Washington, D.C. – Recently U.S. Senator Mike Enzi, R-Wyo., sent a letter to Shaun Donovan, the Director of the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), voicing concerns about spending by Executive Branch entities on “messaging” activities.
Enzi noted that according to a recent report by the Congressional Research Service, oversight on agency spending on advertising, public relations and media relations is largely unknown because it is hard to tell how much is spent and where the money is going.
“It is ridiculous they are spending billions of dollars to make a good impression,” Enzi said. “What they need to do is do their job.”
Enzi is requesting Director Donovan to provide an Executive Branch-wide total of all spending on advertising, public relations and media relations efforts in FY 2015, as well as a breakdown of how much was spent within each category. Federal law prohibits the use of appropriated federal funds for publicity or propaganda purposes.