Political Interference

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

May 31, 2006 by Guest Blogger

A quick look at recent developments related to the OMB Proposed Risk Assessment Bulletin:

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May 25, 2006 by Guest Blogger

Paul Noe, counselor to the OIRA administrator, is following John Graham and Don Arbuckle out the door. Here's a look at his career, courtesy of the Crowell & Moring press release announcing his move into their firm and related lobbying shop; follow the links for more about what his work actually meant:

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Organizations Speak Out Against Sunsets

A compilation of some of the letters that organizations are sending to Congress to express their opposition to the "sunset commission" chopping block. To be added as they are published. Organization Letters Coalition Sign-On Environment Letter National Association of Councils on Developmental Disabilities Leadership Council of Aging Organizations Services to People in Need Groups concerned about Medicaid and Medicare National Low Income Housing Coalition Education American Association of University Women - May 18, 2006 National Association of State Directors of Special Education

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Sunset Commissions are NOT Good Government

Sunset commissions are not the solution to cutting waste... in fact, they're just not good government solutions at all. Learn more with these fact sheets: Sunset Commissions Are NOT Good Government: "Good government" rationales for sunset commissions don't hold water. We tell you why. 20 Bites at the Apple: We just don't need sunset commissions; there are already 20 bites at the apple -- or more -- to keep programs in line.

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Materials

Fact sheets and other materials, updated to reflect the new bills now racing to the House floor. About the Proposals Side-by-side analysis of leading bills Sunset Issue Brief" One-pager: Tiahrt Bill (H.R. 5766) Sunset Commissions: Myth v. Reality Counter-Arguments Not Good Government No Need for Sunsets: 20 Bites at the Apple In the News Selected news articles and op-eds Dayton News editorial (from Mr.

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Bad Acting

May 22, 2006 by Guest Blogger

We here at REG•WATCH let positive thinking get the better of us. Yes, the White House did name Steven D. Aitken as the acting administrator of OIRA rather than John Morrall. The problem is that we were wrong in thinking John Morrall was going to be the acting administrator; he was named the acting deputy administrator. So, Aitken is the acting John Graham; Morrall is the acting Don Arbuckle. And, for a day there, in the absence of Arbuckle (deputy admin) serving as acting administrator for Graham, Morrall was in line to be the acting deputy acting as acting administrator.

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Acting Better?

May 19, 2006 by Guest Blogger

The White House has announced that the acting administrator of OIRA will not be John Morrall but, instead, Steven D. Aitken.

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Nanotechnology: Data Quality Act Strikes Again

May 19, 2006 by Guest Blogger

Environmental groups seeking stronger regulation of products containing nanotechnology, such as sunscreen and cosmetics, may be thwarted by the Data Quality Act, a provision that allows individuals (or industry groups) to challenge the integrity of government science.

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Appropriators Agree: PART is All Politics

May 18, 2006 by Guest Blogger

Gotta love it: House Appropriations Committee spokesman John Scofield said lawmakers agree that performance-based budgeting is a good idea. However, he said Congress won’t likely give PART scores much weight as they make budget decisions. “We always said PART can be one of the tools, but we rely on justification from agencies and won’t use PART to supplant that,” he said. “It’s nice to get a cute little number . . . but PART tends to be an excuse to cut Congress’ priorities.”

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Update: Boehner Makes Sunset Commission Proposal Legislative Priority

House of Representatives Majority Leader John Boehner (R-OH) has begun work behind the scenes to draft new sunset commission legislation and has signaled to his party that the sunset commission will be a legislative priority.

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