In January 2008, for example, the President announced he would veto future appropriations bills that did not cut the number and funding of Administration-defined and -identified earmarks by half, relative to FY2008. The President also issued Executive Order (E.O.) 13457, which directed that agencies "should not" fund non-statutory earmarks, except under some conditions. OMB subsequently directed agencies on how to implement the E.O. after enactment of FY2009 continuing and regular appropriations. These are the latest in a series of developments that began in early 2007, when the President made proposals regarding earmarks originated by Congress, and the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) issued a series of memoranda and took corresponding actions to implement the President's policy. This report provides an analysis of Bush Administration policy regarding congressionally originated earmarks, focusing primarily on the veto threat and E.O., and related issues for Congress. As noted earlier, specific definitions for the term earmark (and related terms, like congressional earmark , congressional directive , presidential earmark , administration earmark , executive branch earmark , and directed spending ) vary considerably and are controversial. Nevertheless, all of the terms relate to the use of discretion to allocate particularized benefits—subsets of funding or other resources or benefits—through law, non-statutory direction (e.g., report language, which is not legally binding), or administrative action (e.g., making a budget proposal or awarding a contract or grant) to one or more specific purposes, entities, or geographic areas. Practices like earmarking have been used for decades, if not centuries, to make decisions regarding the allocation of public resources, but concerns also have been expressed. At the same time, Congress, its Members, and Presidents have asserted the prerogatives of their respective constitutional and statutory authorities and pursued their budget policy preferences. Definitions in the 110th Congress

During the 110 th Congress, the House, Senate, and Bush Administration have defined terms like congressional earmark , congressionally directed spending item , and earmark , and provided some direction for how congressionally originated earmarks, according to these definitions, are to be handled in the budget process. 13457

In various forums during January and February 2007, the President proposed that congressionally originated earmarks should be cut by at least 50% in number and funding in FY2008 appropriations, relative to FY2005, and no longer included in non-statutory report language. Analysis of E.O. 13457. The policy, therefore, may raise several general and specific issues for Congress, including the following:
What are the appropriate budgetary roles and responsibilities for Congress, the President, agencies, and the public in the U.S. political system? What are the implications for Congress of the OMB "Earmarks" website and database of congressionally originated earmarks? Defining, Identifying, and Overseeing Earmarks

Debates over earmark definitions and transparency have taken place for some time, but no generally accepted definitions of earmark-related terms appear to have been established. Executive Order 13457

E.O.
During the 110th Congress, the House of Representatives, the Senate, and the George W. Bush Administration have defined terms like congressional earmark, congressionally directed spending item, and earmark, and have provided some direction for how congressionally originated earmarks, according to these definitions, are to be handled. This report focuses on Bush Administration policy regarding earmarks originated by Congress and related issues. Specific definitions for the term earmark (and related terms, like congressional earmark, presidential earmark, and others) vary considerably and are controversial. Nevertheless, all of the terms relate to the use of discretion to allocate particularized benefits to one or more specific purposes, entities, or geographic areas. Some earmarks have the force of law, and others do not. Practices like earmarking have been used for decades, if not centuries, to make decisions regarding the allocation of public resources, but concerns also have been expressed. At the same time, Congress, its Members, and Presidents have asserted the prerogatives of their constitutional and statutory authorities and pursued their budget policy preferences.
In January 2008, the President announced he would veto future appropriations bills that did not cut the number and funding of Administration-defined earmarks by half, relative to FY2008. The President also issued Executive Order (E.O.) 13457, which directed that agencies "should not" fund non-statutory earmarks, except under some conditions. OMB subsequently directed agencies on how to implement the E.O. after enactment of FY2009 continuing and regular appropriations. These are the latest in a series of developments that began in January 2007, when the President proposed that Congress should (1) cut the number and funding of congressionally originated earmarks by at least half for FY2008 appropriations, relative to FY2005, and (2) place them only in statutory text, not report language. In January 2007, the Administration issued its own definition of earmark, whose language (and perhaps meaning) evolved over time in Office of Management and Budget (OMB) memoranda. A final definition appears to have been established in E.O. 13457, but its meaning probably is informed by the evolution and contents of previously articulated definitions. Later, OMB established an "Earmarks" website, containing a database of Administration-identified earmarks, to track congressional action. Potential related issues for Congress involve, generally, roles and responsibilities for Congress, the President, agencies, and the public in the U.S. political system; defining, identifying, and overseeing earmarks; the executive order; the "Earmarks" website and database; and potential representational consequences.
This report emphasizes analysis of E.O. 13457. For a legal analysis of E.O. 13457, see CRS Report RL34373, Earmarks Executive Order: Legal Issues, by [author name scrubbed] and [author name scrubbed]. This report will be updated as warranted and at the conclusion of the George W. Bush Administration.