Blog: The Fine Print / Revenue & Spending

Senate Committee Hearing Exposes Systemic Problems at DCAA

Sep 10, 2008 by Craig Jennings

The Senate Homeland Security and Government Affairs Committee held a hearing today to listen to witnesses describe systemic mismanagement and corruption at the Defense Contract Audit Agency (DCAA).

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With Bush Tax Cuts In Effect, Cost of Patching AMT Nearly Doubles

Sep 10, 2008 by Craig Jennings

In perusing CBO's latest budget forecast, I am once again taken by the magnitude of the 2001-2003 tax cuts (AKA the Bush tax cuts).

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Who Is Standing in the Way Of Reform?

Sep 9, 2008 by Adam Hughes*

Elizabeth Newell wrote an good summary last week in Government Executive magazine of the state of a handful of reforms to the federal contracting process that have been stalled in the Senate Homeland Security and Government Affairs Committee.

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Second Stimulus Package In The Works?

Sep 9, 2008 by Craig Jennings

CongressDaily and CQ are both reporting that Congressional Democratic leadership are signaling that they will attempt to move a second stimulus package before they adjourn for the year.

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CBO Predicts $409 Billion Deficit for FY 2008

Sep 9, 2008 by Craig Jennings

The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) has released its update to the Budget and Economic Outlook for Fiscal Years 2008 to 2018. The report anticipates that at the end of the current fiscal year (Sept. 30), the federal deficit for FY 2008 will be $409 (about 3 percent of GDP), $51 billion more than it predicted in March.

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The GAO Report Sen. Levin Was Looking For

Sep 8, 2008 by Adam Hughes*

Last month I blogged about a July GAO report that studied the percentage of companies that reported little or no tax liability from 1998 through 2005. While I think the report itself is very telling, I also chastised Sens. Byron Dorgan (D-ND) and Carl Levin (D-MI) a bit (well, really just Levin) for jumping to the conclusion that companies were intentionally cheating on their taxes.

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CBO Releases Monthly Budget Review

Sep 8, 2008 by Adam Hughes*

The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) released their Monthly Budget Review on Friday last week, showing lots of red ink for the federal government in FY 2008.

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Notes from the Economy: Jobs and Unemployment

Sep 5, 2008 by Craig Jennings

This morning's release of jobs and unemployment data continue the streak of unhappy economic data. In August, the unemployment rate jumped to 6.1 percent from July's 5.7 percent. The jobless rate has not been this high since Sept. 2003. Employers surveyed by the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that they had cut 84,000 jobs since July. However, the 17,000 jobs added governments hides the 101,000 job losses in the private job market. Since January, private employers have reduced payrolls by over 750,000 jobs.

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Transparency Act Legacy Spreads to the States

Sep 4, 2008 by Adam Hughes*

Ellen Miller blogs today over at the Sunlight Foundation about the legacy of the Federal Funding Accountability and Transparency Act of 2006 (Transparency Act). The Transparency Act mandated that all federal spending be easily accessible and searchable in the Internet. After the law passed in 2006, the federal government launched USASpending.gov in 2007, which was built on the software platform that powers OMB Watch's FedSpending.org. Ellen reports the legacy of this federal law is being felt at the state level, all over the country:

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