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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With Vote Scheduled in the House, Experts Oppose "Sunset Commission" Bills

WASHINGTON, July 25 - Policy experts and key stakeholders spoke out today calling on the U.S. House of Representatives to reject two "sunset commission" bills. The House will vote this week on both bills, under which unelected commissions would be given the authority to recommend sweeping changes in the federal government and force those changes through Congress.

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Federal Spending Database Legislation Gains Momentum

Jul 25, 2006 by Matthew Madia

Legislation to create a free, public, searchable database (S. 2590) containing grants and contracts spending information is gaining momentum in the Senate this week. OMB Watch testified in support of this bill at a subcommittee hearing last week of the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee and this week on Thursday the full HSGAC committee will mark up a consensus version of the bill. The bill is expected to pass the full committee unanimously.

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Sunset Legislation Faces Vote on the Floor, Advocates Speak Out

The House will vote this week on two "sunset commission" bills, under which unelected commissions would be given the authority to recommend sweeping changes in the federal government and force those changes through Congress.

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Sunset Commissions: Press Packet

Speakers on July 25 Briefing Call

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MEDIA ADVISORY: Telephone Briefing on Sunset Commission Bills

WASHINGTON — Former Texas Sunset Commissioner O.H. "Ike" Harris, Barbara Coufal of AFSME, and Gabriela Lemus of LULAC and Robert Shull of OMB Watch will brief journalists on a dangerous proposal to create an unelected, unaccountable commission empowered to target programs for elimination. More than 300 organizations are opposing the creation of a sunset commission. Speakers tomorrow will discuss the legislation, the Texas experience, and the threat that such commissions pose to the most vulnerable members of our society.

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New Opportunity to Support Access to Gov't Information

Jul 21, 2006 by Matthew Madia

Over the past few months, OMB Watch has been working closely with Sens. Tom Coburn (R-OK) and Barack Obama (D-IL) on a bill to create a free, searchable database available to the public containing information on all federal spending - both grants and contracts. This legislation (S. 2590) continues to move forward in the Senate and OMB Watch remains strongly supportive of it (see the OMB Watch website for more information on the bill and to access previous coverage on this by OMB Watch. You can also read recent media coverage of the effort.) New Effort for Transparency and Disclosure Underway

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Government Spending Transparency Legislation Getting Attention of the Press

Jul 21, 2006 by Matthew Madia

In the considerably divided legislative body that is Congress, it is rare to see a bill gain so much positive attention from both sides of the aisle. It has also gained the support of a whole slew of advocacy groups from all stripes of the ideological spectrum. As a staunch proponent of S.

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Ask Your Representative to Vote "No" on Sunsets! Call Today!

Call your representative, and tell him or her to vote ‘No’ on sunset legislation!

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OMB Watch Testifies In Support of Federal Disclosure of Financial Data

Jul 18, 2006 by Matthew Madia

Gary Bass, Executive Director of OMB Watch, testified today in front of the Senate Homeland Security and Government Affairs Committee Subcommittee on Federal Fiscal Management in support of S. 2590, a bill to require the government to create a user-friendly, searchable, online database available to the public containing comprehensive information on all federal spending.

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Pork In Perspective

Jun 28, 2006 by Craig Jennings

As President Bush calls on the Senate to pass its version of line-item veto legislation as a means of controlling government spending, it’s important to keep in mind just how much pork barrel spending is in relation to other important budget data points. According to Citizens Against Government Waste, the government spent $23.7 billion on "pork-barrel" spending. No small sum, for sure. But, $23.7 billion is but a fraction (7.5%) of the $317 billion FY2005 federal budget deficit. At less than one percent (0.96%) of the $2.5 trillion the government spent in 2005, it’s barely recognizable.

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