The Office of Public Liaison was first formalized during President Gerald Ford’s administration in 1974. Its responsibilities are to communicate the President’s policies and agendas with various interest groups, ethnicities, religious, cultural, and economic associations and groups. It serves as the first place these groups present their interests to a President’s administration. The Office was expanded during the 1990s to include liaison to intergovernmental entities. The office has currently been renamed to the Office of Public Engagement and Intergovernmental Affairs.