Government Performance

Feb 8, 2016

Top 400 Taxpayers See Tax Rates Rise, But There’s More to the Story

As Americans were gathering party supplies to greet the New Year, the Internal Revenue Service released their annual report of cumulative tax data reported on the 400 tax r...

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Feb 4, 2016

Chlorine Bleach Plants Needlessly Endanger 63 Million Americans

Chlorine bleach plants across the U.S. put millions of Americans in danger of a chlorine gas release, a substance so toxic it has been used as a chemical weapon. Greenpeace’s new repo...

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Jan 25, 2016

U.S. Industrial Facilities Reported Fewer Toxic Releases in 2014

The Toxics Release Inventory (TRI) data for 2014 is now available. The good news: total toxic releases by reporting facilities decreased by nearly six percent from 2013 levels. Howe...

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Jan 22, 2016

Methane Causes Climate Change. Here's How the President Plans to Cut Emissions by 40-45 Percent.

UPDATE (Jan. 22, 2016): Today, the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) released its proposed rule to reduce methane emissions...

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Feingold Introduces Moderate Contracting Reform Bill

May 7, 2010 by Gary Therkildsen*

Yesterday afternoon, Sen. Russ Feingold (D-WI) introduced bi-partisan contracting reform legislation, titled the "Federal Contracting Oversight and Reform Act of 2010," that seeks to bring more transparency to the government contracting process. Although several of the bill's provisions could have been stronger, one hopes the legislation, if enacted, will lay the foundation for future reforms.

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What's Next for Coal Mine Safety?

Miner In the wake of the latest coal mining disaster that killed 29 miners at the Upper Big Branch Mine in West Virginia, calls for safety reforms and enhanced regulatory powers echo once again. While mine safety has improved since the recent high death toll of 2006, it remains to be seen if this incident will result in significant changes or if deaths and injuries will continue to be perceived as a cost of doing business.

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GAO: Contractors Overseeing Other Contractors in a Contingency Environment Problematic

Of the $38.6 billion worth of contracts and grants obligated to Iraq and Afghanistan during fiscal year 2008 and the first half of fiscal year 2009 by the Department of Defense (DOD), the Department of State (State), and the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), roughly $1 billion went to contractors to help administer some of the contracts and grants. A recent Government Accountability Office (GAO) report finds that DOD, State, and USAID often enter into these administration contracts haphazardly without checking for potential conflicts of interest or ensuring adequate oversight.

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More Contractors Dying in Afghanistan, but Total Remains Elusive

Apr 16, 2010 by Gary Therkildsen*

Contractors Training Afghan Police Recruits

An article published Wednesday by ProPublica examines a recent Congressional Research Service (CRS) report on the government's insurance coverage of overseas contractors. Known as the Defense Base Act (DBA), the program is also the only tool for the government to keep track of contractor deaths in Iraq and Afghanistan. As ProPublica notes, the number of contractor deaths over the last six months is staggering, but, because DBA chronically undercounts fatalities, the true total is unknown.

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Obama Calls for Review of Mine Safety Policy

Apr 15, 2010 by Matthew Madia

In reaction to the West Virginia explosion that left 29 miners dead, President Obama called today for reform of mine safety laws and regulations and better enforcement of those regulations by the Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA). His remarks are available on the White House website.

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Mining Tragedy Follows a Typical Pattern

Apr 9, 2010 by Matthew Madia

The tragedy at Upper Big Branch Mine in West Virginia that has left 25 miners dead and four missing has once again thrust the Mine Safety and Health Administration into the spotlight. As usual, the focus on regulators’ responsibility to protect, in this case, workers comes too late.

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Is 'High Road' Contracting Gaining Momentum?

Apr 8, 2010 by Gary Therkildsen*

Recent press reports have indicated that the "high road" contracting process may be gaining momentum, possibly foretelling adoption of the policy by the Obama administration. Last week, Government Executive published several stories on the topic, including an article on congressional members requesting a Government Accountability Office (GAO) report on the costs and benefits of adopting "high road" contracting guidelines, and a story outlining documents obtained by GovExec that they purport give further details on how the administration might implement such a policy.

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OMB Memo Seeks to Improve Spending Transparency in Near- and Long-Terms

Apr 7, 2010 by Craig Jennings

The Office and Management and Budget (OMB) issued a memo (PDF) today under President Obama's Open Government Directive that features a handful of goodies for federal spending transparency aficionados.

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One Small Policy Step, but One Huge Leap for Government Openness: Statement of Gary D. Bass

WASHINGTON, April 7, 2010—The Obama administration took several actions today that will likely have a lasting and positive impact on government transparency. Each federal agency announced its Open Government Plan, complemented by Office of Management and Budget (OMB) policy changes to reduce certain impediments to transparency and to improve both regulatory and federal spending transparency.

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EPA to Limit Mountaintop Mining

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced new guidance April 1 that should limit the impacts of mountaintop coal mining in Appalachia. The agency issued the guidance to clarify EPA's expectations regarding legal and scientific interpretations when issuing permits for the destructive surface mining practice.

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more resources

Top 400 Taxpayers See Tax Rates Rise, But There’s More to the Story

Chlorine Bleach Plants Needlessly Endanger 63 Million Americans

U.S. Industrial Facilities Reported Fewer Toxic Releases in 2014

Methane Causes Climate Change. Here's How the President Plans to Cut Emissions by 40-45 Percent.

Feingold Introduces Moderate Contracting Reform Bill

May 7, 2010 by Gary Therkildsen*

What's Next for Coal Mine Safety?

GAO: Contractors Overseeing Other Contractors in a Contingency Environment Problematic

More Contractors Dying in Afghanistan, but Total Remains Elusive

Apr 16, 2010 by Gary Therkildsen*

Obama Calls for Review of Mine Safety Policy

Apr 15, 2010 by Matthew Madia

Mining Tragedy Follows a Typical Pattern

Apr 9, 2010 by Matthew Madia

Is 'High Road' Contracting Gaining Momentum?

Apr 8, 2010 by Gary Therkildsen*

OMB Memo Seeks to Improve Spending Transparency in Near- and Long-Terms

Apr 7, 2010 by Craig Jennings

One Small Policy Step, but One Huge Leap for Government Openness: Statement of Gary D. Bass

EPA to Limit Mountaintop Mining

Pages

Living in the Shadow of Danger: Poverty, Race, and Unequal Chemical Facility Hazards

A Tale of Two Retirements: One for CEOs and One for the Rest of Us

Blowing Smoke: Chemical Companies Say “Trust Us,” But Environmental and Workplace Safety Violations Belie Their Rhetoric

Gasping for Support: Implementation of Tougher Air Quality Standards Will Require New Funds for State Agencies

Citizen Health & Safety Topics

Recent Reports

Living in the Shadow of Danger: State Scorecards

Living in the Shadow of Danger: Poverty, Race, and Unequal Chemical Facility Hazards

A Tale of Two Retirements: One for CEOs and One for the Rest of Us