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CHS lobbies heavily for prime space in visitors center |
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By Mike Soraghan
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Posted: 06/05/07 07:24 PM [ET] |
Capitol Historical Society (CHS) officials are citing their “significant influence” in Congress as they lobby for space in the new Capitol Visitors Center (CVC) for a souvenir stand and try to keep a portion of their profits royalty-free, according to e-mails obtained by The Hill.
The request by the group, which has run a sales kiosk in the Capitol for 35 years, is starting to raise questions among key aides, who wonder whether the proper process is being followed.
A former congressman and the wife of an appropriations cardinal run the group, which is overseen by a large board with numerous members and former members of Congress. Its principal aim is a spot for its sales counter in the CVC, along with assurance that it will not have to pay any commission on the profits it has enjoyed in its current location.
In a meeting with aides to congressional officers, unnamed CHS officials stressed their clout, according to an e-mail written by Dagmar Firth, an aide to House Clerk Lorraine Miller. Detailing a May 15 meeting with CHS officials, Firth noted that no decision has been made about whether the group will get space in the addition.
But there also was “an understanding that the CHS has significant influence with Members of Congress and that this fact needed to be considered as well,” the e-mail added.
Firth did not return a call from The Hill seeking comment.
Firth’s description of the meeting raised questions about process from House Administration Committee Staff Director Liz Birnbaum, who sent Firth an e-mail questioning the assumption that the society would get space.
“How did we get here?” Birnbaum asked in the reply to Firth.
Society president and former Rep. Ronald Sarasin (R-Conn.) said he hopes that his organization has influence with Congress after working with its members for decades. But he said the society is not wielding that clout unfairly to gain advantage in negotiations.
“I’m not aware of anyone trying to call in any chits,” he said. “We’re not a lobbying organization, and we’re not lobbying.”
With its current kiosk in the Capitol Crypt, the society netted about $130,000 after expenses last year. The society is asking that it not pay any portion of that as rent when it moves to the CVC.
“It appears CHS would like to retain a profit at its current levels, i.e., not be charged a rent or commission on the first $130K of net profit,” Firth wrote in a separate e-mail. “Above that level, CHS was open to some profit-sharing arrangement.”
The CHS retail counter would compete with two much larger official gift shops on the upper level of the CVC.
Society officials have said they have an understanding from the previous Republican congressional leadership that CHS would have two 200-square-foot spots on the CVC’s lower level. Sarasin said he expects that to continue.
“As far as I know, that’s been decided,” Sarasin said. “I’m not aware of any glitch. I’d be disappointed if there is one.”
When the CVC opens — slated now for the summer of 2008 — the society’s section of the Crypt will serve as the entryway to the Capitol. For that reason, the society’s kiosk must move.
Federal law directs the Architect of the Capitol to provide space and facilities in the Capitol for an information center and distribution stations. It does not require that the Capitol Historical Society run the center, and it neither authorizes nor forbids vending space.
The law does require that the society be consulted by the Architect of the Capitol about any educational materials that are distributed. But it doesn’t have to approve of them.
The group was founded in 1962 by then-Rep. Fred Schwengel (R-Iowa), a former high school history teacher who wanted visitors “to catch something of the fire that burned in the hearts of those who serve here.”
It was chartered to provide history about the building itself and craft merchandise related to the Capitol. In addition to running the kiosk, the group sells merchandise on the Internet and hosts educational symposia and gala dinners.
Suzanne Dicks, wife of House Appropriations Interior subcommittee Chairman Norm Dicks (D-Wash.), is the general secretary. Its board of trustees is a who’s who of Washington, and includes Rep. Howard Berman (D-Calif.), Sen. Saxby Chambliss (R-Ga.), ex-Rep. Billy Tauzin (R-La.) and GM Foundation President Debbie Dingell. Tauzin now heads PhRMA, while Dingell is the wife of House Energy and Commerce Committee Chairman John Dingell (D-Mich.) The society’s 2006 tax return also lists former House Speaker Tom Foley (D-Wash.) as a trustee.
Sales at the Capitol kiosk account for more than a third of the society’s budget, Sarasin said. Revenue declined after the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, when the number of visitors in the Capitol was strictly controlled.
The sales kiosk grossed slightly more than $900,000 last year. Of that, it paid $390,000 for the goods it sold, $300,000 in salaries and $80,000 in other expenses, according to a financial statement distributed at one of the meetings.
Overall, CHS had total financial revenues of $2.3 million and expenses of $1.7 million, according to its tax return.
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