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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Tax Cuts: The Final Melee

Continuing its trend of bucking compassion and fiscal responsibility in lieu of tax cuts for the wealthy, the House of Representatives voted last week to pass the $56 billion reconciliation tax bill. This vote, which came on the heels of the vote to save money by slashing mandatory spending, culminated what seemed to be a month of illogical, hypocritical voting.

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Budget Cuts: The Final Showdown

The Senate's return to Washington this week means that conferees have begun final negotiations on the budget reconciliation bill. The two versions of this bill, which aims to cut entitlement spending over five years, contain vast differences, particularly with respect to cuts to Medicaid, student loans, and food stamps.

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Congress Staggers Toward End-of-Session Finish Line

To the amazement of many and the pleasure of none, Congress is still in Washington this week trying to wrap up the 2005 legislative session. Only two must-pass bills remain incomplete (the Labor/Health & Human Services and Defense appropriations bills), yet both the House and Senate seem preoccupied with other matters--namely, the spending and tax reconciliation bills, immigration reform, pension overhaul, and reauthorization of the USA Patriot Act, which some consider another must-pass (at least temporarily as it expires at the end of this year).

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Gregg Wants To Tack $1.14 Billion on to Supplemental

Dec 5, 2005 by Guest Blogger

Before wrapping up this year's legislative session, Congress is expected to consider another emergency supplemental measure. Chairman of the Appropriations Subcommittee on Homeland Security, Judd Gregg (R-NH), announced today his support for tacking on to the bill $1.14 billion in spending on border security measures.

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Greenspan Again Supports Budget Rules For Congress

Dec 2, 2005 by Adam Hughes*

In his last speech to the Federal Reserve before retiring, Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan again warned about the economic risks posed by long-term budget deficits and an escalating national debt. Greenspan described the risk of sustained deficits on the U.S. economy over the long-term as "severe" and urged swift action to begin instituting policies to correct structural problems.

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It's Not the Most Wonderful Time of the Year (for Appropriations Work)

Although five of the 11 appropriations bills remain to be signed into law by President Bush, Congress has completed work on all but two: the Defense and Labor/Health and Human Services bills. While a massive omnibus has been avoided this year, an equally contentious (and still quite large) bill--a so-called "minibus"--could be passed containing those two final bills. With all the items on the schedule for December and likely only three weeks to complete them, Congress still has a lot of work left to do before they are finished for the year.

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House, Senate To Battle Over Budget Cuts

Among the top priorities for Congress, when its members return to Washington next week, is the construction of a conference report for spending cuts that is acceptable to both chambers. The House and Senate versions of the reconciliation bill for entitlement spending contain significant differences, particularly with respect to cuts to Medicaid, student loans, and food stamps.

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Burning the Midnight Oil on Capitol Hill

Nov 17, 2005 by Adam Hughes*

Both the House and the Senate are working late tonight, trying to pass budget and tax cut bills that have faced considerable obstacles over the last two weeks. The Senate is currently voting on a long series of amendments to their version of the tax cut reconciliation bill approved by the Finance Committee yesterday. The House has just moved to consideration of their version of the spending cuts reconciliation bill. Both chambers are likely to be in session past midnight tonight before final votes on each bill.

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Labor/HHS Conference Report Cuts $1.5 Billion From Programs

Nov 17, 2005 by Guest Blogger

This afternoon the House will vote on the FY 2006 Labor/Health and Human Services and Education Appropriations Conference Report. The conference report, in total, cuts labor, education, health care, and human services by $1.5 billion compared to FY 2005 levels. Below is a detailed summary of the conference agreement, as well as a chart with the amounts being spent on various programs, and how those amounts compare to both the President's request and FY 2005 levels.

Chart of program amounts in the bill

Detailed explanation of the bill

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PAY-GO Narrowly Defeated in Senate Reconciliation Bill

While the House spent last week fighting to a draw over its spending reconciliation bill, the Senate passed its version the evening of Nov. 3, including a provision that would allow drilling in Alaska's Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. The Senate reconciliation bill cuts $39.1 billion from entitlement programs over a five-year period. While these cuts are not nearly as contentious or damaging to low-income beneficiaries as those being considered on the other side of Capitol Hill, the bill could drastically change during a conference with the House.

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