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...

read in full

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...

read in full

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...

read in full

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...

read in full

more news

FedSpending v2.0 Goes Live!

Feb 22, 2007 by Adam Hughes*

OMB Watch is pleased to annouce we have just released a new version of FedSpending.org with updated data, new features, and improved navigation. The new site is now live - see it yourself at www.fedspending.org. OMB Watch issued a press release that describes the updates and improvments made to the site, and you can learn and see more about FedSpending v2.0 in the About This Site section, or by exploring the site yourself. We welcome your feedback, comments, and questions about the new website, so please go to the Contact section of FedSpending.org and send us your thoughts.

read in full

OMB Watch Set to Launch FedSpending v2.0

Feb 22, 2007 by Adam Hughes*

OMB Watch will be releasing an updated version of our popular website FedSpending.org later today. FedSpending.org allows users to search and download extensive information about government spending going back to FY 2000, from contracts to grants, loans, insurance payments, and direct spending. Below are some preview screenshots of the new look and features of the website. The new site will go live later this afternoon. Be sure to check it out and explore the new features. New FedSpending.org Homepage with Features(click to englarge) Added Summary Outputs with Trend Chart(click to englarge)

read in full

Class Wars in the Budget

Feb 21, 2007 by Matt Lewis

The Bush budget proposal assumed the repeal of the estate tax. Sen. Bernie Sanders's office juxtaposed what certain families would get from a repealed estate tax with assorted proposed cuts to social programs. Matt Taibbi of Rolling Stone summed up the comparisons thusly: Sanders's office came up with some interesting numbers here. If the Estate Tax were to be repealed completely, the estimated savings to just one family -- the Walton family, the heirs to the Wal-Mart fortune -- would be about $32.7 billion dollars over the next ten years.

read in full

DHS Receives Mixed Opinions on Proposed Chemical Security Rule

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) received 89 comments, dominated by industry, in response to the proposed interim rule on chemical plant security. The rule establishes the first-ever federal chemical security program. Chemical companies and industry associations generally expressed strong support for the rule, whereas most public interest groups and government officials expressed great concern.

read in full

FOIA Reform Kicks Off in the House

The House Subcommittee on Information, Census and National Archives of the Government Oversight and Reform Committee held a hearing on the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) Feb. 14. The hearing served as an update on the implementation of Executive Order 13392, which requires agencies to develop and implement FOIA improvement plans, and as an opportunity to air the virtues and vices of FOIA and possible legislative solutions to improve public access to information.

read in full

Congress Takes a Hard Look at Irresponsible Contractors

On Feb. 15, Sen. Byron Dorgan (D-ND) introduced the Honest Leadership and Accountability in Contracting Act, which is aimed at curbing abuse in government procurement and increasing competition and transparency. Concerns about federal contracts have been rising over the last few years as inquiries into contracts for Iraq reconstruction and Hurricane Katrina response have uncovered serious deficiencies or more questions.

read in full

Congress, White House Going in Opposite Directions on TRI

On Feb. 14, Sen. Frank R. Lautenberg (D-NJ) and Reps. Frank Pallone (D-NJ) and Hilda Solis (D-CA) announced companion bills to restore the Toxics Release Inventory (TRI) and undo the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) recently finalized reporting rollbacks. At the same time, President George W. Bush issued an executive order which may exempt all federal facilities from reporting requirements, resulting in another severe attack on the TRI program.

read in full

Squabbling Over Tax Cuts Continues to Delay Minimum Wage Increase

On Feb. 16, by a vote of 360-45, the U.S. House of Representatives passed H.R. 976, a ten-year, $1.3 billion package of offset tax cuts designed to accompany a $2.10 per hour increase in the minimum wage. On Feb. 1, the Senate adopted S. 2 — including its own set of offset tax cuts totaling $8.3 billion over ten years. The two tax packages differ markedly in size and content, and S. 2 includes the minimum wage hike while H.R. 976 comprises only the tax provisions, which could complicate the procedural road ahead.

read in full

A Reich-Minded View of Balanced Budgets

Feb 21, 2007 by Dana Chasin

Former Clinton administration Secretary of Labor Robert Reich blogged last week about Why Balancing the Budget is a Stupid Idea. It's almost impossible to agree or disagree with his reasoning, because he doesn't provide any. Oh, well, perhaps this part supports his argument:

read in full

Minimum Wage Rates, State-by-State

Feb 20, 2007 by Dana Chasin

A set of Wall Street Journal graphics under the heading "Minimum Wage Debate" provides the following data:

minimum wages by state
median income by state
poverty rates by state
proportion in each state directly affected by minimum wage

Among other things, the graphics make clear that a majority of states now have minimum wage rates greather than the federal standard, that the nation's wealthiest cities and states tend to have the highest minimum wage rates, and that workers in the poorest states are most affected by changes in the minimum wage rate.

read in full