[Congressional Record Volume 142, Number 34 (Wednesday, March 13, 1996)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E341-E342]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                    FEDERAL AGENCY ANTI-LOBBYING ACT

                                 ______


                      HON. WILLIAM F. CLINGER, JR.

                            of pennsylvania

                    in the house of representatives

                       Wednesday, March 13, 1996

  Mr. CLINGER. Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to introduce today with 51 of 
my distinguished colleagues, the Federal Agency Anti-Lobbying Act. I am 
also pleased that Senator Stevens

[[Page E342]]

will be introducing this legislation in the Senate.
  For those of us who have been in Washington for a few years now, no 
matter how many times you think you've seen it all, you can rest 
assured you haven't. Washington wonders never cease. You can only 
scratch your head and ask yourself--Is this really happening? That is 
exactly why I am here--I have some unbelievable examples of what 
Federal bureaucrats are doing with our tax money.
  Initially it was just a trickle--and then a flood of Members, who 
came to see me loaded down with examples of lobbying materials prepared 
by Federal agencies. Not just a single agency, but several agencies all 
across the Government. How can taxpayer money be used by Federal 
agencies to prepare materials expressly for the purpose of assisting 
outside groups in order to stir up grassroots support or opposition for 
legislative proposals pending before Congress? Often these materials 
are under the guise of being informational or educational fact sheets--
but clearly they are not. In other cases, they are a lot more blatant 
such as invitations to briefings for lobbyists to educate them on the 
agency's view of a particular piece of legislation. They are clearly 
political materials created for the specific purpose of influencing 
Congress on the outcome of legislation.
  As they say, the proof is in the pudding and there are numerous 
examples that have been brought to my attention. These include an 
employee check stub from the Department of Veterans Affairs opposing 
the House budget plan, Secretary Ron Brown's invitation to attend a 
briefing to oppose the Mica commerce legislation, and a letter from the 
National Spa and Pool Institute complaining about receiving lobbying 
materials from an agency that regulates their industry, EPA.
  You might ask, as I did, isn't there already a law on the books that 
covers this activity. How can this be happening? The law on the books, 
the Anti-Lobbying Act, was passed in 1919 and is a criminal statute. 
The law itself is unclear, and has been the subject of numerous 
opinions, often conflicting, on what it means. During the last 75 
years, no one has ever been prosecuted under the law. Having DOJ as the 
enforcing agency is like the fox guarding the chicken coop. Existing 
law needs to be clarified--and we need a civil statute. The most recent 
interpretation of the law is so narrow that unless there is an explicit 
request by an agency to contact Members of Congress, then there is no 
violation of the law.

  This bill is modeled after a provision that has been included in the 
Interior Appropriations bill since 1978. The amendment covers only 
Federal agencies and provides that no funds would be used for any 
activity that is intended to promote public support or opposition to 
any legislative proposal including preparation of pamphlets, kits, 
booklets, etc. However, Federal officials can continue to communicate 
directly with Members of Congress, and provide information, and respond 
to requests from Members. In addition, the President, Vice President, 
Senate-confirmed appointees, and other White House officials would be 
able to continue to communicate positions to the public. The 
Comptroller General would enforce the provision if funds have been 
expended in violation; in addition, the GAO must report on the 
implementation of the legislation 1 year after enactment.
  This is a balanced bill that would still allow the administration to 
effectively communicate its views. At the same time, this provision 
will eliminate and even protect the GS-12 career employee from lobbying 
or being forced to lobby grassroots organizations. Federal employees 
should be administering programs passed by Congress--not campaigning 
with taxpayer dollars.
  This bill is endorsed by a number of national organizations including 
the National Taxpayers Union, NFIB, Chamber of Commerce, Competitive 
Enterprise Institute, National Association of Wholesaler-Distributors, 
Citizens Against Government Waste, Chamber of Commerce, and others.
  The bottom line is that this is good Government reform. Taxpayer 
dollars should not be used for lobbying by Government bureaucrats. I 
urge support of this legislation by all my colleagues.

                          ____________________