[Senate Report 113-245]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]


113th Congress  }                                            {   Report
  2d Session    }             SENATE                         {  113-245
_______________________________________________________________________
                                                       Calendar No. 532
 
           PRESIDENTIAL LIBRARY DONATION REFORM ACT OF 2014 

                               __________

                              R E P O R T

                                 of the

                   COMMITTEE ON HOMELAND SECURITY AND

                          GOVERNMENTAL AFFAIRS

                          UNITED STATES SENATE

                              to accompany

                                S. 2640

   TO AMEND TITLE 44, UNITED STATES CODE, TO REQUIRE INFORMATION ON 
CONTRIBUTORS TO PRESIDENTIAL LIBRARY FUNDRAISING ORGANIZATIONS, AND FOR 
                            OTHER PURPOSES.

[GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]


                August 26, 2014.--Ordered to be printed
     Filed, under authority of the order of the Senate of August 5
                   (legislative day, August 1), 2014


                    U.S. GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE

                           WASHINGTON : 2014



        COMMITTEE ON HOMELAND SECURITY AND GOVERNMENTAL AFFAIRS

                  THOMAS R. CARPER, Delaware, Chairman
CARL LEVIN, Michigan                 TOM COBURN, Oklahoma
MARK L. PRYOR, Arkansas              JOHN McCAIN, Arizona
MARY L. LANDRIEU, Louisiana          RON JOHNSON, Wisconsin
CLAIRE McCASKILL, Missouri           ROB PORTMAN, Ohio
JON TESTER, Montana                  RAND PAUL, Kentucky
MARK BEGICH, Alaska                  MICHAEL B. ENZI, Wyoming
TAMMY BALDWIN, Wisconsin             KELLY AYOTTE, New Hampshire
HEIDI HEITKAMP, North Dakota

                  Gabrielle A. Batkin, Staff Director
               John P. Kilvington, Deputy Staff Director
                    May Beth Schultz, Chief Counsel
                   Jonathan M. Kraden, Senior Counsel
               Keith B. Ashdown, Minority Staff Director
         Christopher J. Barkley, Minority Deputy Staff Director
               Andrew C. Dockham, Minority Chief Counsel
                      David Z. Demirbilek, Counsel
                     Laura W. Kilbride, Chief Clerk
                                                       Calendar No. 532
113th Congress  }                                            {   Report
  2d Session    }                 SENATE                     {  113-245

=======================================================================



            PRESIDENTIAL LIBRARY DONATION REFORM ACT OF 2014

                                _______
                                

                August 26, 2014.--Ordered to be printed

     Filed, under authority of the order of the Senate of August 5
                   (legislative day, August 1), 2014

                                _______
                                

 Mr. Carper, from the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental 
                    Affairs, submitted the following

                              R E P O R T

                         [To accompany S. 2640]

    The Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental 
Affairs, to which was referred the bill (S. 2640) to amend 
title 44, United States Code, to require information on 
contributors to Presidential library fundraising organizations, 
and for other purposes, having considered the same, reports 
favorably thereon with amendments and recommends that the bill, 
as amended, do pass.

                                CONTENTS

                                                                   Page
  I. Purpose and Summary..............................................1
 II. Background and Need for the Legislation..........................2
III. Legislative History..............................................4
 IV. Section-by-Section Analysis of the Bill, as Reported.............4
  V. Evaluation of Regulatory Impact..................................5
 VI. Congressional Budget Office Cost Estimate........................5
VII. Changes in Existing Law Made by the Bill, as Reported............7

                         I. Purpose and Summary

    The Presidential Library Donation Reform Act of 2014 seeks 
to make the fundraising process for Presidential libraries more 
transparent by requiring public disclosure of the sources and 
amounts of certain donations made to help current and former 
Presidents establish libraries to house their records. Under 
existing law, current and former Presidents, through privately 
established foundations, are free to raise unlimited amounts of 
money from undisclosed sources to fund the construction and 
maintenance of their Presidential libraries and related 
facilities. S. 2640 would bring transparency to the 
Presidential library fundraising process and enable taxpayers 
to know the sources of the funds used to construct facilities 
that the taxpayer will then be asked to support.

              II. Background and Need for the Legislation

    The Presidential library system formally began in 1939, 
when President Franklin D. Roosevelt developed the concept of a 
federally maintained Presidential library to house his 
Presidential papers and other historical materials. Friends of 
President Roosevelt formed a corporation to raise funds for the 
construction of a library located on the grounds of his family 
home in Hyde Park, New York. President Roosevelt's decisionto 
create a library came from his belief that Presidential papers are an 
important part of the Nation's heritage and should be accessible to the 
public.\1\ President Roosevelt's idea took, and today, the National 
Archives and Records Administration (NARA) administers a nationwide 
network of Presidential libraries housing the records of Presidents 
dating back to Herbert Hoover. The libraries are a valuable resource 
for historians, academics, researchers and the public.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    \1\See http://www.fdrlibrary.marist.edu/library/
onedefinitelocality.html.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    The Presidential Libraries Act of 1955\2\ established the 
basic policy for creating federally maintained Presidential 
libraries. To establish a Presidential library, friends, family 
members and associates of an incumbent President generally 
establish a private foundation or other organization to raise 
funds to obtain a site and to construct the facility. Once 
completed, the facility is turned over, along with an operating 
endowment, to NARA. NARA operates and maintains Presidential 
libraries using the operating endowment (described below) and 
federally appropriated funds. The libraries are typically 
located either in the former President's hometown or on a 
university campus. They house the official records and papers 
of former Presidents, as well as documentary materials of the 
President's family and associates. To address concerns about 
the increasing taxpayer cost of Presidential libraries, 
Congress amended the Presidential Libraries Act in 1986,\3\ 
establishing certain reporting requirements for NARA, imposing 
architectural and design conditions, and setting fiscal 
limitations on future Presidential libraries, including a 
requirement that Presidential libraries enter the federal 
system with an operating endowment in tow, in order to reduce 
the ongoing cost to the taxpayer of maintaining the 
libraries.\4\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    \2\Public Law 84-373.
    \3\Public Law 99-323.
    \4\Even with the endowment, Presidential libraries still cost 
taxpayers tens of millions of dollars to operate each year. See 
National Archives and Records Administration, Fiscal Year 2014 
Congressional Justification, at OE-12 (2013), available at http://
www.archives.gov/about/plans-reports/performance-budget/2014-
performance-budget.pdf.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    Over the years, Presidential libraries have evolved into 
multi-purpose institutes that, in addition to housing the 
official papers of a former President, can include museums, 
conference facilities, and classrooms. The cost of these 
facilities can be substantial. Press accounts indicate that the 
Jimmy Carter Presidential library cost $26 million to build,\5\ 
the George H.W. Bush library center cost $83 million to 
build,\6\ the William J. Clinton library center cost $165 
million to build,\7\ and George W. Bush raised more than $500 
million for his library and foundation.\8\ Even though 
President Barack Obama has over two years left in the White 
House, between $850,000 and $1.75 million has already been 
pledged to his Presidential library.\9\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    \5\Peter Applebome, Carter Center: More Than the Past (May 30, 
1993), available at http://www.nytimes.com/1993/05/30/travel/carter-
center-more-than-the-past.html.
    \6\Fred A. Bernstein, Who Should Pay for Presidential Posterity? 
(June 10, 2004), available at http://www.nytimes.com/2004/06/10/garden/
who-should-pay-for-presidential-posterity.html.
    \7\Maria Newman, Thousands Attend Dedication of Clinton's 
Presidential Library (November 18, 2004), available at http://
www.nytimes.com/2004/11/18/politics/18cnd-clin.html.
    \8\The Bush library itself cost approximately $250 million to 
build. See Zeke J. Miller, Bush Raises More Than $500 Million For 
Library (April 10, 2013), available at http://swampland.time.com/2013/
04/10/bush-raises-more-than-500-million-for-library/.
    \9\Howard Koplowitz, Obama Presidential Library: Where Should It 
Be? Chicago, Hawaii, New York Are Main Contenders (August 9, 2014), 
available at http://www.ibtimes.com/obama-presidential-library-where-
should-it-be-chicago-hawaii-new-york-are-main-contenders-1653992.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    Fund-raising for Presidential libraries often begins well 
before a President leaves office. Under current law, there are 
no limits on the amount of money Presidents and their 
associates may raise for a Presidential library, no constraints 
on when fund-raising may begin, no limits on the size of 
donations, and no requirement that any information about the 
donors or donations be disclosed to the public. Foreign 
governments, foreign individuals, and foreign corporations all 
may make donations to Presidential libraries if the libraries 
are willing to accept them.
    This lack of limits and disclosure stands in marked 
contrast to the rules governing campaign contributions. Those 
seeking to raise money for the President's campaign 
organization live under a regime in which both the source and 
amounts of contributions are limited, and the identity of and 
amount given by contributors are made public.\10\ The 
opaqueness of the sources of tens of millions of dollars in 
donations for the benefit of a President has led to bipartisan 
concerns of potential impropriety, a fear that donors may seek 
to use library donations as a means to secure special access or 
political favors.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    \10\See Federal Election Campaign Act, 2 U.S.C. Sec. Sec. 431, et. 
seq.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    Witnesses at a March 1, 2007 hearing conducted by the House 
Committee on Oversight and Government Reform supported the need 
for disclosure of presidential library donations. They argued 
that undisclosed contributions create a perception of 
impropriety and noted the benefits of disclosure to public 
confidence in the political process. Sheila Krumholz, the 
Executive Director of the Center for Responsive Politics 
testified:

          Herein lies the central concern: that those who 
        donate money to presidential libraries will in return 
        receive special access to, and favors from, the 
        president and the federal government. To minimize the 
        potential for that sort of payback, and to build trust 
        among a citizenry that already questions the ethics of 
        elected officials, public disclosure of contributions 
        to presidential library projects seems both appropriate 
        and wise.\11\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    \11\Statement of Sheila Krumholz, Executive Director of the Center 
for Responsive Politics, House Oversight and Government Reform Hearing, 
Reform to the Presidential Library Donation Disclosure Process, at 36, 
(February 28, 2007).

    The Presidential Library Donation Reform Act of 2014 brings 
transparency to the Presidential library fundraising process by 
requiring presidential fundraising organizations to disclose to 
NARA, on a quarterly basis, basic information about each 
donation greater than $200, including the source and date of 
the donation, in an electronic searchable and sortable format. 
This requirement would remain in place until a President leaves 
office or such time as NARA assumes operational control of the 
facility--whichever occurs later. To provide public access to 
the data, NARA is then required topost the disclosure 
information in a searchable, sortable, and downloadable format on its 
website.
    S. 2640 would also institute criminal penalties for 
presidential fundraising organizations that knowingly submit 
false information with respect to a disclosure. Similar 
penalties would apply to individuals that knowingly submit 
false information to a presidential fundraising organization 
with respect to a contribution.
    These commonsense reforms would bring transparency to the 
presidential library fundraising process, helping to eliminate 
even the appearance of impropriety. Ultimately, these reforms 
will enable taxpayers to know the sources of the funds used to 
construct facilities that the taxpayer will eventually support.

                        III. Legislative History

    S. 2640, the Presidential Library Donation Reform Act of 
2014, was introduced on July 22, 2014, by Senators Carper and 
Coburn and the bill was then referred to the Committee on 
Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs. The Committee 
considered the bill at a July 30, 2014 business meeting and 
ordered the bill reported favorably by voice vote. Members 
present for the vote were Senators Carper, Levin, Pryor, 
Landrieu, McCaskill, Begich, Baldwin, Coburn, Johnson, and 
Ayotte.

        IV. Section-by-Section Analysis of the Bill, as Reported


Section 1--Short title

    Section 1 establishes the bill's short title as the 
``Presidential Library Donation Reform Act of 2014.''

Section 2--Presidential libraries

    Section 2(a) adds a new section (h) to 44 U.S.C. 2112 (part 
of the Presidential Libraries Act) to govern the disclosure of 
donations made to Presidential Libraries.
    New Section 2112(h)(1) defines two terms. ``Contribution'' 
means a contribution or contributions made by an individual or 
entity to a Presidential library fundraising organization 
totaling not less than $200 (whether monetary or in-kind) in a 
single calendar quarter. ``Presidential Library Fundraising 
Organization'' means an organization established to raise funds 
to create, maintain, expand, or conduct activities at either a 
Presidential archival depository or any facility relating to a 
Presidential archival depository.
    New Section 2112(h)(2) requires Presidential library 
fundraising organizations to submit quarterly reports to the 
Archivist of the United States with information about each 
contributor who gave the organization more than $200 that 
quarter. This information should be submitted in a searchable 
and sortable format and shall include: (1) the total value of 
each contribution, (2) the source of the contribution, (3) in 
the case of individuals, the occupation of the source, and (4) 
the date of each contribution. The Archivist must then publish 
this information within 30 days of receiving it on a website 
that is free for the public to access and that is searchable, 
sortable, and downloadable. This reporting requirement expires 
on the later of the President's last day in office or the date 
on which the Archivist has accepted, taken title to, or entered 
into an agreement to use any land for the Presidential library.
    New Section 2112(h)(3) establishes legal penalties for any 
person or fundraising organization submitting false information 
with respect to a contribution that is made to a Presidential 
library fundraising organization.
    New Section 2112(h)(4) makes it unlawful for any person to 
knowingly and willfully make a contribution in the name of 
another person; allow the name of a person to be used by 
another to make a contribution; or accept a contribution made 
by one person in the name of another. These provisions include 
prohibiting the making of a contribution through a corporation 
or other legal entity in order to conceal the identity of the 
person actually providing the contribution.
    New Section 2112(h)(5) authorizes the Archivist to 
promulgate regulations necessary to carry out the new 
subsection.
    Section 2(b) of the bill specifies that the disclosure 
requirements contained in the legislation apply only to 
contributions made after date of enactment.

                   V. Evaluation of Regulatory Impact

    Pursuant to the requirement of paragraph 11(b)(1) of rule 
XXVI of the Standing Rules of the Senate the Committee has 
considered the regulatory impact of this bill. The legislation 
will not result in additional regulation, increased economic 
impact, adverse impact on personal privacy, or additional 
paperwork on any individuals or businesses. The Congressional 
Budget Office confirmed that S. 2640 contains no 
intergovernmental or private-sector mandates as defined in 
UMRA.

             VI. Congressional Budget Office Cost Estimate

                                     U.S. Congress,
                               Congressional Budget Office,
                                   Washington, DC, August 13, 2014.
Hon. Tom Carper,
Chairman, Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs, U.S. 
        Senate, Washington, DC.
    Dear Mr. Chairman: The Congressional Budget Office has 
prepared the enclosed cost estimate for S. 2640, the 
Presidential Library Donation Reform Act of 2014.
    If you wish further details on this estimate, we will be 
pleased to provide them. The CBO staff contact is Matthew 
Pickford.
            Sincerely,
                                              Douglas W. Elmendorf.
    Enclosure.

S. 2640--Presidential Library Donation Reform Act of 2014

    S. 2640 would require an organization that raises funds for 
a Presidential library to disclose the sources and amounts of 
such funds. Such organizations would have to identify any 
contributors of $200 or more in a calendar quarter while the 
President is in office and during the period before the federal 
government takes possession of the library or the President 
leaves office, whichever is later. Fundraising organizations 
would be required to provide this information to the National 
Archives and Records Administration (NARA). The bill would 
direct NARA to make the information available to the public in 
a free, online-searchable database. Finally, the legislation 
would establish criminal penalties, including fines, for 
violations of its provisions.
    CBO estimates that implementing S. 2640 would cost $4 
million over the 2015-2019 period, assuming appropriation of 
the necessary amounts. Enacting the legislation could affect 
direct spending and revenues; therefore, pay-as-you-go 
provisions apply. However, we estimate that any such effects 
would not be significant.
    Based on information from NARA, CBO estimates that NARA 
would spend about $1 million to establish the online database 
and around $600,000 annually thereafter to update and maintain 
it. We also estimate that any increases in federal spending for 
law enforcement, court proceedings, or prison operations 
related to criminal violations under S. 2640, which would be 
subject to appropriation, would be insignificant.
    Because those prosecuted and convicted under S. 2640 could 
be subject to criminal fines, the federal government might 
collect additional fines if the legislation is enacted. 
Collections of such fines are recorded in the budget as 
revenues, then deposited in the Crime Victims Fund, and later 
spent. CBO expects that any additional receipts and direct 
spending would be negligible because of the small number of 
cases involved.
    S. 2640 contains no intergovernmental mandates as defined 
in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act (UMRA) and would not affect 
the budgets of state, local, or tribal governments.
    S. 2640 would impose a private-sector mandate, as defined 
in UMRA, by requiring organizations established for the purpose 
of raising funds for Presidential libraries or their related 
facilities to submit information to NARA. The number of such 
organizations is small, and the cost to report the mandated 
information would be minimal. CBO estimates, therefore, that 
the direct cost of the mandate would fall well below the annual 
threshold established by UMRA for private-sector mandates ($152 
million in 2014, adjusted annually for inflation).
    On April 8, 2013, CBO transmitted a cost estimate for H.R. 
1133, the Presidential Library Donation Reform Act of 2013, as 
ordered reported by the House Committee on Oversight and 
Government Reform on March 20, 2013. Both bills contain similar 
provisions, and their estimated costs are the same.
    The CBO staff contacts for this estimate are Matthew 
Pickford (for federal costs) and Paige Piper/Bach (for the 
private-sector impact). The estimate was approved by Peter H. 
Fontaine, Assistant Director for Budget Analysis.

       VII. Changes in Existing Law Made by the Bill, as Reported

    In compliance with paragraph 12 of rule XXVI of the 
Standing Rules of the Senate, the following changes in existing 
law made by the bill, as reported, are shown as follows: 
(existing law proposed to be omitted is enclosed in black 
brackets, new matter is printed in italic, existing law in 
which no change is proposed is shown in roman):

UNITED STATES CODE

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *



                TITLE 44--PUBLIC PRINTING AND DOCUMENTS


CHAPTER 21. NATIONAL ARCHIVES AND RECORDS ADMINISTRATION

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *



Sec. 2112. Presidential archival depository

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *


    (g) * * *
    (h) Presidential Library Fundraising Organization Reporting 
Requirement.--
          (1) Definitions.--In this subsection:
                  (A) Contribution.--The term ``contribution'' 
                means a contribution or contributions made by 
                an individual or entity to a Presidential 
                library fundraising organization totaling not 
                less than $200 (whether monetary or in kind) in 
                a single calendar quarter.
                  (B) Presidential library fundraising 
                organization.--The term ``Presidential library 
                fundraising organization'' means an 
                organization established to raise funds to 
                create, maintain, expand, or conduct activities 
                at--
                          (i) a Presidential archival 
                        depository; or
                          (ii) any facility relating to a 
                        Presidential archival depository.
          (2) Reporting requirement.--
                  (A) In general.--During the period beginning 
                on the date of enactment of this subsection, 
                and ending on the date described in 
                subparagraph (B), and not later than 15 days 
                after the end of each calendar quarter, each 
                Presidential library fundraising organization 
                shall submit to the Archivist, in a searchable 
                and sortable electronic format, information on 
                each contribution made during that quarter, 
                which shall include--
                          (i) the amount or value of the 
                        contribution;
                          (ii) the source of the contribution, 
                        including the address of the individual 
                        or entity that is the source of the 
                        contribution;
                          (iii) if the source of the 
                        contribution is an individual, the 
                        occupation of the individual; and
                          (iv) the date of the contribution.
                  (B) Duration of reporting requirement.--The 
                date described in this subparagraph is the 
                later of--
                          (i) the date on which the Archivist 
                        accepts, takes title to, or enters into 
                        an agreement to use any land or 
                        facility for the Presidential archival 
                        depository for the President for whom 
                        the Presidential library fundraising 
                        organization was established; and
                          (ii) the date on which the President 
                        whose archives are contained in the 
                        Presidential archival depository for 
                        whom the Presidential library 
                        fundraising organization was 
                        established no longer holds the Office 
                        of President.
                  (C) Information required to be published.--
                Not later than 30 days after each submission 
                under subparagraph (A), the Archivist shall 
                publish the information submitted on the 
                website of the National Archives and Records 
                Administration, without a fee or other access 
                charge, in a searchable, sortable, and 
                downloadable format.
          (3) Prohibition on the submission of false material 
        information.--
                  (A) Individual.--
                          (i) Prohibition.--It shall be 
                        unlawful for any person who makes a 
                        contribution to knowingly and willfully 
                        submit materially false information or 
                        omit material information with respect 
                        to the contribution.
                          (ii) Penalty.--Any person who commits 
                        an offense described in clause (i) 
                        shall be punished as provided under 
                        section 1001 of title 18, United States 
                        Code.
                  (B) Organization.--
                          (i) Prohibition.--It shall be 
                        unlawful for any Presidential library 
                        fundraising organization to knowingly 
                        and willfully submit materially false 
                        information or omit material 
                        information required to be submitted 
                        under paragraph (2)(A).
                          (ii) Penalty.--Any Presidential 
                        library fundraising organization that 
                        commits an offense described in clause 
                        (i) shall be punished as provided under 
                        section 1001 of title 18, United States 
                        Code.
          (4) Prohibition on certain contributions.--
                  (A) In general.--It shall be unlawful for any 
                person to knowingly and willfully--
                          (i) make a contribution in the name 
                        of another person;
                          (ii) allow the name of the person to 
                        be used by another person to effect a 
                        contribution; or
                          (iii) accept a contribution that is 
                        made by 1 person in the name of another 
                        person.
                  (B) Penalty.--Any person who commits an 
                offense described in subparagraph (A) shall be 
                punished as provided under section 309(d) of 
                the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 (2 
                U.S.C. 437g(d)) in the same manner as if the 
                offense were a violation of section 316(b)(3) 
                of such Act (2 U.S.C. 441b(b)(3)).
          (5) Regulations.--The Archivist shall promulgate 
        regulations for the purpose of carrying out this 
        subsection.

                                  
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