as allow cost savings in the long run.
Education and Training Programs
In addition to providing an effective ADR program, the OOC
administers an education and training program for the covered
community. In all areas of discrimination prevention, a comprehensive
training program continues to be the most effective investment an
organization can make in reducing complaints and creating a more
productive workforce. Training programs have been linked to a reduction
in discrimination complaints by approximately 25 percent in the
executive branch.
The congressional workforce benefits from continued training
provided by the OOC. Further, the OOC can positively impact decisions
made by managers and chiefs of staff on employees' rights incorporated
in the CAA. Our aim is to provide the information that leads a manager
to the right and just solution to workplace issues and eliminates the
controversies and complaints. Although our staff is small, we produce
written materials on the rights, protections, and responsibilities
under the CAA, and we conduct personal briefings to employing offices
on our case processing procedures and the substantive Federal laws as
applied to the legislative branch by the CAA.
Our training and outreach efforts are changing from in-person
contacts to Internet based communications. As we move further into the
digital age, we must make necessary changes. This shift in focus is
essential in carrying out our statutory educational mandate.\1\ Our
budget request reflects our need for improvements to our existing Web
site www.compliance.gov, not only to support our continuing need to
bring the site into compliance with existing cybersecurity standards,
but also to allow for necessary capacity to host our newly launched on-
demand on-line training modules and Webinars. We are developing on-line
training to reach more employees, especially those working in the
districts who are otherwise unable to attend in-person training
sessions on the Hill.
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\1\ Public Law 104-1, Section 302(h)(1).
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Our fiscal year 2017 budget request also includes funds that will
be used for technical enhancements to develop new training methods,
such as videos and interactive modules that will instruct on important
office safety and health matters as well as best practices and insights
around paternity/maternity issues, non-discriminatory telework
policies, Family and Medical Leave Act compliance, and reasonable
accommodations for staffers under the Americans with Disabilities Act.
Safety and Health and Public Access
Before the OOC opened its doors in 1996, Capitol Hill buildings had
not been subject to even the most basic building codes or regulations.
The first inspections led to the discovery of serious fire and other
safety hazards in House and Senate buildings and around the Capitol.
Each year, since those first inspections, at the urging of the OOC,
Congress has abated thousands of serious hazards, reduced numerous
barriers to access for individuals with disabilities, and thus
dramatically improved the overall safety and accessibility of the
Capitol Hill campus. In a post-9/11 world, the OOC's focus has expanded
to promoting safe emergency evacuation plans, ensuring adequate alarm
and warning systems, and promoting staff training.
Our budget request reflects the immediate need to continue the
OOC's significant contributions to the safety and accessibility of
Congressional workplaces through its OSH and ADA biennial inspections
and its case work investigating safety issues and finding solutions for
barriers to access in Congressional facilities and programs. By working
directly with the AOC and other offices on the Hill, the OOC has been
instrumental in the development and implementation of cost-effective
solutions to safety and access problems. An increase in its
appropriation would allow the OOC to expand its inspection programs to
include more pre-construction evaluations of projects to minimize or
eliminate potential safety and accessibility issues. These pre-
construction reviews, which the OOC has been able to do to a limited
extent in the past, provide tremendous cost savings by minimizing or
eliminating expensive post-construction corrections that have riddled
many past construction projects.
The balance of the 9 percent increase requested covers increases in
contract services, including cross servicing providers, such as the
Library of Congress and the National Finance Center, and other
services, equipment and supplies needed to operate the OOC. The
services include training development and video production, as well as
technical support for the ever-growing social media environment on the
Hill, which presents an opportunity to highlight best practices and
provide important information to employees who have little time for
training updates.
The OOC staff and I are available to answer any questions or
address any concerns the Chair of the subcommittee or its members may
have.
OPEN WORLD LEADERSHIP CENTER
Prepared Statement of Ambassador John M. O'Keefe, Executive Director
``Since participating in Open World as a journalist several
years ago, I have often referred to the lessons learned and
best practices that were demonstrated during my program. As
Head of the Parliamentary Committee on Preventing and
Combatting Corruption, I remember well that most of the
Americans I've met believed they can achieve anything they
want. Open World's network of alumni in Ukraine consists of a
new generation of Ukrainians working to improve their country
and fight corruption in these trying times. I hope that
Congress continues this program as it is important for
Ukraine.''
Members of the subcommittees, thank you for the opportunity to
submit testimony for the record on the Open World Leadership Center.
Congressional participation in our programs and on our governing board
has made Open World a uniquely qualified instrument for members and
their constituents and for communities across America. All of us at
Open World are deeply grateful for your support.
Overview
By the close of 2015, the Open World Leadership Center (the Center
or Open World) had brought more than 25,000 young and emerging leaders
from 19 countries.\1\ These talented and engaged political and civic
leaders were hosted in all 50 States by nearly 8,000 families in some
2,300 communities across the United States.
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\1\ Current countries (14) include Armenia, Azerbaijan, Estonia,
Georgia, Kazakhstan, Kosovo, Kyrgyzstan, Moldova, Mongolia, Russia,
Serbia, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Ukraine; past countries (5)
include Belarus, Egypt, Lithuania, Turkey, and Uzbekistan.
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As a U.S. legislative branch entity, Open World actively supports
the foreign relations role and efforts of Congress by linking delegates
to members and their enthusiastic constituents throughout the United
States who are engaged in projects and programs in Open World
countries. The Open World program routinely involves members in its
hosting activities with more than 80 percent of delegates meeting with
Members of Congress or their staff representatives last year.
The Center also regularly consults with the Commission of Security
and Cooperation in Europe, the House Democracy Partnership, the
Congressional Ukrainian Caucus, the Senate Ukraine Caucus, the Albania
Issues Caucus, Congressional Serbian Caucus, the Caucus on U.S.-Turkey
Relations & Turkish Americans, the Friends of Kazakhstan Caucus, the
Congressional Caucus on Central Asia, the Congressional Mongolia
Caucus, other congressional entities, and individual members with
specific interests in Open World countries or thematic areas.
Open World Activities in 2015 and Plans for 2016
In 2015, the Open World program included 14 participating countries
and 864 emerging leaders who were able to benefit from direct exposure
to the workings of the United States Congress; to understand the impact
of legislation on all aspects of society; and to experience the robust
and dynamic democracy and free market system that exists in the U.S.
and makes up its form of Federalism. Also, of significance is that
these Open World participants broke bread with their American
counterparts, woke up in an American household and saw families/
children getting ready for work/school. They witnessed social activism,
a free and aggressive media, and the incredible volunteerism that makes
up this great country.
Following is a country by country review of the 14 countries that
participated in Open World in 2015 and for which programming is planned
for 2016. Open World is also planning programs in 2016 in support of
the House Democracy Partnership, and has expanded its potential
participating countries by 12 additional countries.\2\
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\2\ Afghanistan, Colombia, Haiti, Indonesia, Iraq, Kenya, Lebanon,
Liberia, Macedonia, Pakistan, Peru, Timor-Leste.
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Russia.--Open World continues to implement one of the last
remaining exchange opportunities in Russia. It has been able to operate
effectively in Russia because Open World is outside the realm of
executive branch politics and widely accepted by the Russian people.
While Open World has had to limit its capacity in Russia due to budget
constraints and limitations on the kind of delegates we can bring due
to a Russian law and U.S. policy that regulates the travel of Russian
Government officials/civil servants, the demand for the Open World
program in Russia could easily accommodate another one hundred
travelers or more. At this critical time in U.S.-Russia relations, with
a virtual shutdown of technical assistance programs, western donor
operations, and many bi- and multi-lateral opportunities for the
Russian people to interact with their colleagues in open and free
forums, Open World has proven to provide critical access to reform
minded citizens. Even those that are somewhat hardened are still
willing to listen and see for themselves what is available and
attainable in an open, transparent and democratic society with free
markets, a fiercely independent media, and a legal system that provides
a level playing field to its citizens and to foreigners.
Dan Nolan, Petrozavodsk Committee Chair in Duluth, Minnesota,
noted the importance of continuing a close relationship with
our friends and colleagues in Petrozavodsk at a time when they
feel very isolated due to foreign sanctions. ``The work we have
accomplished together in the past few years in the areas of
reducing child abuse and domestic violence is too important to
be sidelined by political differences,'' he stated. ``Now, more
than ever, we must work to stay connected.''
In 2015, Open World fielded 264 Russian participants from a
majority of its 83 regions. The 2016 Russian cohort is expected to be
some 240 travelers. The delegates represent all of Russia from the
European land mass, to the rough and beautiful North Caucasus, to the
Eurasian Steppe, and the enormous open spaces of Siberia and the
Russian Far East and North. Much of our Russian programming is aimed at
fostering existing partnerships, such as sister city relationships or
partner Rotary clubs, and each year's program includes two large
delegations from the Moscow School of Civic Education which is hosted
by their American partner, Supporters of Civil Society in Russia. Open
World's Russia programming is aimed at ``non-controversial'' themes and
seeks to foster and strengthen partnerships and encourages self-
sustaining professional ties and connections. These themes include
women entrepreneurs, ethnic minorities, environment, energy (and energy
efficiency/alternate energy), agriculture, social issues, and some
governance, media, and think tank programming.
To illustrate the impact of Open World programming in Russia, it
might be best for a delegate to speak about his impressions:
As for the lessons of civil wisdom that I learned . . . they
certainly inspired and encouraged me! I always believed that
there must be a society that does not tolerate lies, does not
subdue memory, but fights for the facts and the right to one's
own opinion. . . Yes, it is a battle . . . yes, there are kinks
to work out. But this society is alive, real, strong!
In addition, Open World Russia alumni are well-integrated into U.S.
Embassy follow-on programming such as the Peer-to-Peer program, and
Open World alumni and their American partners have been successful
recipients of funding for their joint projects, such as the one between
Syktyvkar State University \3\ and the Montana School for Deaf and
Blind on a project called the ``The Socialization of Children with
Visual Impairments in Special Education.'' The project includes site
visits for Russian and American teachers and students, regular on-line
video conferences, live streaming events, the development of manuals on
the education of blind children, and competitions in both schools
called ``Hello America'' and ``Hello Russia.''
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\3\ Syktyvkar is a city of nearly 1 million people that is the
capital of the Komi republic in North-East European Plain.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
In summary, the words of an alumna who is a well-regarded
journalist in the Northern Karelian republic say it best:
My main impression from the trip is that we do have much in
common: similar emotions and problems, our aspiration to lead a
better life, our ethical values, and our desire to get to know
one another better. Every nation has something it can be proud
of, and this is what can and should be borrowed for the benefit
of your own country.
This came from an article the alumna wrote following her program in
Hendersonville, North Carolina titled ``My Discovery of America.''
Ukraine.--In response to events in recent years in Ukraine, Open
World has more than doubled its Ukraine program. The Center regularly
works with U.S. Ambassador Pyatt and his team, and consults with the
Congressional Ukrainian Caucus, the Senate Ukrainian Caucus, and other
key stakeholders to design programming that is responsive to the needs
of the Ukrainian people. Recent alumni are among a new generation of
leadership that is working passionately to make Ukraine a country that
is economically sound and that can readily integrate into the European
Union and the Western community of free nations. Program themes over
the past 2 years have included legislator to legislator programming,
accountable governance, decentralization, anti-corruption, energy
efficiency and alternate energy development, independent media, social
issues (with concentration on Post Traumatic Stress Disorder and
serving Internally Displaced Persons), agriculture, and education and
innovation.
In addition to having Open World alumni rising in the ranks,
including those in the top leadership, Ukraine's leading reform bodies
like the Committee on Preventing and Combating Corruption of the
Parliament, the Ministry of Education, the Ministry of Youth and
Sports, and many leading civil activists groups, Open World alumni are
frequent recipients of competitive grants from the U.S. Mission in
Ukraine so that they can build on the experiences they had while in the
United States. Such projects have been focused on e-governance,
promoting a positive image for Ukraine, and providing support for those
disabled, those suffering PTSD, and internally displaced persons
resulting from the aggression in the East and in Crimea. In the last 2
years, Open World alumni have been awarded 17 grants from the U.S.
Mission in Ukraine to conduct follow up activity based on their Open
World program.
Illustrating the courage and depth of Open World alumni in Ukraine,
one alumnus who has risen in the ranks to Deputy Minister for Education
widely publicized a recent attempt to bribe him by the Rector of a
University that wanted him to cover up serious violations of academic
ethics such as fake grading. The Deputy Minister reported this bribe
attempt to the newly created National Anti-Corruption Bureau's
Oversight Council, on which sits three additional Open World alumni.
The Deputy Minister praised Open World and said:
``Participation in Open World provided me with the opportunity
to see first-hand how transparency in higher education works.
The program inspired me to fight against corruption in my work
and provided me with the tools and resolve to work to improve
my country. Open World alumni have risen to key positions in
the Ministry of Education and Science and are proud of their
work in reforming this crucial sector for Ukraine's successful
development.''
Armenia.--A delegation of deputy mayors and a government media
representative from southern Armenia were hosted in 2015 for a program
concentrating on freedom of information law, transparency, and
democratic governance with an emphasis on municipal government in an
effort to promote capacity building, economic development, and
democratic values in Southern Armenia.
Three Armenian delegations are planned for 2016. A delegation of
young judges will observe American law practices in Detroit, Michigan.
Elected officials, government specialists, and NGO leaders will see how
the United States has worked to build an inclusive society that
respects and values Americans with disabilities in a social-inclusion
program in Cambridge, Massachusetts. In anticipation of parliamentary
elections in 2017 and presidential elections in 2018, Open World will
host Young Armenian political leaders from various parties to study
youth's role in the U.S. elections and political/elections processes in
Granada Hills, California.
Azerbaijan.--In 2015, Open World brought three delegations of
emerging leaders to collaborate with their American counterparts and to
gain first-hand exposure to American democratic governance and the
working of the free market. Farmers from Azerbaijan visited with
agricultural enterprises in the State of Iowa, specialists dealing in
the fight against trafficking in persons met with their counterparts in
Pittsburgh, and specialists who work with internally displaced persons
met with their counterparts in Buffalo, New York. In 2016, Open World
plans to bring three more delegations from Azerbaijan. For one
delegation, Open World programming will address that country's
deteriorating civil rights situation by: bringing defense lawyers,
legal experts, and representatives of the Azerbaijani Collegium of
Advocates to meet with their American peers. Other programs will
concentrate on the need for economic diversification in Azerbaijan
through a program on entrepreneurship and tourism management, and the
lack of practical experience in school management through a program
focused on secondary and higher education administration in response to
Azerbaijan's recently developed strategy for educational reform.
Estonia.--Since 2013, Open World has hosted a delegation of
Estonian judges and prosecutors each year through our judge to judge
program in an effort to promote international judicial relations and
best practices in the judicial systems of both of our countries. In
2015, the Estonian delegation was hosted by U.S. District Judge Edmund
A. Sargus, Jr. in Columbus, Ohio. The April 2016 Estonian delegation
will be hosted in Raleigh, North Carolina by Judge Allyson K. Duncan of
the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit. Judge Duncan
is also the Chair of the International Judicial Relations Committee of
the Judicial Conference of the United States, Open World's key partner
in its rule of law programming.
Georgia.--Open World hosted seven delegations from Georgia in 2015.
Their programs included such themes as legislature to legislature
development, inter-ethnic cooperation, rule of law, municipal
development and the use of public space, and higher education
administration. One highlight of the 2015 program is that the Chicago
host of the inter-ethnic cooperation program that took place in Chicago
was able to receive U.S. Government funding to visit in Georgia with
his 2014 religious tolerance and 2015 inter-ethnic cooperation
delegations to follow up on their programming and establish long-
lasting ties. In 2016, Open World's Georgia program will feature
legislature to legislature programming, role of civil society in
promoting accountable governance, and inter-ethnic cooperation. Open
World also intends to host a diverse group of young parliamentarians
from Georgia in the Fall of 2016, following that country's
Parliamentary elections.
Kazakhstan.--Open World hosted seven delegations from Kazakhstan in
2015, including programming in the themes of environmental protection,
energy efficiency and green technologies, consumer protection,
entrepreneurship, and mediation and arbitration. Looking ahead to 2016,
Open World is planning to host another seven delegations. Themes
include: entrepreneurship in small towns, makers paces, access to
information/use of social media, building capacity in civil society,
and nonproliferation. We also intend to bring a delegation of members
of Parliament from Kazakhstan in program year 2016 once the planned
March elections take place. The 2016 Makerspaces group will highlight
sister city relations between the cities of Arvada, Colorado and
Kyzylorda and the entrepreneurship program will highlight partner
relations between Mauston, Wisconsin and Pavlodar. The relationship
developed as a result of Open World between Mauston and Pavlodar has
resulted in several self-funded follow-on visits from Wisconsin to
Kazakhstan and from Kazakhstan to Wisconsin. For example, the host in
Mauston is now the co-chair of the Leadership Wisconsin International
Seminar that is going to Kazakhstan for their International Seminar in
March of 2016.
Kosovo.--Open World welcomed five delegations from Kosovo in 2015.
The groups included Members of the Parliament of Kosovo, young women
leaders, and specialists in agro-business and municipal development.
Open World is planning to host at least four delegations in 2016. The
planned themes are promoting/attracting investment, government
transparency/access to public information, technology and e-government
against corruption, and preventing domestic violence.
Kyrgyzstan.--Open World hosted eight delegations from Kyrgyzstan in
2015, including parliamentary staffers, women leaders in science and
technology, legal/judicial professionals, and specialists in business
mentoring, border security, and water management. Open World's 2016
Kyrgyzstan program will consist of five delegations. These programs
will include a delegation of Members of Parliament, and delegations
looking at the role of local legislators/staff, civil society
oversight/public finance, young entrepreneurs, and water irrigation/dry
climate. Our April 2015 delegation in Colorado Springs, the sister city
of Bishkek, was able to get first-hand experience with modern
irrigation methods, crop production and water law issues, and the
Helena, Montana-bound 2016 dry climate delegation will further explore
these critical issues. Open World's ongoing relationship with the
Parliament of Kyrgyzstan has resulted in that legislative body's
sharing their experiences with the students of Kyrgyzstan by hosting
students from cities and villages throughout the country in the
Parliament. According to a Parliamentary staffer who is an alumnus
``they took the idea from the U.S. Capitol staff on how to work with
citizens and cooperate with the general population . . . These students
represented no less than 20 ethnic origins.'' In addition, Open World
parliamentary alumni in Kyrgyzstan have managed internships for Model
Parliament students from throughout Kyrgyzstan.
Moldova.--Open World hosted four Moldovan delegations in 2015. In
April, one group observed the marketing of produce through producer
organizations in San Francisco, while another learned best practices
for combatting international crime in Reno, Nevada. In September, a
delegation of nurses visited Greensboro, North Carolina and was able to
gain useful knowledge and experience at various nursing schools, health
centers and geriatric facilities to share with their colleagues in
Moldova. Also, in September, a delegation of young analysts worked with
their colleagues in San Diego to explore various methods of successful
economic analyses. Open World currently has no plan to host delegations
from Moldova in 2016 due to budget constraints and the cost of
programming in that country.
Mongolia.--In 2015, Open World hosted two delegations of judges
from Mongolia. Open World has already hosted a delegation of members of
Parliament from Mongolia early this year, and plans to host two more
delegations of judges from Mongolia in 2016.
Serbia.--Open World hosted 12 Serbian delegations in 2015,
specializing in areas such as policy development, sustainable
agriculture, media businesses and youth innovation. Open World plans to
host two delegations of judges from Serbia in 2016, and has already
hosted a delegation of members of the Serbian Parliament in January of
this year.
Tajikistan.--Eight Tajik delegations, specializing in areas such as
e-governance and transparency, healthcare for women, domestic violence,
youth empowerment, and legal defense advocacy, were hosted in 2015.
Open World has already hosted one delegation of women entrepreneurs
from Tajikistan in 2016, and plans to conduct programming for four more
delegations in themes that include sports for at-risk youth, eco-
tourism, youth in civil society, and women in border security.
Turkmenistan.--With great support from the U.S. Mission in
Turkmenistan, Open World was able to host a delegation from
Turkmenistan in 2015. The delegation consisted of specialists in
tourism management and was hosted in St. Louis. Open World plans to
host at least three delegations from Turkmenistan in 2016 in the themes
of water management, earthquake/fire management, and library services.
While the above country program descriptions provide an overview of
the incredible activity and goodwill fostered by Open World, below are
some examples of the type of results and feedback that we continually
receive from our constituent hosts and new friends and colleagues form
our participating countries throughout Eurasia.
In February 2015, an Open World delegation was hosted by Virginia
Commonwealth University. During their visit, the group visited the
General Assembly, a variety of government agencies and public policy
organizations, cultural sites such as the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts
and Colonial Williamsburg, and a local TV news station covering the
Super Tuesday presidential primary elections. The program is valuable
because everyone--both the Ukrainians and the Americans--learn from the
experience, said hosting committee member Jeff South, an associate
professor of journalism and director of undergraduate studies at the
Robertson School. ``As a member of the hosting committee, I personally
learn more than I teach from the Open World visitors,'' he said. ``I
learn about other models of government and that there are many things
we could do to improve our democracy in Virginia and the rest of
America. We also see the many things we have in common with people in
Eastern Europe--a commitment to an open government that truly serves
the people.''
Budget Request Summary
Open World spends its appropriation in two categories: Direct
Program Costs and Administration Costs. Direct Program Costs includes:
a logistical coordinator contract; grants to host organizations across
the United States; Memoranda of Agreements with U.S. embassies in most
of Open World countries; and the salary and benefits of the Center's DC
and Moscow staff.
The Center's fiscal year 2017 budget request breaks down as
follows:
A. Direct Program--$ 5,550,000
1. Logistical Contract........................ 1,900,000
2. Grants/Other Hosting Costs................. 2,300,000
3. Embassy Agreements......................... 875,000
4. Salary/Benefits (Program staff)............ 475,000
The logistical services contract with a Washington-based NGO is the
single largest expenditure at Open World. This contractor is
responsible for coordinating the delegate nomination and vetting
process and is tasked with obtaining visas and other travel documents;
arranging and purchasing airfare; planning and executing the 2-day DC
orientation, and coordinating with grantees and placing delegates in
American host cities, among a host of other duties.
Grants/Other Hosting Costs refer to national and local hosting
organizations (such as Rotary Club, Friendship Force International, and
community colleges) that plan and execute an 8-day local program for
each delegation.
B. Administration--$ 388,000
1. Salary/Benefits (Admin Staff).............. 275,000
2. Other Admin Operating Expenses............. 113,000
The salaries/benefits of the Executive Director, the Deputy
Executive Director, and the Outreach Officers are included in this
category. It also includes an interagency agreement with the Library of
Congress for infrastructure services, small contracts for professional
services, postage, telephone, cell phones, and office supplies and
materials. The Center benefits from lower administrative costs due to
its physical location in the Library of Congress. Finally, agreements
with other agencies for infrastructure services or for printing,
webhosting, or graphic design are included here.
TOTAL BUDGET: $5,938,000 \4\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\4\ The amount over $5.8 million shown here will be covered by
earned revenue, donations and other offsets.
The good news is that the Center has learned the art of doing more
with less. While working under shrinking budgets has its challenges,
the Center's response to this series of cuts is to work harder at
finding savings and increasing cost shares. As an example, 2 years ago,
the Center changed the way that interpretation costs are covered in the
program which yielded us an astonishing estimated $250,000 in savings
due to the elimination of any indirect cost being applied to the total
as well as more efficient handling of the interpretation pool. Another
important source of savings was in engaging with the U.S. embassies of
Open World countries as much as possible. This alone realized a savings
of 30-40 percent of the cost of a single delegate's participation in
the Open World program.
Finally, for every dollar in grants awarded, the Center receives
matching cost shares dollar for dollar, with the 2015 estimate looking
like it will hit $2.3 million. Meanwhile, to emphasize our successful
efforts from working closely with each grantee to arrive at the fairest
budget possible, the demand for Open World delegations remains at a
high of four slots requested for every one slot available.
With careful management we can proudly claim that for every
appropriated dollar received, we have been able to leverage that dollar
by an additional 35 percent which makes it possible to continue
providing dynamic, current and relevant, and high quality programming
this fiscal year.
Closing Remarks
Open World offers Congress an extraordinary ``bang for the buck''
as well as deep commitment to being a model agency dedicated to the
most efficient and cost-effective use of its resources. The Center's
overhead rate has remained a steady 7 percent in large part due to the
steadfast pursuit of savings and cost shares while maintaining diligent
fiscal stewardship. All the while the Center never compromises program
quality.
Open World employs best practices in an effort to achieve the most
cost-efficient and effective means to accomplish our mission. Early on,
Open World established internal controls to ensure program quality,
including pre- and post-program report follow-up, weekly
teleconferencing with our logistical contractor, and regular contact
with grantees and local hosts. Open World also uses a zero-based budget
approach to every contract, every grant budget, as well as our annual
operating budget.
Furthermore, Open World actively seeks cost-sharing partnerships
with other government initiatives whose missions complement ours. The
U.S. Agency for International Development, the Department of Energy,
the Department of State, the National Endowment for the Arts, and the
U.S. embassies in Armenia, Kosovo, Mongolia, Serbia, Tajikistan,
Turkmenistan, Ukraine, and Uzbekistan have all joined with the Open
World Leadership Center in directly funding a number of delegations.
Funding at the requested level of $5.8 million will enable Open
World to fully respond to congressional interests in the region and
beyond while continuing our proven mission of hosting young political
and civic leaders who return home to launch projects and programs in
cooperation with their American counterparts and hosts. The Board of
Trustees believes that maintaining a robust grassroots-based Open World
presence in the region is necessary and important for future U.S.
relations in these politically significant countries.
OFFICE OF THE SECRETARY OF THE SENATE
Prepared Statement of Julie E. Adams, Secretary of the Senate
Since 1789, the Secretary of the Senate has been tasked with the
legislative, financial and administrative duties of the U.S. Senate. In
the past year I have been proud to serve alongside the hundreds of men
and women that comprise the Office of the Secretary who ensure we
fulfill our mission. They are dedicated public servants who continually
strive to improve systems and processes, better the institution, and
preserve the rich history of this uniquely American legislative body.
I would like to thank the subcommittee for their ongoing support of
the Office of the Secretary of the Senate's budget and mandated
systems. For fiscal year 2017, I am requesting a budget of $31,589,000.
This request includes $25,339,000 in salary costs and $6,250,000 for
the operating budget of the Office of the Secretary. The salary budget
represents an increase in $567,000 over the fiscal year 2016 budget as
a result of the costs associated with a potential cost of living
adjustment. The operating budget remains flat at $6,250,000 of which
$4,350,000 is firewalled for the administration of the Senate
Information Services (SIS) Program that was assumed by this Office in
2011 and has remained flat.
In addition, I am requesting $4,000,000 in no year funds for the
second phase of a 6-year project to modernize the Senate Disbursing
Office's Financial Management Information System, also known as
``FMIS.'' I appreciate the subcommittee's support last year to initiate
the update of this mandated system.
I am proud to report that the FMIS modernization project is
underway. Due to the scope of the project, a Financial System Program
Office has been established within the Disbursing Office to oversee and
manage the effort to ensure the project remains on schedule and within
the budget established for the project. All of the project staff will
be hired and in place by mid-April. Just last week, a purchase order
was initiated for software that will be used for the first phases of
the budget and reporting modernization. And by the end of May, early
June, the Indefinite Delivery Indefinite Quantity (IDIQ) contract and
initial task orders will be awarded. The IDIQ will take the project
about half way through the modernization. This was done so the Program
Office can consider technology market changes that are expected to
occur during the later phases of the modernization project.
The second phase of the financial system modernization, scheduled
for fiscal year 2017 will continue the rollout of the modernized budget
and reporting and will also initiate the general ledger modernization.
The Financial System Program Office will work in collaboration with
Sergeant at Arms (SAA) functional and technical staff, as well as
representatives from financial stakeholder groups, including Senators'
offices, committees, the Committee on Rules and Administration audit
staff, and Disbursing Office accounting staff throughout the
modernization to ensure that, (1) the financial applications are
supportable and maintainable in both the near and long term (2) the
modernized system fully meets Senate user requirements and (3) end user
impacts are minimized throughout the implementation period.
In addition to the FMIS modernization project, the Disbursing
Office has also been working on the payroll self-service project. The
self-service project will allow members and staff to view their
paystubs electronically as well as tax, payroll and benefits
information. It is currently in a pilot phase, if no problems or issues
are reported, it will be rolled out to the rest of the Senate within
the year.
I would now like to highlight some of our other departments'
accomplishments of the past year and a few of their ongoing projects.
Last year was a busy year for the legislative staff. With the
majority changing for the first time since the 110th Congress, time was
spent working with Senators and staff either new to the Senate or
unfamiliar with the roles and responsibilities of the majority. The
legislative schedule was also rigorous; a small sample of the work
completed during the 1st Session of the 114th Congress would include
the processing of 2,943 submitted amendments, 289 reports of
committees, 339 roll call votes taken and the incorporation of 405
amendments into measures considered by the Senate. Additionally, the
Senate confirmed 17,578 executive nominations during the session.
I am proud of the loyal legislative team. When the Senate is in
session, they work long hours and are some of the last to leave the
office. I was surprised to learn that when the Senate recesses or
adjourns for the day, a handful of legislative staff have up to three
hours of work remaining. These long hours ensure that the Senate's
daily proceedings are properly transmitted to the Government Publishing
Office (GPO). The Senate Record is published in paperback form and
online in the Congressional Record and is available to the public the
next business day.
Something else that I became aware of during my first year on the
job was the lack of remaining storage for legislative archives. Only
1,000 cubic feet remained available for the accessioning of new records
from the Senate and House. I want to thank the Appropriations Committee
for recognizing the need for additional storage and for appropriating
funds to begin renovations of a suitable space at GPO.
GPO is a real partner of the Secretary's Office--from printing and
publishing to our new archive storage solution--I am proud of the
teamwork between the two organizations.
Teamwork within departments in the Secretary's Office is also
strong. The Stationery Room and Disbursing Office continue to work with
member offices wishing to establish accounts for the online flag
ordering system using Pay.gov. Sixty-six offices are now offering this
payment option and seven more member offices are in the beginning
stages of the program.
The Office of Web Technology is spearheading the redesign effort to
modernize the www.senate.gov Web site, but it is also a collaborative
effort. The Senate Web site content is maintained by seven departments
of the Secretary's Office and three departments of the SAA. The new
design will implement the best practices established over the last
several years and take advantage of the advances in Web technology that
will make the site more useable to all audiences, including those
accessing it from mobile devices. The redesign is at the midway point
and the hope is that it will go live by the end of the year.
I am proud of the relationships Secretary Office departments
continue to build with respective departments within the SAA and
Architect of the Capitol, from procurement contracts to continuity of
government planning and everything in between. It is essential for the
Senate support organizations to work together seamlessly and the
Secretary's Office will continue to make this a priority.
Serving in this role for the last year has been a true privilege. I
look forward to the busy year ahead and I appreciate the subcommittee's
support for the Office of the Secretary. Thank you.
[Clerk's note: The submitted fiscal year 2017 budget request from
the Office of the Secretary of the Senate follows:]
______
BUDGET REQUEST
I would first like to thank the subcommittee for their ongoing
support of the Office of the Secretary of the Senate's budget and
mandated systems. For fiscal year 2017, I am requesting a budget of
$31,589,000. The request includes $25,339,000 in salary costs and
$6,250,000 for the operating budget of the Office of the Secretary. The
salary budget represents an increase of $567,000 over the fiscal year
2016 budget as a result of the costs associated with a potential cost
of living adjustment. The operating budget of the Office of the
Secretary remains flat at $6,250,000, of which $4,350,000 is for the
administration of the Senate Information Services (SIS) Program that
was assumed by this office in 2011 and has not changed.
OFFICE OF THE SECRETARY APPORTIONMENT SCHEDULE
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Amount Budget
available estimates
Item fiscal year fiscal year Difference
2016 2017
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Department operating budget:
Executive office............................................ $ 500,000 $ 500,000 ..............
Administrative services..................................... 1,251,600 1,251,600 ..............
Senate Information Service (SIS)............................ 4,350,000 4,350,000 ..............
Legislative services........................................ 148,400 148,400 ..............
-----------------------------------------------
Total operating budget.................................... 6,250,000 6,250,000 ..............
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
In addition, I am requesting $4,000,000 in no year funds for the
modernization of one of two critical Senate systems, the Financial
Management Information System (FMIS). This is the second year of a
planned 6-year phased project. The flexibility of no year funding
continues to be important to the success of the modernization project.
PROJECT REQUEST
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Fiscal year Fiscal year
Item 2016 2017 Difference
------------------------------------------------------------------------
FMIS Modernization Project.... $2,500,000 $4,000,000 $1,500,000
------------------------------------------------------------------------
financial management information system (fmis) modernization project
The Senate's administrative financial system, FMIS, is a collection
of financial applications used by Senate offices to submit and pay
bills, manage office funds, and report to both internal offices and
external agencies. Implemented over 16 years ago, FMIS utilizes a
complex architecture, increasingly expensive mainframe technologies,
and a variety of software that can only be enhanced through costly and
time consuming custom development. Today, FMIS is used by approximately
140 Senate offices and has over 4,500 active users.
In 2015, the Disbursing Office worked to maintain and ensure the
continuation of FMIS. However, efforts have been outpaced by newer
versions of operating systems, browsers and other end user software,
which are not compatible with current FMIS applications. As a result,
the Disbursing Office has initiated a financial system modernization
project that will:
--Improve financial system supportability and flexibility;
--Address business requirements not met by the existing system; and
--Continue to bring the Senate closer to an integrated, auditable,
paperless financial system.
The first phase of the financial system modernization began this
year and includes two major activities:
--Budget Modernization.--This replaces multiple budget applications
and manual processes, including the existing payroll PeopleSoft
Enterprise Performance Management (EPM) module, which Oracle
plans to retire in April 2018, with a single Senate-wide modern
budget application used by many Federal agencies.
--Reporting Modernization.--This streamlines and transitions
financial reports to a consolidated data warehouse to minimize
end user impacts during the financial system modernization.
The second phase of the financial system modernization, scheduled
for fiscal year 2017 will continue the implementation and roll out of
the modernized budget and reporting and will include the following
additional major activity:
--General Ledger Modernization.--This replaces the mainframe-based
general ledger system with a commercial software package
consistent with all current Federal financial standards and
reporting requirements.
The FMIS Business Case outlines the full scope of the financial
system modernization project. The major phases and timeline of the
proposed modernization effort are outlined in the table below:
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Date Business Area Modernization Approach and Rationale
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Fiscal Year 2016-Fiscal Year 2017....... Budget..................... Replace multiple existing budget
applications and manual processes with a
commercial software package widely used
by Federal agencies to:
--Allow for more efficient and
effective budget planning and budget
execution tracking;
--Enable ``what-if'' budget analyses at
the Senate and individual office levels;
and
--Facilitate direct integration between
the payroll and financial system.
Fiscal Year 2016-Fiscal Year 2021....... Reporting.................. Streamline and modernize the reporting
infrastructure to prepare for and
minimize impacts of the financial system
modernization, and:
--Reduce the volume of reporting data;
--Eliminate unused and redundant
reports;
--Consolidate numerous, disparate
report processes;
--Ensure the consistency and accuracy
of historic data; and
--Provide greater flexibility for users
to customize the data they view and
receive.
Fiscal Year 2017-Fiscal Year 2018....... Accounting................. Replace the mainframe-based general
ledger system with a commercial software
package, which will:
--Allow the Senate to retire the
expensive and increasingly difficult to
support mainframe hardware and software;
--Implement a modern general ledger
which is consistent with all current
Federal financial standards and
reporting requirements; and
--Enhance the Senate's ability to
maintain the core component of the
financial system and the source of the
statutory semi-annual Report of the
Secretary of the Senate.
Fiscal Year 2018-Fiscal Year 2019....... Procurement to Payment..... Replace the highly customized procurement
to payment applications with commercial
software, where possible, subject to a
thorough alternatives analysis. This
will allow the Senate to:
--Continue to meet unique Senate
business needs while also addressing a
number of business requirements not
currently met by the existing
applications;
--Enhance the Senate's ability to
administer and support financial system
applications;
--Enable more rapid deployment of user-
requested changes; and
--Facilitate tighter integration of all
procurement to payment applications to
enhance Senate financial statement
production.
Fiscal Year 2019........................ Data Sharing............... Automate interfaces with outside
agencies, such as the U.S. Treasury, to:
--Reduce errors in Senate reporting;
and
--Eliminate the manual effort required
to support daily and monthly external
reporting.
Fiscal Year 2019-Fiscal Year 2021....... Asset Management........... Replace the existing Asset Management
application with a commercial software
module that will:
--Enable direct integration with the
financial system; and
--Eliminate redundant processes and
data, increasing the efficiency and
accuracy of the Senate's asset tracking.
Fiscal Year 2019-Fiscal Year 2021....... Archival Tools............. Implement data archival tools to:
--Reduce the costs and potential
application performance issues
associated with maintaining large
volumes of financial data; and
--Ensure that all relevant data is
archived together and may be restored
together as needed to support Senate
financial operations.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The table below includes the funding received for fiscal year 2016,
the request for fiscal year 2017, and future funding required for
software and support services.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2016
Funding (funded) 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 Total
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Implementation/Acquisition......... 2.5M 4M 3.5M 3M 2.5M 2.5M 18M
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Due to the scope and complexity of this project and best practices
for system implementation, a Financial System Program Office has been
established within the Disbursing Office to oversee and manage the
effort to ensure the project remains on schedule and within the
established budget. The Financial System Program Office will work in
collaboration with Sergeant at Arms (SAA) functional and technical
staff, as well as representatives from financial system stakeholder
groups, including Senators' offices, committees, the Committee on Rules
and Administration audit staff, and Disbursing accounts payable (A/P)
and accounting staff throughout the modernization effort to ensure
that: (1) financial applications are supportable and maintainable in
both the near and long term, (2) the modernized system fully meets
Senate user requirements, and (3) end user impacts are minimized
throughout the implementation period.
implementing mandated systems
Two systems critical to our operation are mandated by law, the
Financial Management Information System (FMIS) and the Legislative
Information System (LIS). The following highlights recent developments:
update on the status of financial management information system (fmis)
During calendar year 2015, Disbursing implemented the following
releases to enhance application security in light of recent Office of
Personnel Management (OPM) security breaches and to replace outdated
financial system components:
--FMIS 13.4-FMIS 13.4.1, March through June 2015--modernized the
office homepage, enhanced audit performance reporting for
Disbursing A/P, enhanced application security, transitioned SAA
document printing functions to standardize document printing
and eliminated an outdated, difficult to support printing
technology; and
--FMIS 13.5, October 2015--enhanced imaging application security and
corrected user reported imaging defects to facilitate continued
Senate-wide rollout of paperless workflow.
Work also continued related to document imaging and electronic
signatures in FMIS, in the following phases:
--Phase 1: imaging-only pilot (completed in 2011);
--Phase 2: office imaging and signatures pilot (completed in 2012);
--Phase 3: planning and development to support imaging and signatures
for SAA and staffer users, including:
--Imaging to support staffers creating Expense Summary Reports
(ESR's) (completed development in 2014; pilot initiated in
November 2015), and
--Imaging to support invoices and associated vouchers for SAA and
the Secretary (completed development in 2014; pilot planned
for Summer 2016).
--Completed rollout to 60 offices, Committee on Rules and
Administration audit staff, and Disbursing's A/P and accounting
staff through 2015.
Additionally, Disbursing collaborated with the SAA to implement the
following changes to the Senate Payroll System (SPS):
--Upgraded PeopleSoft to version 9.2
--Successfully piloted the first phase of payroll self-service and,
--Implemented the new reporting requirements established by the
Affordable Care Act (ACA).
During the remainder of fiscal year 2016 and beyond, the following
FMIS activities are anticipated:
--Imaging and digital signatures--Continue with Senate-wide rollout
of imaging and digital signatures for the remaining Member
offices and committees;
--Implement the two FMIS releases rescheduled due to necessary
security and technology enhancements:
--FMIS 14.1 (planned for Summer 2016)--Modernization of voucher
creation and review functions used by Member offices,
committees, Leadership, the Office of the Secretary, SAA,
Committee on Rules and Administration, and the Disbursing
Office to address user requested changes, enhance
supportability and ensure compatibility with modern
browsers; and
--FMIS 14.2 (planned for Winter 2016)--Modernization of additional
document types, such as requisitions, purchase orders,
invoices and receiving reports used by the Office of the
Secretary and the SAA to address user requested changes,
enhance supportability and ensure compatibility with modern
browsers;
--Coordinate testing of Treasury Account Symbol (TAS) and Business
Event Type Code (BETC) reporting with Treasury;
--Continue to work with the SAA technical staff and SPS Contracting
Office Technical Representative (COTR) to complete the expanded
pilot and full roll-out of the first phase of Senate Payroll
System self-service; and
--Conduct an expanded multi-day Continuity of Operations exercise
that will include 3 full days of financial system activity.
update on the status of the legislative information system (lis)
The Legislative Information System (LIS) is a mandated system (2
U.S.C. 6577) that provides desktop access to the content and status of
legislative information and supporting documents. In addition, pursuant
to 2 U.S.C. 181, a program was established to provide for the widest
possible exchange of information among legislative branch agencies. The
long-range goal of the LIS Project Office is to provide a
``comprehensive Senate Legislative Information System'' to capture,
store, manage, and distribute Senate documents. 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.
Extensible Markup Language (XML) has been accepted as the primary
data standard to use for the exchange of legislative documents and
information. Following the implementation of the LIS, the LIS Project
Office shifted its focus to the data standards program and established
the LIS Augmentation Project (LISAP). The overarching goal of the LISAP
is to provide a Senate-wide implementation and transition to XML for
the authoring and exchange of legislative documents.
The LIS Project Office provided support to the Senate Legislative
Counsel (SLC); the Committee on Appropriations; the Committee on
Commerce, Science, and Transportation; and the Senate Enrolling Clerk
in their use of the XML authoring application, Legislative Editing in
XML Application (LEXA) for drafting, engrossing, and enrolling. With
the addition of the Commerce Committee drafters, all Senate measures
(bills, resolutions, and amendments) are produced in XML. In addition,
the Government Publishing Office (GPO) uses LEXA to complete measures
for printing. Several new features and fixes were added in LEXA
releases to improve the drafting process.
The LIS Project Office has been working with staff from GPO and the
Legislative Computer Systems (LCS) in the Office of the Clerk of the
House to create and print committee reports in XML, and the initial
LEXA committee report application was released to the Commerce
Committee in 2013. The LIS Project Office has provided several updates
and enhancements for the Commerce Committee and is currently working
with the Committee on Appropriations. Production of committee reports
in XML by the Appropriations Committee is expected by Summer 2016.
Other enhancements to LEXA in the past year include two new
features that help the SLC drafters check their work. One new feature
creates a table of sections affected in a bill draft, and the other
feature compiles a table of contents across multiple separate files
that make up a large bill draft. Improvements were made to copy/paste
from non-XML documents into LEXA to create valid XML structure and
translate special characters. A template was added to LEXA to create
the Joint Explanatory Statement that accompanies a conference report,
and work is underway to create conference report signature sheets in
LEXA.
Two other group projects with GPO and LCS include participants from
the Law Revision Counsel and the Senate and House Legislative Counsels.
The multi-phase project for the Law Revision Counsel will result in
applications to convert, edit, and maintain the U.S. Code in an XML
format. The Legislative Counsel offices collaborate on maintaining and
using the compilations of existing law in an XML format. The LIS
Project Office and LCS also monitor and participate in GPO's project to
replace Microcomp with a new composition system that can directly
ingest XML data without having to convert it to another format before
printing.
The LIS Project Office will continue to support all Senate offices
using LEXA and will work with the House, GPO, and the Library of
Congress (LOC) on projects and issues that impact the legislative
process and data standards for exchange. The office will produce
enhancements to LEXA and seek out new technologies to improve the
production of legislative documents.
LEGISLATIVE SERVICES
The Legislative operations of the Office of the Secretary provide
support essential to Senators in carrying out their daily chamber
activities as well as the constitutional responsibilities of the
Senate. Legislative Services consists of the following departments:
Bill Clerk, Captioning Services, Daily Digest, Enrolling Clerk,
Executive Clerk, Journal Clerk, Legislative Clerk, Official Reporters
of Debates and Parliamentarian.
The Office of the Secretary maintains a positive working
relationship with the Government Publishing Office (GPO). GPO continues
to respond in a timely manner to the Secretary's requests, through the
Legislative staff, for the printing of bills and reports, including the
expedited printing of priority matters for the Senate chamber.
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 Office keeps this information in
handwritten files and ledgers and also enters it into the Senate's
automated retrieval system so it is available to all House and Senate
offices via the Legislative Information System (LIS), Congress.gov, and
the Amendment Tracking System (ATS). 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
Office of the Bill Clerk is generally regarded as the most timely and
most accurate source of legislative information.
The Office of the Bill Clerk has coordinated with the Office of the
Executive Clerk and the Office of Web Technology to provide input
regarding Senate data on Congress.gov through regular meetings with the
Library of Congress (LOC). The Office maintains communication with the
Secretary's legislative offices, floor staff, and the Senate Library in
facilitating input on Congress.gov, predominantly in the areas of
legislation, committee reports, and the Congressional Record.
captioning services
The Office of Captioning Services provides real-time closed
captioning of Senate floor proceedings for individuals who are deaf or
hard-of-hearing and unofficial electronic transcripts of Senate floor
proceedings to Senate offices on Webster.
Captioning Services is comprised of the most seasoned and respected
captioners in the industry and strives to provide the highest quality
closed captions. The overall accuracy average rate for the Office has
remained above 99 percent for the past 22 years. Overall caption
quality is monitored through daily translation data reports, monitoring
of captions in real-time, and review of caption files on Webster.
The real-time searchable Closed Caption Log database and VideoVault
browser, available to Senate offices on Webster, continues to be an
invaluable tool for the entire Senate community. Legislative floor
staff, Cloakroom staff, and Member offices in particular continue to
depend upon its availability, reliability, and contents to help them in
the performance of their everyday duties.
daily digest
The Office of the Daily Digest is responsible for publication of 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. The Office compiles an accounting of all meetings of
Senate committees, subcommittees, joint committees and committees of
conference.
The Office enters 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. The Office
also enters all official actions taken by Senate committees on
legislation, nominations, and treaties into the Senate's Legislative
Information System (LIS).
The Office publishes a listing of all legislation which has become
public law, as well as 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. The `Resume' is published on the first legislative day of
each month in the Daily Digest. The Office also assists the House Daily
Digest Editor in the preparation of a history of public bills enacted
into law and a final resume of congressional statistical activity at
the end of each session of Congress.
All hearings and business meetings (including joint meetings and
conferences) are scheduled through the Office of the Senate Daily
Digest and are published in the Congressional Record, on the Digest's
Web site on Senate.gov, and in LIS. Meeting outcomes are also published
by the Daily Digest in the Congressional Record each day and are
continuously updated on the Web site.
The Office of the Daily Digest publishes a `20-Year Comparison of
Senate Legislative Activity' which can be found at: http://
www.senate.gov/reference/resources/pdf/yearlycomparison.pdf.
enrolling clerk
The Office of the Enrolling Clerk prepares, proofreads, corrects,
inputs amendments and prints all legislation passed by the Senate prior
to its transmittal to the House of Representatives, the National
Archives, the White House, the United States Claims Court, and the
Secretary of State. Electronic files of all measures engrossed and
enrolled in the Senate are transmitted daily by the Enrolling Clerk to
GPO for overnight distribution and public Web access.
The Office of the Enrolling Clerk keeps the original official
copies of bills, resolutions, and appointments from the Senate floor
through the end of each Congress.
executive clerk
The Office of the Executive Clerk prepares for publication the
Journal of the Executive Proceedings of the Senate, a record of the
Senate's actions during executive sessions.
The Executive Clerk receives, assigns numbers to, and processes the
nominations, treaties, executive communications, petitions or
memorials, and presidential messages sent to the Senate. As part of
this processing, the Executive Clerk enters each of these in LIS along
with the Senate's actions on each.
The Office also prepares the Executive Calendar daily when there
are nominations, treaties, or resolutions related to treaties before
the Senate. The Executive Clerk also prepares all nomination and treaty
resolutions for transmittal to the President of the United States.
The Office has been working in conjunction with the Office of the
Bill Clerk and the Office of Web Technology to provide input to the LOC
related to the inclusion of nominations, treaties, executive
communications, presidential messages, and petitions or memorials on
Congress.gov.
journal clerk
The Office of 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 U.S. Constitution. The content of the
Senate Journal is governed by Senate Rule IV, and is approved by the
Senate on a daily basis.
The Journal Clerk staff take 90-minute turns at the rostrum in the
Senate Chamber, noting the following 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 of the Senate Journal at the end of each calendar year.
Compilation is efficiently accomplished through utilization of the LIS
Senate Journal Authoring System. In 2015, the Journal Clerk completed
the production of the 877-page 2014 volume. It is anticipated that work
on the 2015 volume will conclude by August 2016.
legislative clerk
The Legislative Clerk sits at the rostrum 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 of the Legislative Clerk prepares
the Senate Calendar of Business, published each day the Senate is in
session, and prepares additional publications relating to Senate class
membership and committee and subcommittee assignments. The Office
maintains the official copy of all measures pending before the Senate
and incorporates any amendments that are agreed to. The Office retains
custody of official messages received from the House of Representatives
and conference reports awaiting action by the Senate. The Legislative
Clerk is responsible for verifying the accuracy of information entered
into LIS by the various offices of the Secretary.
A small sample of the work completed during the first session of
the 114th Congress includes the processing of 2,943 submitted
amendments, 289 reports of committees, 339 roll call votes, and the
incorporation of 405 amendments into measures considered by the Senate.
The Office of the Legislative Clerk works closely with GPO,
particularly the night production crew. For this session of Congress
there were 169 separate issues of the Senate Calendar of Business
published. Examples of daily edits consist of the ``Pending Business,''
``Unanimous Consent Agreements,'' ``General Orders,'' and ``Bills in
Conference.''
The Office continues to make its publications available online,
which has lowered the need for printed copies and makes the materials
more accessible.
official reporters of debates
The Office of the Official Reporters of Debates is responsible for
the stenographic reporting, transcribing, and editing of the Senate
floor proceedings for publication in the Congressional Record. The
Chief Reporter acts as the editor-in-chief and oversees the production
of the Record to ensure its accuracy and consistency to Senate
parliamentary rules and procedures.
When the Senate is in session, the electronic and paper transcripts
of the floor proceedings of the Senate begin to go GPO in the early
evening. The last delivery occurs approximately three hours after the
Senate adjourns or recesses for the day. The Congressional Record is
published in paperback form and online and is available to the public
the next business day.
The Morning Business Editor is responsible for coordinating the
printing of legislative and executive material in the Morning Business
section of the Record and sits in the Senate Chamber, recording daily
floor activity of the Senate for the Official Reporters of Debates.
parliamentarian
The Office of the Parliamentarian 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 Presiding Officer and 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, and unanimous
consent agreements, as well as provisions of public law and the
Constitution that affect the proceedings of the Senate.
The Parliamentarians work in close cooperation with Senate
leadership and their floor staffs in coordinating all of the business
on the Senate floor. A parliamentarian is always present on the Senate
floor when the Senate is in session, ready to assist Presiding Officers
in their official duties, as well as to assist any other Senator on
procedural matters. The Parliamentarians work closely with the
President pro tempore and the Vice President of the United States and
their staffs when either performs 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 time on the Senate
floor when time is limited or controlled under the provisions of time
agreements, statutes, or standing orders. They keep track of amendments
offered to the legislation pending on the Senate floor, assess them for
germaneness and other possible points of order, and review countless
other amendments that are never offered in the same regard.
The Office of the Parliamentarian is responsible for the referral
of all legislation introduced in the Senate and all legislation
received from the House, as well as all official communications
received from the executive branch, memorials from State and local
governments, and petitions from private citizens to the appropriate
committees. In order to perform this responsibility, the
Parliamentarians do extensive legal and legislative research. The
Office works extensively with Senators and their staffs to advise them
of the jurisdictional consequences of countless drafts of legislation,
and evaluate the jurisdictional effect of proposed modifications in
drafting.
The Office of the Parliamentarian was heavily involved in the
review of certificates of election and appointment for Senators in the
class of 2015 and ensured that all necessary documents were received
and in order for the opening of the new Congress. The parliamentarians
participated in orientation for new Senators and staff and throughout
the year conducted tutorials for individuals and groups on the rules
and precedents of the Senate. In addition, the Parliamentarians
continue to work on the Electronic Senate Precedents database that was
launched at the end of 2014. Future chapters are likely to include:
Table, Vetoes, Division of Pending Question, Closed Door Sessions, and
Debate.
FINANCIAL OPERATIONS
disbursing office
The mission of the Senate Disbursing Office is to provide efficient
and effective financial and human resource data management,
information, and advice to the offices, Members, and employees of the
Senate. The Disbursing Office manages the collection of information
from all the accounting locations within the Senate to formulate and
consolidate the agency level budget, disburse the payroll, pay the
Senate's bills, and provide appropriate counseling and advice. The
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 Disbursing Office also manages
the distribution of central financial and human resource information to
the individual Member offices, committees, administrative offices, and
leadership offices in the Senate while maintaining the confidentiality
of information for Members and Senate employees.
This past year the Office continued to work on several projects
that required a significant level of staff resources and presented
challenges. Among these projects were: (1) the testing and
implementation of system changes to the Senate Payroll System (SPS) due
to the upgrade to PeopleSoft version 9.2; (2) the development and roll-
out of an SPS self-service pilot; (3) the development of programming,
testing and processes for the distribution of new Employer-Provided
Health Insurance Offer and Coverage forms as required by the Affordable
Care Act; (4) the implementation of the new Self+1 health enrollment
codes; (5) the implementation of two FMIS releases to enhance
applications security and to replace outdated financial system
components; (6) the testing to modify our reporting capability to the
U.S. Treasury; (7) the reorganization of the Disbursing Office
Information Technology group to handle the Senate's FMIS modernization
project and workload; and (8) the issuance and evaluation of a Request
for Information (RFI) and the development of the Request for Proposal
(RFP) for the financial system modernization.
During April and October, the Office reviewed, validated and
completed the Report of the Secretary of the Senate which continues to
be issued electronically and in hardcopy version.
In addition, the Disbursing Office compiled the 2016 operating
budget of the Senate for presentation to the Committee on
Appropriations and prepared and distributed budget justification
worksheets to the various offices to gather the information needed for
the fiscal year 2017 budget request and submission to the Office of
Management and Budget.
ADMINISTRATIVE AND EXECUTIVE OPERATIONS
senate chief counsel for employment
The Office of the Senate Chief Counsel for Employment (SCCE) is a
non-partisan office established at the direction of Joint Leadership in
1993 after enactment of the Government Employee Rights Act, 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 12 employment laws.
In accordance with the CAA, Congress has applied subsequently enacted
employment laws to Senate offices, such as the Genetic Information Non-
Discrimination Act.
The SCCE is charged with the legal defense of Senate offices in all
employment law cases at both the administrative and court levels. In
addition to litigating cases, the SCCE's attorneys provide legal advice
to Senate offices. Accordingly, each of the clients of the Senate is an
individual client of the SCCE, and each office maintains an attorney-
client relationship with the SCCE. The SCCE also conducts a robust
training program, which includes seminars to educate Senate managers,
staff and interns about how to identify, prevent, and address unlawful
harassment in the workplace.
The areas of responsibilities of the SCCE can be divided into the
following categories: litigation (defending Senate offices in courts
and at administrative hearings); mediations to resolve potential
lawsuits; court-ordered alternative dispute resolutions; Occupational
Safety and Health Act compliance; union drives, negotiations, and
unfair labor practice charges; Americans with Disabilities Act
compliance; layoffs and office closings in compliance with the law;
management training regarding legal responsibilities and employee
rights; employee and intern training regarding prohibited harassment,
including sexual harassment; and preventive legal advice.
conservation and preservation
The Office of Conservation and Preservation supports the official
record preservation, presentation, and bookbinding needs of Senate
leadership, committees, and offices.
In 2015, the Office of Conservation and Preservation bound 1,350
items, including the re-casing of 162 older books, congressional
hearings, and Congressional Record volumes with new covers and end
sheets, using existing spines when possible. The Office repaired an
additional 324 books for the Senate Library and other offices, and 283
new volumes were printed in-house and bound at the request of Senate
offices. The Office also designed and fabricated 39 boxes or slipcases
for maps and official programs in the Library's collections. In
addition, 500 handmade covers were created to protect original
pamphlets and brochures for the Library. The Office matted and framed
458 items.
curator
The Office of the Senate Curator, on behalf of the Senate
Commission on Art, develops and implements the museum and preservation
programs for the Senate. The Curator collects, preserves, and
interprets the Senate's fine and decorative arts, historic objects, and
specific architectural features. In addition the Curator exercises
supervisory responsibility for the historic chambers in the Capitol
under the jurisdiction of the Commission. Through exhibitions,
publications, and other programs, the Curator educates the public about
the Senate and its collections.
In keeping with scheduled procedures, all Senate collection objects
were inventoried in 2015, and any changes in location were recorded in
the Curator's database. As directed by S. Res. 178 (108th Congress, 1st
session), the Curator submitted a list of the art and historic
furnishings in the Senate to the Committee on Rules and Administration.
The list, known as the Historic Furnishings Inventory, documents the
history of acquisition, use, and manufacturer for each object. Items on
the inventory list are prohibited from removal or purchase. The
inventory, which is submitted every 6 months, is compiled by the
Curator with assistance from the SAA and the Architect of the Capitol's
Superintendent of Senate Office Buildings.
The Office continues to advance the preservation and documentation
of the historic Russell Senate Office Building furnishings by
conducting a yearly inspection of the use and location of the 63 flat-
top partner desks that remain in the Senate, and through educational
initiatives aimed to inform Senate staff about the history of the
furnishings.
The Curator oversaw the restoration of the reproduction of
Senators' chairs and side chairs in the Old Senate Chamber in 2015. The
reproduction Senators' chairs, which are based on the original chairs
made by Thomas Constantine in 1819, were made as part of the 1975-76
restoration of the Chamber. Research by the Curator's Office revealed
that the 1970's yellow upholstery was not historically accurate.
Thorough examination of 19th-century archival records, including
reports submitted by the Secretary of the Senate, and analysis of
several chairs made by Constantine revealed new information that was
not known in the 1970s. This new evidence allowed the Curator's Office
to return the upholstery on the chairs to the original red color and
appearance of the 1819 Senate Chamber chairs, ensuring a more
historically accurate interpretation of the Chamber and its original
furnishings. The re-upholstered chairs were reinstalled in the Chamber
in November 2015.
In 2015, 144 objects were accessioned into the Senate Collection.
The most significant addition was the marble bust of Vice President
Richard B. Cheney unveiled in December 2015.
The Curator continued to maintain and interpret the Old Senate and
Old Supreme Court Chambers and coordinate the use of both rooms
following established guidelines and procedures approved by the Senate
Commission on Art.
A new exhibit was installed by the Curator into showcases in the
vestibule outside SDG-50. Titled: At Work: Two Centuries of Senate
Committees, the exhibit highlights the origin, expansion, and reform of
Senate committees and was created in conjunction with the Senate
Library and Senate Historical Office. The Curator also installed an
exhibit in the first floor connecting corridor of the Senate wing of
the Capitol. The display highlights the function and decoration of the
mid-19th-century Senate extension.
education and training
The Joint Office of Education and Training provides training for
all Senate staff in Washington, DC, and in State offices. The Office
provides performance skills training, technical skills training and
coordinates major training events for Washington, DC and State staff.
Education and Training partners with 15 other training providers to
ensure the Senate staff have the resources and skills they need to
perform their jobs. In 2015, Education and Training staff taught over
250 classes and provided customized training, facilitation services,
and coaching to more than 150 Senate Member, committee, and support
offices, benefitting more than 2,200 staff. The Office held three
training conferences for State staff with over 250 State staff
participants.
The Health Promotion Office within Education and Training is
mandated to provide Health Promotion activities and events. This Office
coordinates and runs a 2-day Health and Wellness Fair for Senate staff.
In 2015, over 1,500 staff participated in health promotion activities,
including lung function and kidney screenings, blood drives, and
seminars on health-related topics.
gift shop
The Gift Shop serves Senators and their spouses, staff,
constituents, and the many visitors to the Capitol complex. The
products available include a wide range of fine gift items,
collectables, and souvenirs, many created exclusively for the Senate.
In addition to over-the-counter and walk-in sales, the Gift Shop
offers an order form through Webster and the administrative office
provides mail order service, special order and catalogue sales. While
the Gift shop maintains two physical locations, the Capitol kiosk is
temporarily closed due to continued restoration of the Brumidi
Corridors.
Consistent with past practice, a transfer of $40,000 to the Senate
Employees Child Care Center was made based on the annual sales of the
Congressional Holiday Ornament (see 2 U.S.C. 6576(c)(3)). The Official
2015 Congressional Holiday Ornament featured the Capitol dome as viewed
from the West Front. Sales of the 2015 holiday ornament were just over
24,000, of which almost 7,000 were personalized with engravings
designed, proofed, and etched by the Gift Shop staff.
historical office
Serving as the Senate's institutional memory, the Historical Office
is comprised of historians and archivists. Senate historians collect
and provide information on important events, precedents, statistics,
and historical comparisons of current and past Senate activities.
Senate archivists advise Senators, officers, and committees on cost-
effective disposition of their non-current office files and assist
researchers in identifying Senate-related source materials. Historians
edit for publication historically significant transcripts and minutes
of selected Senate committees and party organizations and conduct oral
history interviews. Historians also offer special talks and tours
related to key historical events and personalities, the history of the
Capitol, and the Senate's institutional development. In addition, the
Historical Office develops and maintains all historical material on
Senate.gov and provides educational outreach through e-mail and
Twitter.
In 2015 the Historical Office concluded its 5-year commemoration of
the sesquicentennial of the Civil War. Beginning in December 2010, the
Historical Office developed an extensive collection of essays,
biographies, photographs, illustrations, chronologies, and primary
source documents related to the history of the Senate during the Civil
War. Senate historians developed and led special Civil War history
tours of the Capitol and presented ``brownbag lunch'' talks. This
multi-year project resulted in a comprehensive, stand-alone Web site
feature on Senate.gov, a valuable resource for anyone interested in
this important era of our national history.
Since 1978, Senate historians have prepared and annotated
transcripts of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee of the executive
session hearings for publication. Twenty volumes have been completed to
date, taking the series through 1968. In 2015 the Senate Historian and
the Associate Historian continued work on a new volume to cover the
years 1969 and 1970, editing the transcripts for declassification and
publication.
In 2015 the historians conducted nearly 70 oral history interviews
with a wide-ranging group of individuals, including interviews with 14
former Members and staff of the Select Committee to Study Governmental
Operations with Respect to Intelligence Activities (better known as the
Church Committee) to mark its 40th anniversary. The completed volume,
to be released in 2016, includes 27 interviews, a comprehensive
introduction, contextual annotations, and a detailed index.
The Historical Office continued to expand its educational outreach
in 2015 when the Historical Office's Twitter account gained more than
8,000 new followers. Daily Tweets help raise awareness of the
considerable resources available on Senate.gov to Senate staff,
students, teachers, researchers, reporters, and the public.
@SenateHistory highlights Senate-related events that occurred ``on this
day'' in history, features specific Web pages and collections, and
announces new material and information posted on Senate.gov. The
Historical Office sent an average of 14 Tweets per week in 2015 and had
more than 90 percent of those Tweets retweeted.
Senate Rule XI (2) directs that, ``The Secretary of the Senate
shall obtain at the close of each Congress all the noncurrent records
of the Senate and of each Senate committee and transfer them to the
National Archives for preservation.'' During 2015, the Senate
transferred 2,030 cubic feet and 13.22 TB of electronic records to the
Center for Legislative Archives (CLA).
This Advisory Committee on the Records of Congress was established
in 1990 by Public Law 101-509 and meets semiannually 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.
By law, the committee is required to report to Congress every 6 years
on the status of Congress' and Members' archival records. The most
recent report was published December 31, 2012. The next report will be
issued by December 31, 2018. The Secretary of the Senate is chairing
the committee during the 114th Congress. The Senate Historian serves as
a member of the committee and the Senate Archivist serves as principal
liaison to the committee.
human resources
The Office of Human Resources was established in June 1995 by the
Secretary of the Senate 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.
These responsibilities include recruiting and staffing; providing
guidance and advice to managers and staff; training; performance
management and evaluation; job analysis and classification;
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 Office administers the following programs for the Secretary's
employees: the public transportation subsidy program, student loan
program, Family Medical Leave Act program, parking allocations, and the
Secretary of the Senate intern program.
information systems
The primary mission of the Office of Information Systems is to
provide the highest level of customer satisfaction and computer support
for the Office of Secretary. Information Systems provide technical
hardware and software support for the Office of the Secretary.
Information Systems also interfaces closely with the application and
network development groups within the SAA, GPO, and outside vendors on
technical issues and joint projects. The Office provides computer-
related support for all local area network (LAN) servers within the
Office of the Secretary. Information Systems provides direct
application support for all software installed on workstations,
initiates and guides new technologies, and implements next generation
hardware and software solutions. Emphasis is placed on creating and
transferring legislative records to outside departments and agencies,
fulfilling the Disbursing Office's financial responsibilities to Member
offices, and complying with office-mandated and statutory obligations.
interparliamentary services
The Office of Interparliamentary Services (IPS) is responsible for
administrative, financial, and protocol functions for special
delegations authorized by the Majority and/or Minority Leaders, for all
interparliamentary conferences in which the Senate participates by
statute, and for interparliamentary conferences in which the Senate
participates on an ad hoc basis. The office also provides appropriate
assistance as requested by other Senate delegations.
The statutory interparliamentary conferences are: the Mexico-United
States Interparliamentary Group; the Canada-United States
Interparliamentary Group; the British-American Interparliamentary
Group; and the United States-China Interparliamentary Group.
On behalf of the Senate Majority and Minority Leaders, the staff
arranges official receptions for heads of state, heads of government,
heads of parliaments, and parliamentary delegations. Required records
of expenditures on behalf of foreign dignitaries under authority of
Public Law 100-71 are maintained by IPS.
IPS receives and prepares for printing the quarterly consolidated
financial reports for foreign travel from all committees in the Senate.
In addition to preparing the quarterly reports for the Majority Leader
and the Minority Leader, IPS also assists staff members of Senators and
committees in filling out the required reports.
legislative information system (lis) project office
See the section on the LIS Project under the heading ``Update on
the Status of the Legislative Information System (LIS)'' in the BUDGET
REQUEST section.
library
The Senate Library provides legislative, legal, business, and
general information services. 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;
a popular collection of audiobooks; and a wide array of online
resources. The Library also authors content for three Web sites--
LIS.gov, Senate.gov, and Webster.
Senate Information Services (SIS) Program service contracts for
fiscal year 2016 were renewed with existing program vendors to continue
services while meeting stringent program budget constraints. SIS
program managers worked with information technology specialists in the
SAA's Department of Process Management and Innovation, and with the
vendor's technical staff to implement single sign-on authentication and
update the Senate's custom user interface for one of the enterprise-
wide legal services providers. Work was also completed on a
comprehensive redesign of Senate Newswatch, offering a contemporary
presentation of the news important to the Senate with improved
usability and new features for searching, clipping, and sharing
stories.
The Library continues to meet the Senate's increasing demand for
information through the creation of new Web-based content, judicious
selection and investment in online resources, expanded outreach and
training opportunities, and use of technology to support alternative
means for information delivery.
page school
The Senate Page School serves all appointed Senate page students
with a sound program, both academically and experientially, during
their stay in the Nation's capital.
In 2013 the Middle States Commission on Secondary Schools awarded
accreditation renewal which continues until May 1, 2018. The Page
School is among schools throughout the world that meet the
internationally recognized standards of quality.
Faculty and staff provided extended educational experiences to
pages, including field trips, guest speakers, opportunities to play
musical instruments and vocalize, and world languages study. The
community service project embraced by pages and staff continues. Pages
collected, assembled, and shipped items for gift packages to military
personnel serving in various locations and included letters of support
to the troops.
printing and document services
The Office of Printing and Document Services (OPDS) serves as
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, and committee prints; as well as
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.
During fiscal year 2015, the OPDS prepared 2,893 requisitions
authorizing GPO to print and bind the Senate's work, exclusive of
legislation and the Congressional Record--an increase of 17 percent
over the previous year. 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 allocations for each Senate
office and committee. Examples of major printing projects include: the
Report of the Secretary of the Senate, the 114th Congress Congressional
Directory, the Authority and Rules of Senate Committees, and the
Journal of Senate Proceedings, 113th Congress 2nd Session.
During 2015, OPDS processed and distributed over 9,700 distinct
legislative items as well as fulfilled over 10,000 requests for
legislative material at the walk-in counter, by mail, fax, and
electronically. In shop on-demand printing increased two-fold over the
previous year to supplement depleted inventory and meet committee
needs. Online ordering of legislative documents and 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.
public records
The Office of Public Records receives, processes, and maintains
records, reports, and other documents filed with the Secretary of the
Senate that involve the Federal Election Campaign Act, as amended; the
Lobbying Disclosure Act (LDA) of 1995, as amended; 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 works closely with the Federal Election Commission (FEC), the
Senate Select Committee on Ethics, and the Clerk of the House
concerning the filing requirements of the aforementioned acts and
Senate rules.
From October 2014 through September 2015, Public Records assisted
more than 10,000 individuals seeking information from or about reports
filed with the office, responded to walk-in inquiries and inquiries by
telephone or e-mail. In addition, the Office provided assistance to
individuals seeking to comply with the provisions of the LDA.
The LDA requires semiannual contribution reports, and quarterly
financial and lobbying activity reports. To continue implementation of
the LDA, the Office of Public Records conducted two LDA Guidance
reviews in coordination with the Clerk of the House. As of September
30, 2015, there were 4,435 registrants representing 16,407 clients. The
total number of individual lobbyists disclosed on fiscal year 2015
registrations and reports was 11,948. The total number of lobbying
registrations and reports processed was 106,955. The Office referred
622 cases of potential noncompliance to the U.S. Attorney for the
District of Columbia.
The Federal Election Campaign Act requires Senate candidates to
file quarterly and pre- and post-election reports with the Secretary of
the Senate. Filings for the fiscal year totaled 4,207 documents
containing 548,088 pages, which were scanned, processed, and
transmitted to the FEC, as required by law.
The filing date for Public Financial Disclosure Reports was May 15,
2015. The reports were made available to the public and media as soon
as they were filed and processed, and in most cases, the same day.
Public Records staff provided copies to the Ethics Committee and the
appropriate State officials.
Senators are required to file mass mailing reports on a quarterly
basis. The number of pages submitted during fiscal year 2015 was 364.
In addition, the Office received 445 Gift Rule/Travel reports during
fiscal year 2015.
stationery room
Since it was formally established in 1854, the Senate Stationery
Room has evolved into a diversified retail outlet serving the needs of
the Senate community by providing a wide range of office and
administrative supplies, communication and computer accessories, and
special order items for official government business. Additionally, the
Stationery Room provides U.S. flags flown over the Capitol for
constituent requests.
The Stationery Room fulfills its mission by utilizing open market,
competitive bid, or General Services Administration (GSA) schedules for
supply procurement; maintaining sufficient in-stock quantities of
select merchandise to best meet the immediate needs of the Senate
community; developing and maintaining productive business relationships
with a wide variety of vendors to ensure sufficient breadth and
availability of merchandise; maintaining expense accounts for all
authorized customers and preparing monthly activity statements; and
managing all accounts receivable and accounts payable reimbursement.
Utilizing the Pay.gov service offered by the U.S. Treasury, the
Stationery Room has been accepting online flag requests and payments
from constituents through Member Web sites. Currently, 66 Member
offices are offering this payment option and 7 offices are in the
beginning stages of the program. The benefits include a reduced wait
time for constituents, elimination of payment inaccuracies, and greatly
reduced workload for office representatives. The Stationery Room will
continue to expand this service to interested Member offices.
The Stationery Room contracts annually with various vendors to
provide U.S. flags. The flags are purchased by constituents through
individual Member offices, and are flown over the Capitol building for
commemoration of special occasions. While many flags are flown for
specific reasons, some are not and the Stationery Room sells pre-flown
flags for offices to meet those generic requests. This cooperative
relationship offers the Capitol Visitor Center (CVC) considerable
savings on flag purchases through the Stationery Room's existing
procurement contract and allows the Stationery Room to benefit from
larger volume discounts.
The Stationery Room, with the assistance of the Office of Web
Technology, maintains an online Web ordering portal through Webster.
The Web site offers the Stationery Room catalog with product
description, price, and pictures. Customers can place a stock order
online and the order will be delivered within 24 hours. Use of the Web
site helps reduce order time, increases customer convenience and order
accuracy, and reduces the use of paper through reduced reliance on hard
copy orders. Currently, the Stationery Room is in the process of
upgrading the online Web site with the assistance of the Office of Web
Technology, to include an enhanced search engine, modernized layout and
easier checkout.
web technology
The Office of Web Technology is responsible for: Senate.gov; the
Secretary's intranet on Webster; portions of the central site of
Webster; and legbranch.senate.gov (an extranet site available to all
Capitol Hill entities)--along with the Web-based systems, servers, and
technologies supporting these Web sites that fall under the purview of
the Secretary of the Senate.
Senate.gov content is maintained by over 30 contributors from seven
departments of the Office of the Secretary and three departments of
SAA. All content is controlled through the Secretary's Web content
management system, managed by the Office of Web Technology.
A new version of the content management system was implemented in
conjunction with a new architecture ensuring stability and security.
Extensive research was conducted including the deployment of an
alternative content management system in preparation for the eventual
replacement of the current content management system.
In 2015, seven features, nine oral histories, and seven Senate
Stories authored by the Senate Historical Office were added to
Senate.gov. In addition, 85 artifacts under the Curator's management
were added. 78 legacy slideshows were recoded to be more secure and use
fewer resources. The main Art & History page along with significant
secondary pages were refined to provide quicker access to lower level
content and as part of the transition to a new mobile friendly design
currently in development. Friendly URLs were added in addition to two
domain wide security pages alerting the public to potential security
risks in submitted messages, making suggestions for remediation, and
providing useful resources online.
In conjunction with the SAA a new mobile Web site,
opmupdate.senate.gov, was developed and maintained as a clearinghouse
for all messages relating to the OPM intrusions made public in 2015
affecting many Senate staff. Additionally, the Office of the Senate
Chief Counsel for Employment's Web site on Webster was updated and a
new modern stationery order form is under development that will provide
offices with quick and secure online ordering.
The Office also worked extensively with Senate clerks and the
Library of Congress (LOC) in the refinement of Congress.gov and the
dissemination of legislative bulk data, allowing for increased accuracy
and transparency of Congressional information. Part of these processes
involved expanding legbranch.senate.gov to host newly generated data
feeds for the Congressional community.
In 2015 an average of 29,762 visits occurred per day to the central
site of Senate.gov. The Office responded to approximately 593 emails
from the general public regarding Senate.gov sites.
EMERGENCY PREPAREDNESS AND CONTINUITY PLANNING
Throughout 2015, the Office of the Secretary continued to build
upon a comprehensive emergency preparedness and continuity program
initiated in 1997. The program included continuity operations (COOP)
planning within every department of the Office of the Secretary and
coordination with Leadership and SAA on Senate-wide continuity plans,
as well as joint planning with the House of Representatives on
bicameral programs, and inter-Branch coordination with the executive
and judicial branches. The objective of these programs is to provide
Leadership with the tools needed to ensure that the Senate can meet its
constitutional obligations under any circumstances.
The Joint Senate Leadership established the Senate Continuity Board
(SCB), consisting of the Secretary of the Senate and the Senate
Sergeant at Arms, to manage and direct Senate continuity programs. The
Joint Bicameral Leadership established the Joint Congressional
Continuity Board (JCCB), consisting of the principal Senate and House
Officers, to integrate Senate and House continuity programs. In 2015,
the Secretary served as Chair of both Boards. Both the SCB and the JCCB
met monthly throughout the year to manage and direct the full range of
Senate and bicameral continuity programs.
Within the Office of the Secretary, the primary objective is the
continuity of the legislative process. The Legislative Staff and
supporting offices maintain and regularly exercise plans to ensure that
the Senate can convene and conduct legislative business under any
conditions in various locations. Departments responsible for the
execution of statutory obligations, such as the Disbursing Office and
the Office of Public Records, maintain plans to carry out those
functions, either locally or elsewhere, depending upon conditions. The
Secretary's Legislative departments, as well as several others, employ
robust cross-training programs to ensure that staff with critical
skills will be available in an emergency. All departments within the
Office of the Secretary maintain individual plans to ensure that each
department can carry out its minimum essential functions during an
emergency, until full operations can be restored. All departmental
plans are supported by emergency supply kits stored in multiple
locations within and outside the District of Columbia. Across the
Office of the Secretary, monthly drills, annual exercises, and fly away
kit updates are conducted in order to ensure that plans and supply kits
are current, and that staff understand their continuity
responsibilities.