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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FY 02 Technology Opportunities Program Grantees Announced

On September 27, 2002, the Commerce Department's National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) announced the awarding of $12.4 million in Technology Opportunities Program (TOP) grants to 25 collaborative projects involving nonprofit organizations, state and local governments, in 19 states and the District of Columbia. TOP received 741 applications for FY2002 funds.

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Appropriations Update

While timeliness has not been a hallmark of appropriations bills in recent years, this year is proving exceptionally slow. According to budget procedures, appropriations bills are supposed to be finished by June 30 to leave plenty of time to reconcile differences between the House and Senate before the new fiscal year, which starts October 1. But this year, not a single appropriations bill has been sent to the president, and neither house has completed action on all 13 appropriations bills.

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Compromise on Chemical Security

There have been plans to offer Sen. Jon Corzine’s (D-NJ) Chemical Security Act as an amendment to the Senate’s bill to establish a new department of Homeland Security. However, since the homeland bill has been taking so long in the Senate there is a strong probability that no controversial amendments are going to be allowed. Facing such a situation, there is tremendous pressure to water down Sen. Corzine’s bill to make it palatable for everyone. Sen. James Inhofe (R- OK) appears to be the lead for negotiating a compromise with Corzine.

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Administration Mixes Politics with Science

The Bush administration is overhauling scientific advisory committees that were reaching conclusions contrary to its political objectives, according to a recent article in the Washington Post. Findings by these committees, which are made up by private experts and are found at virtually every agency, frequently form the foundation for regulatory action, which the administration seems determined to avoid at all costs. Not surprisingly, the administration is moving to stack the deck in favor of its predetermined views. Specifically:

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Correction and New Information on EPA's Children's Health Report

In the September 3, 2002, issue of the Watcher, we reported that OMB’s Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA) requested to review an EPA report on children’s health prior to publication. Further conversation with EPA staff clarified that although OIRA participated in the review, it was OMB budget staff that made the request. We have revised our original article to reflect this new understanding.

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FOIA Constancy in Senate Homeland Security

The latest homeland security bill in the Senate, sponsored by Sens. Phil Gramm (R-TX) and Zell Miller (D-GA), contains information provisions that would exempt documents voluntarily provided to the new Department of Homeland Security from disclosure under the Freedom of Information Act. The language is exactly the same as the Leahy-Bennett-Levin amendment that resolved this issue in Sen. Joseph Lieberman’s (D-CT) bill on homeland security. Lieberman’s bill failed to pass a cloture vote after Sen. Robert Byrd (D-WV) filibustered the bill.

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Data Quality Arrives

Tomorrow, October 1, is the deadline set by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for agencies to finalize and begin to implement data quality guidelines, which seek to establish criteria for information disseminated by government agencies. Concerns have been raised that these guidelines may be misused by the regulated community to slow down the regulatory process, de-publish information critical of industry and its impacts, and possibly overturn long established regulations.

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Budget Process Rules the Senate

As noted on these pages many times over the last few months, the Senate is unique in its traditions and rules. One feature that helped earn the Senate the title of the “world’s greatest deliberative body” is its rules that allow for, and even necessitate, policy debates, which are a vital part of the legislative process. These rules push the Senate to work out differences between conflicting legislative proposals and help ensure that the voice of the minority is protected. To extend this principle to tax and spending issues, the Senate has special rules.

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Increasing Poverty And More Uninsured In The US

The new U.S. Census Bureau publication “Poverty in the United States: 2001” shows an increase in poverty and a tie for the highest level of income inequality ever (if not a new record high, depending on the measures used). This should not be a surprise given the policies of the administration and the recent economic downturn.

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Troubling Information Polls Tell of a Troubled Public

Two recent polls present a mixed picture about public access to government information in the post-9/11 environment. When asked about whether specific information should be removed from the web, most people say no. But their views change dramatically if the government argues that the information could help terrorists. On One Hand

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