Earmarks

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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Fiscal Responsibility, War Critics Take a Back Seat in House War Supplemental

When the House Democratic leadership introduced a supplemental appropriations bill the week of June 16, chock-full of popular spending measures, it ensured easy passage of the $257 billion package. The Democrats and President Bush can each claim they won items in the negotiation over the bill: the Democrats won increased spending on domestic programs; Bush was able to kill any requirements for withdrawal of soldiers from Iraq. Yet the bill remained controversial because the Democrats refused to include fiscally responsible measures or accede to the opinion of 63 percent of Americans that soldiers should return home within two years.

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DAILY FISCAL POLICY REPORT -- June 17, 2008

Jun 17, 2008 by Dana Chasin

Unemployment -- House To Keep UI in Supp.; Senate in Limbo: House Democratic leaders will include a provision extending unemployment insurance in the pending war supplemental appropriations bill, scrapping an idea to drop the provision that came from an effort to reduce the domestic funding portion of the package and avoid a veto from President Bush. This morning, Senate Republican blocked Majority Leader Reid's request that the Senate consider a free standing UI Extension. AP Story.

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DAILY FISCAL POLICY REPORT -- June 16, 2008

Jun 16, 2008 by Dana Chasin

Supplemental -- House Aims to Pass Bill by July 4: The House floor may see key action this week toward passage of the war spending supplemental package covering the costs of the Iraq and Afghanistan wars for the rest of FY08 and into FY09. The bill has been delayed as Democrats have sought consensus on whether expanded veterans benefits, extended unemployment benefits and other domestic spending provisions will be attached and offset. Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) said last week that Congress will have the bill ready for the president's signature by July 4.

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DAILY FISCAL POLICY REPORT -- Friday the 13th, June 2008

Jun 13, 2008 by Dana Chasin

Unemployment Claims -- June Starts off Much Like May: The number of first-time claims for unemployment insurance rose 25,000 in the week ended June 7 to 384,000 seasonally adjusted, according to the Labor Department's Employment and Training Administration data. The rise follows a decline of 16,000 in the week ended May 31. The unemployment extension bill having passed in the House yesterday (see here), these numbers may have some bearing on the Senate's deliberations. Today's ETA Report.

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DAILY FISCAL POLICY REPORT -- June 11, 2008

Jun 11, 2008 by Dana Chasin

Unemployment -- What is the Fastest Vehicle?: House and Senate leaders haven't decided yet how best to pass a 13-week extension of unemployment insurance benefits for the nation's 8.55 million jobless workers. The House is inclining toward a stand-alone extension bill, believing that would quickly secure a veto-proof majority. Senate leaders and some Republicans such as Sen. Olympia Snowe (R-ME) say the "emergency" war supplemental "is the fastest vehicle" available. The House is expected to vote on a stand-alone version of the bill this afternoon or tomorrow. GOP Deserting Bush on UI.

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Congress Adopts Mixed-Bag Budget Resolution

A rare event occurred in Washington on Thursday, June 5: Congress approved a budget resolution during an election year, a feat not seen since 2000. This fact and a human needs-oriented approach to spending signal that Congress is addressing national priorities while attempting to more responsibly manage the country's finances. However, Congress's eliding of pay-as-you-go rules and unrealistic assumptions about war spending and Alternative Minimum Tax (AMT) relief have marred an otherwise responsible budget resolution.

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DAILY FISCAL POLICY REPORT -- June 10, 2008

Jun 10, 2008 by Dana Chasin

Taxes -- House Vote on Unemployment Benefit Extension: The House is expected to vote later this week on H.R. 4934, a bill to extend unemployment insurance for workers who have exhausted their benefits by up to 13 weeks in every state as well as an additional 13 weeks in states with higher levels of unemployment. The bill's language defines "higher levels" as a seasonally adjusted 6 percent total unemployment rate or a 4 percent insured unemployment rate. The bill is expected to cost about $14 billion, and the funding levels are not offset in the bill, raising possible "pay-go" concerns.

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DAILY FISCAL POLICY REPORT -- June 9, 2008

Jun 9, 2008 by Dana Chasin

Economy -- Gas Prices Hit National Average of $4: Gasoline prices reached a national average of $4 a gallon for the first time over the weekend, adding more strain to the economy. "This crisis really impacts those who are at the economic margins of society, mostly in the rural areas and particularly parts of the Southeast," said Fred Rozell, retail pricing director at the Oil Price Information Service. Gas prices have risen a dollar a gallon since January 1. NY Times.

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DAILY FISCAL POLICY REPORT -- June 6, 2008

Jun 6, 2008 by Dana Chasin

Unemployment -- Monthly Rate Jump Highest Since Feb. 1986: The Bureau of Labor Statistics reported this morning that the nation's unemployment rate rose a half of a percent, from 5.0 in April to 5.5 percent in May, the fastest rise in 22 years, as 861,000 joined the ranks of the unemployed. Meanwhile, those with jobs have seen their real wages shrink this past year: hourly earnings have risen 3.5 percent, below the pace of inflation, which is running at about 4 percent. NY Times.

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Nussle on Passage of FY09 Budget Resolution

Jun 5, 2008 by Dana Chasin

Translation -- Corrects for Hypocrisy, Hyperbole Washington, DC — Today, OMB Director Jim Nussle issued the following statement on Senate passage of the FY09 Budget Resolution: It is disappointing that Democrats in Congress are repeating last year's tax and spend game plan. The Democrat's budget resolution would result in the largest tax increase in our nation's history, adds $25 billion in new spending this year and $209 billion more over 5 years, while failing to address the looming entitlement crisis. Translation:

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