Each year, government agencies submit an annual “Congressional Budget Justification” book that outlines the programs and projects for that agency, and justifies the budget that they are requesting.

For some agencies, they are easy to obtain. For others? Not so much.

Below is a growing archive of different agencies, and their respective years.

Declassified Documents

National Reconnaissance Office (NRO)

 National Reconnaissance Office (NRO) Congressional Budget Justification – 2018 – Denied IN FULL, I appealed and lost. This is the entire case file for the FOIA case and appeal [45  Pages, 3.4MB]
 National Reconnaissance Office (NRO) Congressional Budget Justification – 2015-2016 – Denied IN FULL, I appealed and lost. This is the entire case file for the FOIA case and appeal [22  Pages, 2.3MB]
 National Reconnaissance Office (NRO) Congressional Budget Justification – 2014 [536 Pages, 61.0MB]
 National Reconnaissance Office (NRO) Congressional Budget Justification – 2013 [258 Pages, 39.2MB]
 National Reconnaissance Office (NRO) Congressional Budget Justification – 2010 [118 Pages, 4.8MB] – The 2010 document was received by Steven Aftergood of the Federation of American Scientists (FAS). In 2016, I requested a Mandatory Declassification Review (MDR) of the extensive redactions, but was denied. The only record they will release, is the one released in 2010. I requested the case processing notes, which are available  here [118 Pages, 4.8MB].
 National Reconnaissance Office (NRO) Congressional Budget Justification – 1996 – Denied IN FULL, I appealed and lost. This is the entire case file for the FOIA case and appeal [44 Pages, 3.7MB]

The post Congressional Budget Justification Documents, All Agencies first appeared on The Black Vault.

Travel is an important and necessary component of government to accomplish agencies’ mission. In today’s climate of increased transparency, budget reductions, and accountability, agencies’ travel expenditures are closely evaluated to ensure taxpayer dollars are spent wisely. Government travelers are required to exercise the same care in incurring expenses that a prudent person would exercise if traveling on personal business . Therefore, when making official travel arrangements, agencies and employees must consider the most cost-effective class of transportation that meets their needs. Government travelers are required to use coach-class for official travel. Other than coach-class airline accommodations may be used only when their agency specifically authorizes/approves such transportation.

Travel in any class above coach class is also known as premium-class travel. To achieve the goals of greater accountability and transparency for the premium-class transportation, Chapter 300-70.100 of the Federal Travel Regulation (FTR) requires Federal agencies to annually submit premium-class travel data to the General Services Administration (GSA). Agencies are required to report their usage of other than coach class (first and business-class) transportation accommodation acquired while on official business which has a cost to the government greater than coach-class travel. The information is submitted annually via the GSA Travel Reporting Tool, a web-based reporting tool. The annual Premium-Class Travel Report presents the analysis of the data as a report from these annual submissions. This report provides an objective view of the data collected by GSA’s Office of Government-wide Policy (OGP) as required by the FTR .

Premium Travel Expenditure Reports

Below, you will find a growing list of agencies, and their respective Premium Travel Expenditure Reports.

Broadcasting Board of Governors (BBG)

 2016 [2 Pages, 1.0MB]

Department of Defense (DOD)

 2016 [21 Pages, 3.9MB]

Department of Veterans Affairs (VA)

 FY 2016 [5 Pages, 0.8MB]

Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI)

 CY 2016 [9 Pages, 0.8MB]

General Services Administration (GSA)

 FY 2015 [10 Pages, 0.5MB]

Internal Revenue Services (IRS)

 CY 2015 [2 Pages, 0.5MB]

National Reconnaissance Office (NRO)

 CY 2016 [8 Pages, 4.5MB]

United States Secret Service (USSS)

 CY 2016 [19 Pages, 9.3MB]

The post Premium Travel Expenditure Reports first appeared on The Black Vault.

The Congress and the President charged the Director of National Intelligence (DNI) to oversee and direct the implementation of the National Intelligence Program (NIP) and lead an integrated and effective Intelligence Community {IC) that provides high-quality, timely, and objective intelligence. The Community Management Account (CMA) is the primary account within the National Intelligence Program (NIP) that provides the resources required to support the DNI’s activities to oversee the IC and lead intelligence integration. CMA resources advance intelligence integration and unification of the IC by enabling development of IC-wide capabilities, policies, and improvements in areas such as information technology management, security, human capital management, and language training; and investments in research and technology. CMA resources also enable the activities of the Office of the DNI (ODNI) and permit the DNI to effectively and efficiently execute statutory and other mandated responsibilities.

The FY 2014 CMA budget request supports the DNI mission to continue to lead intelligence integration, forging an IC that delivers the most insightful intelligence possible. The continuing rapid pace of growth in communications technology is causing a virtual collapse of time and distance among the peoples of the world. Instant communications and exchange of information are changing the dynamics of human interaction and relationships. The ODNI will continue to establish policies and provide strategic oversight of NIP activities in the collection, analysis. acquisition, research and technology, resource management, human capital, and infrastructure arenas. Consequently. integration of intelligence will remain the organizing principle to meet the needs of our customers effectively and efficiently and ensure increased security for our Nation. We will focus our priorities and chart the course forward by taking into account the evolving and increasingly complex global environment in which we operate.

Document Archive

 National Intelligence Program, FY 2014 Congressional Budget Justification, April 2013 [276 pages, 34.1MB]

The post National Intelligence Program, FY 2014 Congressional Budget Justification, April 2013 first appeared on The Black Vault.

I was curious how much some agencies spent, in regards to advertising on social networks.  So, in October of 2016, I filed to the Social Security Administration (SSA) for records pertaining to this, and was surprised to see a huge influx in spending in 2015 compared to the other years released.

According to the SSA’s website:

Document Archive

 Social Security Administration Social Network Spending, 2013-2016 [3 Pages, 1.1MB]

https://documents.theblackvault.com/documents/ssa/SSA-SocialNetworkAds-2013-2016.pdf

The post Social Security Administration Social Network Spending, 2013-2016 first appeared on The Black Vault.

The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) is an independent agency created by the Congress to maintain stability and public confidence in the nation’s financial system by:

• insuring deposits;
• examining and supervising financial institutions for safety and soundness and consumer protection;
• making large and complex financial institutions resolvable; and
• managing receiverships.

The FDIC is a recognized leader in promoting sound public policies, addressing risks in the nation’s financial system, and carrying out its insurance, supervisory, consumer protection, resolution planning, and receivership management responsibilities.

Below, you will find a current list of FDIC Circulars, often not cited or listed on their website, in most cases. This list is current, as of January 26, 2017.

FDIC Circular Lists

 Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) Circulars List [15 Pages, 0.6MB]

https://documents.theblackvault.com/documents/FDIC/FDIC-CircularList17-0006.pdf

The post Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) Circulars first appeared on The Black Vault.

Under its contract for the Idaho Cleanup Project, CH2M-WG Idaho LLC was to design, construct, and operate the Sodium-Bearing Waste Treatment Facility (SBWTF) to treat 900,000 gallons of radioactive liquid waste that is currently stored in underground waste tanks at the Idaho National Laboratory.

The 1995 Settlement Agreement required the Department to complete processing of the sodium-bearing waste by December 31, 2012. Following treatment, as required by the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act, the waste tanks were to be removed from service by December 2014.

However, the project had cost and schedule issues, leading the Department of Energy’s Idaho Operations Office to delay the planned start of operations a number of times. In December 2010, to address cost overruns, the Department implemented a contract modification where it placed a cost cap of $571 million for the construction of the facility. Any construction costs above that amount were to be borne by the contractor. Operating costs are fully reimbursable, are not subject to the cost cap, and begin after construction is complete.

In April 2012, the Department declared construction complete, beginning the project’s operation phase, and in June 2012, CH2M-WG Idaho LLC initiated comprehensive performance testing, which involved operating the plant at high temperature with a nonradioactive simulant to prove full performance of the facility. On June 16, 2012, during testing, the facility experienced a “system pressure event” which led to the shutdown of the facility.

The Department’s investigation into the event revealed both operational and design deficiencies and the facility has been shut down since the event for modifications and repairs to the facility and process. We initiated this audit to determine whether the Department effectively managed the startup of the SBWTF.

Management of the Startup of the Sodium-Bearing Waste Treatment Facility, March 2016

https://documents.theblackvault.com/documents/doe/DOE-OIG-16-09.pdf

The post Feds Spend Over $700 Million On A Radioactive Waste Plant That Doesn’t Work first appeared on The Black Vault.

What GAO Found The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) made progress in implementing information security controls; however, weaknesses in the controls limited their effectiveness in protecting the confidentiality, integrity, and availability of financial and sensitive taxpayer data. During fiscal year 2015, IRS continued to devote attention to securing its information systems that process sensitive taxpayer and financial information. Key among its actions were further restricting access privileges on key financial applications and continuing its migration to multifactor authentication across the agency.

However, significant control deficiencies remained. For example, the agency had not always (1) implemented controls for identifying and authenticating users, such as applying proper password settings; (2) appropriately restricted access to servers; (3) ensured that sensitive user authentication data were encrypted; (4) audited and monitored systems to ensure compliance with agency policies; and (5) ensured access to restricted areas was appropriate. In addition, unpatched and outdated software exposed IRS to known vulnerabilities.

An underlying reason for these weaknesses is that IRS has not effectively implemented elements of its information security program. The agency had a comprehensive framework for its program, such as assessing risk for its systems, developing security plans, and providing employees with security awareness and specialized training.

However, aspects of its program had not yet been effectively implemented. For example, IRS had not updated key mainframe policies and procedures to address issues such as comprehensively auditing and monitoring access. In addition, IRS did not include sufficient detail in its authorization procedures to ensure that access to systems was appropriate.

Further, IRS had not ensured that many of its corrective actions to address previously identified deficiencies were effective. For example, for the 28 prior recommendations that IRS informed us that it had addressed, 9 of the associated weaknesses had not been effectively corrected.

Until IRS takes additional steps to (1) address unresolved and newly identified control deficiencies and (2) effectively implement elements of its information security program, including, among other things, updating policies, test and evaluation procedures, and remedial action procedures, its financial and taxpayer data will remain unnecessarily vulnerable to inappropriate and undetected use, modification, or disclosure.

These shortcomings were the basis for GAO’s determination that IRS had a significant deficiency in internal control over financial reporting systems for fiscal year 2015.

Download the Document

https://documents.theblackvault.com/documents/financial/676097.pdf

The post March 2016: IRS Needs to Further Improve Controls over Financial and Taxpayer Data first appeared on The Black Vault.

Randal Howard “Rand” Paul (born January 7, 1963) is an American politician and physician. Since 2011, Paul has served in the United States Senate as a member of the Republican Party representing Kentucky. He is the son of former U.S. Representative Ron Paul of Texas.

Born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, Paul attended Baylor University and is a graduate of the Duke University School of Medicine. Paul began practicing ophthalmology in 1993 in Bowling Green, Kentucky, and established his own clinic in December 2007. Throughout Paul’s life, he volunteered for his father’s campaigns. In 2010, Paul entered politics by running for a seat in the United States Senate. Paul has described himself as a Constitutional conservative and a supporter of the Tea Party movement, and has advocated for a balanced budget amendment, term limits, and privacy reform.

On April 7, 2015, Paul officially announced his candidacy for the Republican nomination at the 2016 U.S. presidential election.

The following is his financial disclosure form.

Download Rand Paul’s Financial Disclosure Statement

 Rand Paul, Form 278 [10 Pages, 29.9 MB]

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The post Rand Paul (2016 Election) first appeared on The Black Vault.

Marco Antonio Rubio (born May 28, 1971) is the junior United States Senator from Florida, serving since January 2011. He previously served as Speaker of the Florida House of Representatives, and is currently a candidate for President of the United States in the 2016 U.S. presidential election.

Rubio is a Cuban American native of Miami. He graduated from the University of Florida and the University of Miami School of Law. In the late 1990s, he served as a City Commissioner for West Miami and was elected to the Florida House of Representatives in 2000, representing the 111th House district. He was elected Speaker in September 2005.

Rubio announced a run for U.S. Senate in May 2009 after incumbent Republican Mel Martínez announced that he would not be seeking reelection. Initially trailing by double-digits against the incumbent Republican Governor Charlie Crist, Rubio eventually surpassed him in polling for the Republican nomination. Crist then opted instead to run with no party affiliation, and Rubio went on to win the Republican nomination, and then won the general election in November 2010 with 49 percent of the vote.

Since announcing his presidential candidacy on April 13, 2015 Rubio has participated in nationally televised debates, and has pitched his candidacy as an effort to restore the American Dream for middle- and working-class families.

The following is Senator Rubio’s Financial Disclosure Statement.

Download Marco Rubio’s Financial Disclosure Statement

 Marco Rubio, Form 278 [10 Pages, 2.4 MB]

https://documents.theblackvault.com/documents/financial/Marco-A-Rubio-2016Form278Presidential%20Candidate.pdf

The post Marco Rubio (2016 Election) first appeared on The Black Vault.

Carly Fiorina (born Cara Carleton Sneed; September 6, 1954) is a former business CEO and an American Republican politician, who is a candidate for president in the 2016 United States Presidential election. Fiorina currently chairs the non-profit philanthropic organization Good360.

In 1980, Fiorina started at AT&T as a management trainee and rose through the ranks to become the company’s first female executive officer. In 1995, Fiorina led corporate operations for AT&T’s equipment and technology spin-off, Lucent Technologies. As chief executive officer of Hewlett-Packard (HP) from 1999 to 2005, she was the first woman to lead a top-20 company as ranked by Fortune magazine.

In 2002, Fiorina oversaw what was then the largest technology sector merger in history, in which HP acquired rival personal computer manufacturer Compaq. The transaction made Hewlett-Packard, the surviving company, the world’s largest seller of PC’s in terms of units sold. During Fiorina’s tenure, HP laid off 30,000 U.S. employees. By 2004, the number of total HP employees around the world was about the same as the pre-merger total of HP and Compaq combined, including roughly 8,000 employees of other companies acquired by HP since 2001 as well as workers overseas. On February 9, 2005, the HP board of directors forced Fiorina to resign as chief executive officer and chair due to declining stock value, disappointing earning reports, disagreements about the company’s performance, and her resistance to transferring authority to division heads at the suggestion of the board.

After leaving HP, Fiorina served on the boards of several organizations. She was an adviser to Republican Senator John McCain’s 2008 presidential campaign. In 2010 she won the Republican nomination for the United States Senate in California, but lost the general election. She currently chairs the non-profit philanthropic organization Good360.

On May 4, 2015, Fiorina announced her candidacy for the Republican nomination 2016 U.S. presidential election.

The below is Mrs. Fiorina’s Financial Disclosure Statement.

Download Carly Fiorina’s Financial Disclosure Statement

 Carly Fiorina, Form 278 [80 Pages, 29.9 MB]

The post Carly Fiorina (2016 Election) first appeared on The Black Vault.

Bernard “Bernie” Sanders (born September 8, 1941) is an American politician and the junior United States Senator from Vermont. The longest-serving independent in U.S. Congressional history, Sanders caucuses with the Democratic Party and has been the ranking minority member on the Senate Budget Committee since January 2015. He is a candidate for President of the United States in the 2016 U.S. presidential election.

Sanders was born and raised in the borough of Brooklyn, in New York City. He graduated from the University of Chicago in 1964. While a student, Sanders was a member of the Young People’s Socialist League and an active Civil Rights protest organizer for the Congress of Racial Equality and the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee. In 1963, he participated in the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom. After settling in Vermont in 1968, Sanders ran unsuccessful third-party campaigns for governor and U.S. senator in the early to mid-1970s. As an independent, he was elected mayor of Burlington, Vermont’s most populous city, in 1981. He was reelected three times before being elected to represent Vermont’s at-large congressional district in the United States House of Representatives in 1990. He served as a congressman for 16 years before being elected to the U.S. Senate in 2006. In 2012, he was reelected by a large margin, capturing almost 71% of the popular vote.

A self-described democratic socialist, Sanders favors policies similar to those of social democratic parties in Europe, particularly those instituted by the Nordic countries. Sanders is known as a leading progressive voice on issues such as income inequality, universal healthcare, parental leave, climate change, LGBT rights, and campaign finance reform. He rose to national prominence following his 2010 filibuster against the proposed extension of the Bush tax cuts. He is also outspoken on civil rights and civil liberties, and has been particularly critical of mass surveillance policies such as the USA PATRIOT Act, the NSA surveillance program, and racial discrimination in the criminal justice system. He has long been critical of U.S. foreign policy, and was an early and outspoken opponent of the Iraq War.

Below, you will find Mr. Sanders’ Financial Disclosure Form.

Download Bernie Sanders’ Financial Disclosure Statement

 Bernie Sanders Form 278 [8 Pages, 3.4 MB]

https://documents.theblackvault.com/documents/financial/Bernard-Sanders-2016Form278PresidentialCandidate.pdf

The post Bernie Sanders (2016 Election) first appeared on The Black Vault.

Benjamin Solomon “Ben” Carson, Sr. (born September 18, 1951) is an American retired neurosurgeon who was the Director of Pediatric Neurosurgery at Johns Hopkins Hospital from 1984 to 2013. He is known for surgical separation of conjoined twins, as well as a bestselling author and political commentator.

In 2008, Carson was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by President George W. Bush.

After delivering a widely publicized speech at the 2013 National Prayer Breakfast, he became a popular conservative figure in political media for his views on social and political issues. On May 4, 2015, Carson announced he was running for the Republican nomination in the 2016 presidential election at a rally in his hometown of Detroit.

The following is Dr. Carson’s Financial Disclosure Statement.

Download Ben Carson’s Financial Disclosure Statement

 Ben Carson, Form 278 [26 Pages, 7.9 MB]

The post Ben Carson (2016 Election) first appeared on The Black Vault.

Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American real estate developer, television personality, business author, and candidate for President of the United States in the 2016 presidential election. He is the chairman and president of The Trump Organization, and the founder of Trump Entertainment Resorts. Trump’s career, branding efforts, lifestyle and outspoken manner helped make him a celebrity, a status amplified by the success of his NBC reality show, The Apprentice.

Trump is a son of Fred Trump, a New York City real estate developer. He worked for his father’s firm, Elizabeth Trump & Son, while attending the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, and officially joined the company in 1968. In 1971, he was given control of the company, renaming it The Trump Organization. Trump remains a major figure in American real estate.

On June 16, 2015, Trump formally announced his candidacy for president in the 2016 election, seeking the nomination of the Republican Party. Trump’s early campaigning drew intense media coverage and saw him rise to high levels of popular support. Since late July 2015, he has consistently been the front-runner in public opinion polls for the Republican Party nomination.

Donald Trump, by far, has one of the largest financial disclosure statements of all the candidates.

Download Donald Trump’s Financial Disclosure Statement

 Donald Trump, Form 278 [93 Pages, 29.9 MB]

The post Donald J. Trump (2016 Election) first appeared on The Black Vault.

 Final Minutes from the May 27-28,2009, Conference of First Vice Presidents meeting held via at the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta [13 Pages, 808k]

https://documents.theblackvault.com/documents/financial/FirstVicePres2009.pdf

The post Meetings of the First Vice Presidents of the Federal Reserve first appeared on The Black Vault.

This study identifies the forces that will drive requirements for U.S. coins and notes. It examines how these forces may shape demand and the implications for the production and processing of coins and notes. This study was conducted jointly by the Board of Governors ofthe Federal Reserve System and the U.S. Department of Treasury (including the U.S. Mint and the Bureau of Engraving and Printing) to provide operational and policy guidance.

The Future of Money, Implications for U.S. Note and Coin Production and Processing [71 Pages, 11MB]

The post The Future of Money, September 1999 first appeared on The Black Vault.

But since the ink of his signature hit the bill, it has been surrounded with question marks.  Where is the money going?  What is it going to?

Well many news agencies followed the trail, and reported excessive spending on programs not worth the time.  Who should you believe?

To watch the dollar signs, I have filed multiple FOIAs for the exact contracts related to stimulus spending.  Below, you will find the documents that have been received, and you decide — is it worth OUR money?

$18,000,000+ for the software to run Recovery.gov?  Note the amount of blacked out information

•  Documents regarding this contact, compliments of ProPublica [156 Pages, 15.5mb]

$16,700,000+ for Canned Pork?

Contract Number AG3J14120297195

Funding Amount $16,784,272
Recipient Name LAKESIDE FOODS INC
Contracting Office Name AGRICULTURAL MARKETING SERVICE
Description of Work/Service performed: CANNED PORK

Link to the Recovery.gov contract listing

 Documents obtained from the FDA regarding this contract [141 Pages, 8.8mb]

$1,500,000+ for Cheese?

Contract Number AGDPDVVDOC02503

Funding Amount $1,562,568
Agency Name Department of Agriculture
Description of Work/Service performed: MOZZARELLA CHEESE
Recipient Name MICELI DAIRY PRODUCTS COMPANY

1.  Documents obtained from the USDA regarding this contract [290 Pages,6.9mb]

 $1,400,000+ to repair a door?

Contract Number: 0006

Funding Amount: $1,444,100
Project Location: DYESS AFB
Recipient Name AFCO TECHNOLOGIES, INC
Description of Work/Service performed: REPAIR DOOR BLDG 5112

Link to the Recovery.gov contract listing

1.  Documents obtained from Dyess Air Force Base regarding the above contract [60 Pages, 1.3mb]

The post Stimulus Package Watch first appeared on The Black Vault.

Introduction

Secret Fed Loans Gave Banks $13 Billion which was undisclosed to Congress.  Bloomberg received these pages after filing a FOIA lawsuit, and won, which they then sifted through to create their massive report and expose, which is reprinted below. The Black Vault has archived the document release in its entirety, with full credit and special thanks to Bloomberg for their permission.

Please Note: This is a large page to load.

FOIA Documents

The following documents were received from Bloomberg, and republished here, with permission.  Please note, these are listed and programmed in how they were received.  The Black Vault has made them “indexed” (so you can search them, and they will be archived by the search engines) but other than that, there are no changes, except for TheBlackVault.com watermark.

FOIA Request No. 2008-356

• rpt_PC_Matur_20080404.pdf
• rpt_PC_Matur_20080407.pdf
• rpt_PC_Matur_20080408.pdf
• rpt_PC_Matur_20080409.pdf
• rpt_PC_Matur_20080410.pdf
• rpt_PC_Matur_20080411.pdf
• rpt_PC_Matur_20080414.pdf
• rpt_PC_Matur_20080415.pdf
• rpt_PC_Matur_20080416.pdf
• rpt_PC_Matur_20080417.pdf
• rpt_PC_Matur_20080418.pdf
• rpt_PC_Matur_20080421.pdf
• rpt_PC_Matur_20080422.pdf
• rpt_PC_Matur_20080423.pdf
• rpt_PC_Matur_20080424.pdf
• rpt_PC_Matur_20080425.pdf
• rpt_PC_Matur_20080428.pdf
• rpt_PC_Matur_20080429.pdf
• rpt_PC_Matur_20080430.pdf
• rpt_PC_Matur_20080501.pdf
• rpt_PC_Matur_20080502.pdf
• rpt_PC_Matur_20080505.pdf
• rpt_PC_Matur_20080506.pdf
• rpt_PC_Matur_20080507.pdf
• rpt_PC_Matur_20080508.pdf
• rpt_PC_Matur_20080509.pdf
• rpt_PC_Matur_20080512.pdf
• rpt_PC_Matur_20080513.pdf
• rpt_PC_Matur_20080514.pdf
• rpt_PC_Matur_20080515.pdf
• rpt_PC_Matur_20080516.pdf
• rpt_PC_Matur_20080519.pdf
• rpt_PC_Matur_20080520.pdf

FOIA Request No. 2010-282

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FOIA Requests Nos. 2009-73 and 2009-106

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• Not Categorized – Additional Responsive Information/

Additional Data Releases

The following links are also recommended for researching the material above.

• Usage of Federal Reserve Credit and Liquidity Facilities – Main page on data released by the Fed in December 2010 in response tomandates in the Dodd-Frank Act
• Data released by the Fed in July 2011 in response to a subsequent FOIArequest related to the Fed’s ST OMO program

Bloomberg’s Report

The post Secret Fed Loans Gave Banks $13 Billion, Undisclosed to Congress first appeared on The Black Vault.

Under Article I Section 8 of the United States Constitution, Congress has the sole power to borrow money on the credit of the United States. From the founding of the United States until 1917 Congress directly authorized each individual debt issuance separately. In order to provide more flexibility to finance the United States’ involvement in World War I, Congress modified the method by which it authorizes debt in the Second Liberty Bond Act of 1917. Under this act Congress established an aggregate limit, or “ceiling,” on the total amount of bonds that could be issued.

The current debt ceiling, in which an aggregate limit is applied to nearly all federal debt, was substantially established by Public Debt Acts passed in 1939 and 1941. The Treasury is authorized to issue debt needed to fund government operations (as authorized by each federal budget) up to a stated debt ceiling, with some small exceptions.

The process of setting the debt ceiling is separate and distinct from the regular process of financing government operations, and raising the debt ceiling does not have any direct impact on the budget deficit. The U.S. government proposes a federal budget every year, which must be approved by Congress. This budget details projected tax collections and outlays and, if there is a budget deficit, the amount of borrowing the government would have to do in that fiscal year. A vote to increase the debt ceiling is, therefore, usually treated as a formality, needed to continue spending that has already been approved previously by the Congress and the President. The Government Accountability Office (GAO) explains: “The debt limit does not control or limit the ability of the federal government to run deficits or incur obligations. Rather, it is a limit on the ability to pay obligations already incurred.” The apparent redundancy of the debt ceiling has led to suggestions that it should be abolished altogether.

Since 1979, the House of Representatives passed a rule to automatically raise the debt ceiling when passing a budget, without the need for a separate vote on the debt ceiling, except when the House votes to waive or repeal this rule. The exception to the rule was invoked in 1995, which resulted in two government shutdowns.

When the debt ceiling is reached, Treasury can declare a debt issuance suspension period and utilize “extraordinary measures” to acquire funds to meet federal obligations but which do not require the issue of new debt.  Treasury first used these measures on December 16, 2009, to remain within the debt ceiling, and avoid a government shutdown, and also used it during the debt-ceiling crisis of 2011. However, there are limits to how much can be raised by these measures.

The debt ceiling was increased on February 12, 2010, to $14.294 trillion.  On April 15, 2011, Congress finally passed the 2011 United States federal budget, authorizing federal government spending for the remainder of the 2011 fiscal year, which ends on September 30, 2011, with a deficit of $1.48 trillion,  without voting to increase the debt ceiling. The two Houses of Congress were unable to agree on a revision of the debt ceiling in mid-2011, resulting in the United States debt-ceiling crisis. The impasse was resolved with the passing on August 2, 2011, the deadline for a default by the U.S. government on its debt, of the Budget Control Act of 2011, which immediately increased the debt ceiling to $14.694 trillion, required a vote on a Balanced Budget Amendment, and established several complex mechanisms to further increase the debt ceiling and reduce federal spending.

On September 8, 2011, one of the complex mechanisms to further increase the debt ceiling took place as the Senate defeated a resolution to block a $500 billion automatic increase. The Senate’s action allowed the debt ceiling to increase to $15.194 trillion, as agreed upon in the Budget Control Act.  This was the third increase in the debt ceiling in 19 months, the fifth increase since President Obama took office, and the twelfth increase in 10 years. The August 2 Act also created the United States Congress Joint Select Committee on Deficit Reduction for the purpose of developing a set of proposals by November 23, 2011, to reduce federal spending by $1.2 trillion. The Act requires both houses of Congress to convene an “up-or-down” vote on the proposals as a whole by December 23, 2011. The Joint Select Committee met for the first time on September 8, 2011.

The debt ceiling was raised once more on January 30, 2012, to a new high of $16.394 trillion.

At midnight on Dec. 31, 2012, a major provision of the Budget Control Act of 2011 (BCA) is scheduled to go into effect. The crucial part of the Act provided for a Joint Select Committee of Congressional Democrats and Republicans — the so-called ‘Supercommittee ‘— to produce bipartisan legislation by late November 2012 that would decrease the U.S. deficit by $1.2 trillion over the next 10 years. To do so, the committee agreed to implement by law — if no other deal was reached before Dec. 31 — massive government spending cuts as well as tax increases or a return to tax levels from previous years. These are the elements that make up the ‘fiscal cliff.’  Source for the above: Wikipedia

The Budget and Economic Outlook: Fiscal Years 2010 to 2020, 01/2010 [181 Pages, 1.9MB] – The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) projects that if current laws and policies remained unchanged, the federal budget would show a deficit of about $1.3 trillion for fiscal year 2010 (see Summary Table 1). At 9.2 percent of gross domestic product (GDP), that deficit would be slightly smaller than the shortfall of 9.9 percent of GDP ($1.4 trillion) posted in 2009. Last year’s deficit was the largest as a share of GDP since the end of World War II, and the deficit expected for 2010 would be the second largest. Moreover, if legislation is enacted in the next several months that either boosts spending or reduces revenues, the 2010 deficit could equal or exceed last year’s shortfall. The large 2009 and 2010 deficits reflect a combination of factors: an imbalance between revenues and spending that predates the recession and turmoil in financial markets, sharply lower revenues and elevated spending associated with those economic conditions, and the costs of various federal policies implemented in response to those conditions.

The Budget and Economic Outlook: Fiscal Years 2008 to 2017, 01/2007 [194 Pages, 2.2MB] – If current laws and policies remained the same, the budget deficit would equal roughly 1 percent of gross domestic product (GDP) each fiscal year from 2007 to 2010, the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) projects. Those deficits would be smaller than last year’s budgetary shortfall, which equaled 1.9 percent of GDP (see Summary Table 1). Under the assumptions that govern CBO’s baseline projections, the budget would essentially be balanced in 2011 and then would show surpluses of about 1 percent of GDP each year through 2017 (the end of the current 10-year projection period). The favorable outlook suggested by those 10-year projections, however, does not indicate a substantial change in the nation’s long-term budgetary challenges. The aging of the population and continuing increases in health care costs are expected to put considerable pressure on the budget in coming decades. Economic growth alone is unlikely to be sufficient to alleviate that pressure as Medicare, Medicaid, and (to a lesser extent) Social Security require ever greater resources under current law. Either a substantial reduction in the growth of spending, a significant increase in tax revenues relative to the size of the economy, or some combination of spending and revenue changes will be necessary to promote the nation’s longterm fiscal stability. CBO’s baseline budget projections for the next 10 years, moreover, are not a forecast of future outcomes; rather, they are a benchmark that lawmakers and others can use to assess the potential impact of future policy decisions. The deficits and surpluses in the current baseline are predicated on two key projections.

The Budget and Economic Outlook: Fiscal Years 2006 to 2015, 01/2005 [179 Pages, 1.9MB] – This volume is one of a series of reports on the state of the budget and the economy that the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) issues each year. It satisfies the requirement of section 202(e) of the Congressional Budget Act of 1974 for CBO to submit to the Committees on the Budget periodic reports about fiscal policy and to provide baseline projections of the federal budget. In accordance with CBO’s mandate to provide impartial analysis, the report makes no recommendations. Chapter 1, The Budget Outlook, provides a review of 2004 followed by discussions on The Concept Behind CBO’s Baseline Projections, Uncertainty and Budget Projections, The Long-Term Outlook, Changes to the Budget Outlook Since September 2004, The Outlook for Federal Debt, and Trust Funds and the Budget. Chapter 2, The Economic Outlook, presents an Overview of CBO’s Two-Year Forecast followed by discussions of The Importance of Productivity Growth for Economic and Budget Projections, The Outlook for 2005 and 2006, The Economic Outlook through 2015, Taxable Income, Changes in CBO’s Outlook Since September 2004, and A Comparison of Forecasts. Chapter 3, The Spending Outlook, focuses on Mandatory Spending, Discretionary Spending, and Net Interest. Chapter 4, The Revenue Outlook, examine Revenues by Source, Revenue Projections in Detail, Uncertainty in the Revenue Baseline, Revisions to CBO’s September 2004 Revenue Projections,and The Effects of Expiring Tax Provisions. Appendixes A through F focus on the following: How Changes in Economic Assumptions Can Affect Budget Projections, The Treatment of Federal Receipts and Expenditures in the National Income and Product Accounts, Budget Resolution Targets and Actual Outcomes, Forecasting Employers’ Contributions to Defined-Benefit Pensions and Health Insurance, CBO’s Economic Projections for 2005 to 2015, Historical Budget Data, and Contributors to the Revenue and Spending Projections. A glossary completes the report.

The Debt Limit: History and Recent Increases, 09/08/2010 [26 Pages, 400kb] – Total debt of the federal government can increase in two ways. First, debt increases when the government sells debt to the public to finance budget deficits and acquire the financial resources needed to meet its obligations. This increases debt held by the public. Second, debt increases when the federal government issues debt to certain government accounts, such as the Social Security, Medicare, and Transportation trust funds, in exchange for their reported surpluses. This increases debt held by government accounts. The sum of debt held by the public and debt held by government accounts is the total federal debt. Surpluses generally reduce debt held by the public, while deficits raise it. On September 3, 2010, total federal debt outstanding was $13.435 trillion.

Economic Renewal: A Grand Strategy for the United States, 03/24/2010 [34 Pages, 389kb] – The nation’s continuing deficits and increasing debt will lead to its declining economic strength if not checked. Economic power is the foundation for the other elements of national power so economic problems degrade military power, erode America’s international image, and potentially may lead to declining faith in democratization efforts abroad as developing nations find free market capitalism less attractive. The U.S. should adopt a grand strategy of “economic renewal” to maintain its economic power. By taking steps to reduce its debt and leading an international effort to replace the dollar as the global currency, the United States can focus on rebuilding its economic power and maintaining its role as a global leader. Supporting military, diplomatic, and informational strategies will ensure the world sees these changes as the actions of a global power leading visionary change instead of a declining power trying to hold onto a fading empire. Changes led by the U.S. are essential for this country to maintain its power as well as to shine as a beacon of free market and democratic principles around the world.

The Federal Budget: Current and Upcoming Issues, 12/10/2008 [22 Pages, 550kb] – The federal budget implements Congress’s “power of the purse” by expressing funding priorities through outlay allocations and revenue collections. Over the past decade, federal spending has accounted for approximately a fifth of the economy (as measured by GDP) and federal revenues have ranged between just over a fifth and just under a sixth of GDP. In FY2008, the U.S. Government collected $2.5 trillion in revenue and spent almost $3.0 trillion. Outlays as a proportion of GDP rose from 18.4% in FY2000 to 20.9% of GDP in FY2008. Federal revenues as a proportion of GDP reached a post-WWII peak of 20.9% in FY2000 and then fell to 16.3% of GDP in FY2004 before rising slightly to 17.7% of GDP in FY2008. The budget also affects, and is affected by, the national economy as a whole. Given recent turmoil in the economy and financial markets, the current economic climate poses a major challenge to policy makers shaping the FY2009 and FY2010 federal budgets. Federal spending tied to means-tested social programs has been increasing due to rising unemployment, while federal revenues will likely fall as individuals’ incomes drop and corporate profits sink. As a result, federal deficits over the next few years will likely be high relative to historic norms. In addition to funding existing programs in a challenging economic climate, the government has undertaken significant financial interventions in an attempt to alleviate economic recession. The ultimate costs of federal responses to this turmoil will depend on how quickly the economy recovers, how well firms with federal credit guarantees weather future financial shocks, and whether or not the government receives positive returns on its asset purchases. Estimating how much these responses will cost is difficult, both for conceptual and operational reasons. Despite these budgetary challenges, many economists believe that fiscal policy would be the most effective macroeconomic tool under current conditions.

Federal Debt and Interests Costs, 05/2003 [106 Pages, 7.4MB] – The federal debt has grown rapidly in the past decade, and this trend is projected to continue. Interest costs have grown commensurately and now account for about one of every seven dollars spent by the government. In response to a request from the House Committee on Ways and Means, this study provides background material on federal debt and interest costs–their components, their sensitivity to assumptions about future deficits and interest rates, and the choices that the Treasury faces in deciding the mix of securities it will offer.

The FY2011 Federal Budget, 03/09/2010 [24 Pages, 300kb] – While considering the FY2011 budget, Congress faces very large budget deficits, rising costs of entitlement programs, and significant spending on overseas military operations. In FY2008 and FY2009, the enactment of financial intervention and fiscal stimulus legislation helped to bolster the economy, though it increased the deficit. While GDP growth has returned in recent quarters, unemployment remains elevated and government spending on “automatic stabilizer” programs, such as unemployment insurance and income support, remains higher than historical averages.

Reaching the Debt Limit: Background and Potential Effects on Government Operations, 02/11/2011 [23 Pages, 307kb] – The gross federal debt, which represents the federal government’s total outstanding debt, consists of two types of debt: (1) debt held by the public and (2) debt held in government accounts, also known as intragovernmental debt. Federal government borrowing increases for two primary reasons: (1) budget deficits and (2) investments of any federal government account surpluses in Treasury securities, as required by law. Nearly all of this debt is subject to the statutory limit. The federal debt limit currently stands at $14,294 billion. Following current policy, Treasury has estimated that the debt limit will be reached in spring 2011. Treasury has yet to face a situation in which it was unable to pay its obligations as a result of reaching the debt limit. In the past, the debt limit has always been raised before the debt reached the limit. However, on several occasions Treasury took extraordinary actions to avoid reaching the limit and, as a result, affected the operations of certain programs. If the Secretary of the Treasury determines that the issuance of obligations of the United States may not be made without exceeding the public debt limit, a debt issuance suspension period can be authorized. This gives Treasury the authority to utilize nontraditional methods to finance obligations.

Wall Street and the Pentagon: Defense Industry Access to Capital Markets, 1990 – 2010, 11/2011 [23 Pages, 932kb] – Defense firms rely in part on cash raised from capital markets to finance ongoing operations as well as new investments in long-term assets, independent research and development, and retirement of maturing debt. The ability to access capital markets shapes the depth and breadth of the U.S. defense industry, the capabilities it can offer, and the cost of these capabilities to the Department of Defense. Given the monolithic nature of the defense market, it is paramount that decisionmakers understand the relationship between defense spending and the financial metrics that drive access to – and cost of – capital for defense firms. This paper presents the data and findings of research conducted by the Defense-Industrial Initiatives Group at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) on defense companies- access to capital markets during the period 1990-2010. The analysis shows that for the universe of defense equities analyzed, there exists a positive relationship between defense spending, companies’ financial health, and the industry’s relative market valuation. However, no evidence was found to suggest that these firms encountered difficulties accessing capital markets either during a period of market contraction (1990-2001) or during the recent budget buildup (2002-2010).

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The United States of America is for all practical purposes, an empire. It has territories separated by bodies of water that are under its control, has the world’s largest economy, and it has the ability to project its force with a large and powerful military. Like other empires, the U.S. is prone to follow the historical model of an imperial rise to power and a later fall from power.

I hypothesize that the United States is on the verge of a fall from preeminence. By comparing the United States with the Roman and British Empires, I intend to research the economic causes behind the collapse of these two empires and see if the United States is in a comparable situation. If the United States is falling from power, then it has two options, accept its fate, or like the Romans and British, change course and try to continue to hold onto power as long as possible. The United States can learn something by studying the successes and mistakes made by previous world powers.

By studying older world powers, this thesis will attempt to compare current problems the U.S. faces to those problems that Rome and Great Britain faced in their respective eras. This thesis will use these two historical case studies to find solutions to some of the problems that the U.S. faces today, and make a case for how new fiscal policy as a part of a larger National Strategic Narrative might change the fate of the empire of the United States of America.

Is Change Required? An Economic Case Study of the Rise and Fall of Empires, and Why a National Strategic Narrative Could Change, December 2011 [260 Pages, 2.15mb]

https://documents.theblackvault.com/documents/financial/a556267.pdf

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Memo prepares DOD employees for government shutdown

By Jim Garamone, American Forces Press Service – Published September 24, 2013

WASHINGTON (AFNS) — Although Defense Department officials believe a government shutdown can be avoided when the new fiscal year begins Oct. 1, they want DOD employees to be prepared for the possibility, Deputy Defense Secretary Ash Carter said in a memo issued to the workforce Sept. 23.

The fiscal year ends Sept. 30, and Congress has not passed a budget. If Congress does not approve a budget or pass a continuing resolution, the portions of the government funded via appropriated funds will be forced to close.

“The department remains hopeful that a government shutdown will be averted,” Carter wrote in the memo. “The administration strongly believes that a lapse in funding should not occur and is working with Congress to find a solution.”

Congress still can prevent a lapse in appropriations, but “prudent management requires that we be prepared for all contingencies, including the possibility that a lapse could occur at the end of the month,” the deputy secretary wrote.

The absence of funding would mean a number of government activities would cease. “While military personnel would continue in a normal duty status, a large number of our civilian employees would be temporarily furloughed,” Carter said. “To prepare for this possibility, we are updating our contingency plans for executing an orderly shutdown of activities that would be affected by a lapse in appropriations.”

President Barack Obama and Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel understand the hardships such a shutdown could cause civilian employees, the deputy secretary wrote.

“The administration strongly believes that a lapse in funding should not occur and is working with Congress to find a solution,” Pentagon Press Secretary George Little told reporters today. “The secretary has made it clear that budget uncertainty is not helpful for us in executing our budget efficiently, and a shutdown would be the worst type of uncertainty. A shutdown would put severe hardships on an already stressed workforce, and is totally unnecessary.”

Below, you will find the memo with the attached 2011 report.

Memo prepares DOD employees for government shutdown, September 2013 [28 Pages, 2.57MB]

https://documents.theblackvault.com/documents/financial/Shutdown-23SEP13-Signed.pdf

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Space Shuttle: Costs for Hubble Servicing Mission and Implementation of Safety Recommendations Not Yet Definitive [26 Pages]

The post Hubble Space Telescope first appeared on The Black Vault.

He prosecuted a number of high-profile cases, including ones against organized crime and Wall Street financiers.Giuliani served two terms as Mayor of New York City, having run on the Republican and Liberal lines.

He was credited with initiating improvements and with a reduction in crime pressing the city’s quality of life initiatives. He ran for the United States Senate in 2000 but withdrew due to being diagnosed with prostate cancer and revelations about his personal life.

Giuliani gained international attention for his leadership, during and after the September 11, 2001 attacks on the World Trade Center. For those actions, he received an honorary knighthood from Queen Elizabeth II in 2002.

 SF 278 Form for Mayor Rudy Giuliani, 2008 Filing [26 Pages, 6.7mb]

https://documents.theblackvault.com/documents/financial/GiulianiForm278.pdf

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Biden was born in Scranton, Pennsylvania and lived there for ten years before moving to Delaware. He became an attorney in 1969, and was elected to a county council in 1970. Biden was first elected to the Senate in 1972 and became the sixth-youngest senator in U.S. history.

He was re-elected to the Senate six times, was the fourth most senior senator at the time of his resignation, and is the 14th-longest serving Senator in history.

 SF 278 Form for Vice President Joe Biden 2009 Filings [12 Pages, 3.32mb]

https://documents.theblackvault.com/documents/financial/Biden2009PFDF.pdf

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 SF 278 Form for Senator John McCain, 2006-2008 Filings [99 Pages, 53.55mb]

The post Senator John McCain first appeared on The Black Vault.

 SF 278 Form for then Senatory Barack Obama, 2006-2008 Filings [25 Pages, 13.10mb]

https://documents.theblackvault.com/documents/financial/ObamaFinancial2006-2008.pdf

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