After starting at $200 million, Donald has let feature creep bring the total of his ballroom fetish to the more widely agreed upon number of $300 million - and that's without incorporating any of the stupid demands you know he'll have, either in construction or decoration. And his claim is that it will be 'totally paid for' (by these people). Which should worry people in terms of private funding of pet projects/lobbying, anonymity, disclosure of who's involved... And because it's a public building. If this is necessary, not only should we pay for it, we should insist that the guy doing it be able to and required to publicly justify spending public money - not say "don't worry about it because you won't have to pay for it".
At least tax money won't go towards it.
...Right?
Humans are very bad at numbers once they get past a certain level. That's not an insult - it's a truth. Once you get into the millions/billions/trillions level, humanity is not very good at detecting the differences in a vacuum; we need something relative to compare it to, preferably something we think of as important/necessary. (The economy doesn't help. that's why 'the prices of eggs/gas' are so focused on: something that cost $5 when gas averaged $1/gallon should be around $15 now, right? It gives us something to hang on to.)
So...
This is an approximation of what it will cost taxpayers to deal with just the first-order consequences/maintenance of this urge to splurge. I've got it broken down here for quibbling over the values - but the point is that it is not paid for. Not in space, time, efficiency, or practicality.
Thus, this. I'm no legislator - but I'm pissed. So I built a beginning point if anyone wants it - a place to start regarding all of the issues that could arise. Including that this is literally building a club next to the bedroom of the president. There was no ballroom because this is supposed to be a living space - not temporary housing for a millionaire who uses tax-supplied transport to go to their 'actual' home weekly or even daily. It's a [censored] security risk. So part of the bill is intended to fix this crap once Donald gets crowbarred out of this space he's treating like his own permanent second home to decorate; it requires double financing to allow the necessary offices to be restored once he's gone.
I'm working to put up a version of the argument with myself that this was based on for reference - but this is a place to start.
This package consolidates the full legislative project addressing privately funded structural alterations to the Executive Residence. It integrates donor-risk analysis, cost modeling, legal-gap identification, and the completed bill text ("Ballroom Accountability Act"). The Act establishes mandatory donor transparency, restoration-bond requirements, oversight protections, and long‑term structural safeguards.
A BILL
To establish mandatory donor transparency, restoration-bond requirements, security review standards, and restrictions on private financing of structural alterations to the Executive Residence.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
TITLE I — DEFINITIONS
SEC. 101. DEFINITIONS.
For the purposes of this Act:
(1) EXECUTIVE RESIDENCE.—The term “Executive Residence” means the White House Executive Complex, including the East Wing, West Wing, and residential structure.
(2) PRIVATE DONOR.—The term “private donor” means any individual, corporation, partnership, or entity contributing funds, services, or materials to a Federal Executive Residence Modification.
(3) BENEFICIAL OWNER.—The term “beneficial owner” means the natural person(s) exercising ultimate control over any donating entity.
(4) STRUCTURAL ALTERATION.—The term “structural alteration” means any modification exceeding a threshold defined by square footage, demolition of workspace, or change to load-bearing design.
(5) RESTORATION BOND.—The term “restoration bond” means a financial guarantee covering restoration, security hardening, and operational recovery.
(6) PRESERVATION REVIEW.—The term “preservation review” means mandatory architectural and historical review prior to demolition or reconstruction.
TITLE II — DONOR DISCLOSURE
SEC. 201. MANDATORY DISCLOSURE.
(a) Any donor providing funds or materials for a Federal Executive Residence Modification shall fully disclose—
(1) identity of all natural persons exercising direct or indirect control;
(2) amounts donated;
(3) date and method of donation.
(b) Anonymous or partially anonymous donations are prohibited.
SEC. 202. PUBLIC REGISTRY.
The Administrator of General Services shall maintain a public online registry of all donors, updated within 7 days of receipt.
TITLE III — LIMITS ON PRIVATE FINANCING
SEC. 301. PROHIBITION ON PRIVATE-FUNDED STRUCTURAL ALTERATIONS.
No privately funded project may remove workspaces, demolish structural load-bearing components, or alter secure areas except as expressly authorized by Congress.
SEC. 302. PERMISSIBLE PRESERVATION WORK.
Private funds may be accepted for minor repairs, preservation treatments, or historically consistent restoration not involving structural alteration.
TITLE IV — RESTORATION BOND REQUIREMENT
SEC. 401. REQUIREMENT.
Any donor funding a structural alteration shall provide a restoration bond in an amount determined by—
(1) estimated cost of full structural restoration;
(2) estimated security-hardening requirements;
(3) projected staffing or operational disruptions.
SEC. 402. USE OF BOND.
The bond may be executed to—
(1) restore lost workspace;
(2) repair structural deficiencies;
(3) replace security infrastructure;
(4) mitigate long-term operational impairment.
TITLE V — PRESERVATION & SECURITY REVIEW
SEC. 501. PRESERVATION REVIEW.
No structural alteration may commence without certification of review by designated preservation authorities.
SEC. 502. SECURITY REVIEW AND VETO.
(a) The United States Secret Service shall conduct a security-impact assessment for any proposed structural alteration.
(b) The Secret Service may issue a conditional veto if the project endangers protective operations.
TITLE VI — PROCUREMENT & BUDGET INTEGRATION
SEC. 601. PROCUREMENT STANDARDS.
All private-funded construction on the Executive Residence shall comply with Federal acquisition regulations relating to competitive contracting and safety certification.
SEC. 602. BUDGET IMPACT.
A statement of long-term budget impact must be submitted to Congress within 30 days of accepting any private-funded proposal.
TITLE VII — POST-CONSTRUCTION AUDITS
SEC. 701. MANDATORY GAO AUDIT.
The Comptroller General shall complete an audit within 180 days of project completion assessing security, structural integrity, and long-term operating costs.
TITLE VIII — DONOR RESTRICTIONS
SEC. 801. LOBBYING RESTRICTIONS.
Any donor contributing more than a defined threshold is prohibited from lobbying the Executive Branch for a period of 3 years.
SEC. 802. CONTRACT LIMITATIONS.
No donor may receive Federal contracts for 2 years following donation above the threshold.
TITLE IX — ENFORCEMENT
SEC. 901. CIVIL PENALTIES.
Violations of donor disclosure provisions shall result in civil penalties not exceeding a statutory maximum.
SEC. 902. CRIMINAL LIABILITY.
Knowingly concealing beneficial-owner identity shall constitute a felony.
TITLE X — IMPLEMENTATION
SEC. 1001. EFFECTIVE DATE.
This Act shall take effect 90 days after enactment.
The purpose of this Act is to prevent privately financed structural modifications to secure federal facilities from bypassing transparency, oversight, and long-term accountability requirements. The East Wing ballroom controversy revealed multiple systemic weaknesses in donor disclosure, security review, procurement integration, and restoration liability. This legislation corrects those systemic failures by imposing mandatory disclosure, oversight, and financial responsibility requirements.
The Act is explicitly designed to protect future administrations—regardless of political affiliation—from inheriting financial, operational, or security burdens created for the personal preferences of any president.
Establishes legally precise terms. The definitions lock down the scope: they prevent evasions such as labeling major structural demolition as “restoration” or disguising donor control through shell entities. The goal is to prevent reinterpretive loopholes.
This title addresses the lack of mandatory disclosure and shell-entity opacity that characterized the ballroom donations. It establishes a transparent record of all donors, amounts, and beneficial owners.
This closes the loophole allowing private financing to substitute for congressional appropriations to perform structural modifications. It distinguishes permissible preservation work from prohibited structural alteration.
Creates the financial accountability core of the Act. Any structural modification must be backed by a bond ensuring that restoration, security, and operational disruptions can be remedied without burdening future administrations.
Codifies preservation and security oversight. Mandates formal review and gives the Secret Service conditional veto authority for unsafe designs.
Ensures private-funded projects cannot bypass federal procurement, safety certification, or budget-impact transparency.
Requires GAO audits to assess long-term costs, structural integrity, security implications, and workspace impacts.
Introduces temporary limits on lobbying and contracting to reduce incentives for influence-buying via renovation gifts.
Provides meaningful civil and criminal penalties and allows government authorities to halt unsafe or non-compliant construction.
Provides effective dates, retroactive disclosure, and transition rules that apply to ongoing or recently completed projects without imposing retroactive punishment.
| Problem | Statutory Solution |
|---|---|
| Donor opacity | Title II |
| Shell-entity influence | Title II + penalties |
| Workspace loss | Title IV |
| Security risk | Title V + VII |
| Lack of preservation oversight | Title V |
| Procurement bypass | Title VI |
| No cost-recovery | Title IV |
| Lobbying influence | Title VIII |
| No audit requirements | Title VII |
| No emergency halt authority | Title IX |