Open, Accountable Government

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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more news

Tax Reform to Take Spotlight From SS Overhaul

Oct 7, 2005 by Guest Blogger

President Bush recently acknowledged what he called a "diminished appetite" among lawmakers for taking up social security reform. Many are now arguing that attention could swing from addressing social security concerns to addressing tax reform proposals. The President's Advisory Panel on Tax Reform will be submitting their recommendations to the Treasury on November 1, allowing for the Treasury to work the recommendations into proposals that Bush can launch in the January 2006 State of the Union address. The tax panel is supposed to be figuring out how to make the tax code, simpler, fairer, and more pro-growth. The impacts they will actually have though, are still unknown. The tax panel will be holding two meetings this month in Washington, D.C., which are open to the public. On October 11 they will be meeting at 10:00 in the Renaissance Hotel (999 Ninth St., NW) and on October 18 they will be meeting at 9:00 in the Ronald Reagan Building (1300 Pennsylvania Ave).

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Bush and GOP Leaders Call for More Budget Cuts

Oct 5, 2005 by Guest Blogger

In a news conference yesterday, President Bush put pressure on Congress to pay for as much of the hurricane relief as possible by cutting spending. He urged that funding be cut in both non-defense discretionary spending and entitlement spending. His comments prompted House Budget Committee Chairman Jim Nussle (R-IA) to claim that he will seek even more cuts in entitlement expenditures than those laid out in April's budget resolution. Currently the resolution instructs that entitlement spending be cut by $35 million over the next five years. Nussle said in an interview that Gulf Coast reconstruction costs should be partly offset through across-the-board reductions in discretionary spending, beginning with a 2 percent "haircut" from the $843 billion agreed to under the FY06 budget." The Coalition on Human Needs has an analysis highlighting how those cuts will affect human needs programs. One has to wonder where these gestures of fiscal responsibility were when Congress passed trillions of dollars worth of tax cuts in 2001 and 2003, which were not offset by any spending cuts. That Congress also wants to push ahead with extending reduced rates for capital gains and dividends taxes -- tax breaks which benefit primarily the wealthy -- further serves to illustrate that these spending cuts could be avoided. Bush also asserted yesterday that even though Congress has a "diminished appetite" for overhauling Social Security, he has not taken the issue off the table. Bush said, "Social Security for me is never off. It's a long-term problem that's going to need to be addressed." However, the solutions he claimed to support a few months ago would lower guarenteed benefits and cost $700 billion over the next decade. Not exactly a great way to cut down federal spending.

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ALERT: EPA Proposes Rollback on Toxic Pollution Reporting

EPA recently announced plans that would essentially dismantle its Toxics Release Inventory (TRI), the nation's premier tool for notifying the public about toxic pollution. The TRI annually provides communities with details about the amount of toxic chemicals released into the surrounding air, land, and water. The information enables concerned groups and individuals to press companies to reduce their pollution, resulting in safer, healthier communities. Despite the program's widely hailed success, however, EPA is proposing to significantly rolling back the program's reporting requirements.

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Katrina Update: Government's Inadequate Response Continues

Even weeks after Hurricane Katrina swept through the Gulf Coast, the Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) response to the storm's aftermath continues to be grossly inadequate. The insufficiency of its testing for environmental hazards, the absence of informative health warnings for recovery workers and returning residents, and its failure to provide protective equipment all clearly point to the agency's inability to accomplish its goal of protecting public health and the environment.

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Gag Orders Extended; Library Consortium Must Remain Silent

The U.S. Court of Appeals extended a gag order on a library consortium that received a National Security Letter (NSL) while it considers a lower court ruling that the organization has a First Amendment right to fully participate in the discussion surrounding the USA PATRIOT Act. The gag order is preventing the NSL recipient, an unidentified member of the American Library Association, from discussing its experience openly and participating in the broader debate about the controversial legislation.

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Disaster Reconstruction: How Effective Are Tax Breaks?

Sep 30, 2005 by Adam Hughes*

On September 28 the Senate Finance Committee held a hearing looking at various tax incentives and how they will assist in Gulf Coast reconstruction operations. Governors Blanco of Louisiana, Barbour of Mississippi, and Riley of Alabama testified, and while they did not agree on preferred tax incentives, they all requested some form of tax benefits ranging from zeroing out capital gains taxes on investments to accelerated depreciation to various bond programs. Other witnesses, however, questioned the use of tax cuts as an effective method of providing post-disaster relief.

Daniel Doctoroff, the Deputy Mayor for Economic Development and Rebuilding for New York City who helped direct post-9/11 operations, told the Committee that in his experience tax provisions were a cumbersome method for delivering disaster assistance. He argued that benefits are provided only if businesses and economic growth respond to predicted forecasts, and mentioned that Congressional appropriations were a much better way of addressing relief and rebuilding needs.
George Yin, Chief of Staff for the Joint Committee on Taxation, also voiced skepticism regarding the effectiveness of tax incentives. He testified that tax breaks are particularly ineffective when addressing the needs of low-income earners, particularly because would-be beneficiaries are not aware of many of the tax provisions or how to obtain them. Also, low-income earners stand to receive less in tax benefits overall because they have less-taxable income.

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Like the Federal Deficit, CEO Pay is on the Rise

Sep 29, 2005 by Guest Blogger

Along with deficits rising, it appears the ratio of CEO pay to worker pay is also rising. As this United for a Fair Economy report highlights, CEO pay has shot up over the past few years, and now, while the average CEO makes $11.8 million per year, the average worker makes $27,460 per year. The ratio has spiked from 301-1 to 431-1. Perhaps even more unsettling news is that 46 large companies who made more than $30 billion in profits in 2003 paid absolutely no income taxes that year. Also, the report notes that the CEO's presiding over the most underfunded pensions had salaries that were, on average, 72 percent more than other CEO salaries. Congressional GOP leaders and the administration often mention the "strong economy" we are currently experiencing. It is important to remember that while the economy may look strong for some, it is not strong for many of the workers who are earning a disgracefully low minimum wage.

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GAO Comptroller: Evaluation of Tax Expenditures Necessary

Sep 27, 2005 by Guest Blogger

Last Friday, General Accountability Office Comptroller David Walker strongly urged a "strategic, long range, and integrated" examination of tax expenditures to test their relevance and priority during a time when the federal budget is experiencing increasing strains. His comments came during the unveiling of a new GAO report recommending that the OMB and the Treasury take steps to ensure greater transparency of, and accountability for, tax expenditures. Walker emphasized to reporters, as he has in the past, the importance of putting the nation on a more "prudent and sustainable course for the long term." He insisted that doling out tax preferences has an impact on the government's bottom line, and at a time when we are experiencing high deficits, it is important to reevaluate some of those expenditures.

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More On Cost of Rebuilding; Congress Passes Tax Bill

Sep 21, 2005 by Adam Hughes*

Many Republican leaders in the House and Senate are worried about the costs of rebuilding after Katrina, even though President Bush has promised, and rightly so, to devote all the funds needed to help the devastated region. Republicans who are worried about excessive deficit-financed spending are pushing for the costs will be offset (most are suggesting by cutting the budget elsewhere). To appease them, OMB Director Josh Bolten said Tuesday that the administration would consider offsets, but did not offer any details about what would be cut and by how much. As Stan Collender correctly points out (subscription required), any offsets proposed by the administration would to little, if anything, to reduce the amount Katrina relief spending will add to the deficit, and the national debt. Because President Bush refuses to even consider not extending or rolling back some of his first term tax cuts, it will be future generations who will be paying for reconstructing the Gulf Coast. The federal government is required by law to pay at least 75 percent of the cost of rebuilding public infrastructure after a disaster (1988 Stafford Act). To comply, Congress -- besides approving about $64 billion in emergency spending -- has agreed on a tax-relief bill to expand deductions this year for victims. The final bill was scored by the Joint Committee on Taxation as costing $6.1 billion over 10 years. Congress hopes these targeted tax cuts will spur employment of low-income workers on the Gulf Coast. In addition, President Bush signed three bills today to help in the aftermath of the disaster. The bills waive Pell Grant and other federal student loan requirements for displaced college students and expand Temporary Assistance to Needy Families eligibility for victims. CNN.com: House Passes Tax Breaks for Hurricane Katrina Victims

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Right-Wing Groups Challenge Link Between Carcinogens, Cancer

Two right-wing, industry-backed groups filed a data quality petition with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) challenging the agency's labeling of certain chemicals as "likely human carcinogens." Specifically, the Washington Legal Foundation (WLF) and the American Council on Health and Science (ACHS) want EPA to eliminate statements in its Guidelines for Carcinogen Risk Assessment that indicate that a substance may properly be labeled as "likely to be carcinogenic to humans" based solely or primarily on the results of animal studies. Background

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