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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Pork In Perspective

Jun 28, 2006 by Craig Jennings

As President Bush calls on the Senate to pass its version of line-item veto legislation as a means of controlling government spending, it’s important to keep in mind just how much pork barrel spending is in relation to other important budget data points. According to Citizens Against Government Waste, the government spent $23.7 billion on "pork-barrel" spending. No small sum, for sure. But, $23.7 billion is but a fraction (7.5%) of the $317 billion FY2005 federal budget deficit. At less than one percent (0.96%) of the $2.5 trillion the government spent in 2005, it’s barely recognizable.

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What Economists Think About Line-Item Veto

Jun 28, 2006 by Craig Jennings

Former Chair of Council of Economic Advisors for George W. Bush Greg Mankiw writes about the line-item veto. In wondering about what economists think of the line-item veto, he quotes two papers published in the August, 1998 Journal of Public Economics:

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Measures to Reform Budget Process Move in Congress

Both chambers of Congress are moving forward on measures centered around budget process changes, with a focus on giving the president line-item veto authority. The House passed the Legislative Line Item Veto Act (H.R. 4890) 247-172 on Jun. 22, and the Senate Budget Committee reported out a broader budget reform bill on Jun. 21 that included presidential line-item rescission authority. The Senate bill, called the Stop Over Spending Act (S. 3521), also includes:

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CRS Says War Spending Will Top $500 Billion

Jun 27, 2006 by Matthew Madia

The nonpartisan Congressional Research Service has estimated in a new report that the overall cost of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan since Sept. 11, 2001 will top $500 billion next year (the fiscal year ends September 30). The latest addition to this spending, of course, was the $69 billion allocated in the supplemental spending bill signed into law earlier this month.

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Summary of House Grants Disclosure Bill

Jun 23, 2006 by Matthew Madia

The House of Representatives passed a bill requiring the Office of Management and Budget to ensure there is a free searchable website providing access to federal financial assistance awards. This searchable database will not cover disclosure of federal contracts, however. H.R. 5060, co-sponsored by Reps. Roy Blunt (R-MO) and Tom Davis (R-VA), passed the House on a voice vote on June 21. Click here to read more.

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Summary of House Grants Disclosure Bill

The House of Representatives passed a bill requiring the Office of Management and Budget to ensure there is a free searchable website providing access to federal financial assistance awards. This searchable database will not cover disclosure of federal contracts, however. H.R. 5060, co-sponsored by Reps. Roy Blunt (R-MO) and Tom Davis (R-VA), passed the House on a voice vote on June 21.

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House Approves Line-Item Veto, Continues to Outsource the Job it was Elected to do

Jun 23, 2006 by Craig Jennings

The House approved (247-172) Rep. Paul Ryan’s (R-WI) Line Item Veto bill. The bill, also referred to as "line-item rescission", would give the president the power to force Congress to vote on specific line items on bills sent to him by Congress. President Clinton signed (and used) a more potent version of line-item veto, but it was declared unconstitutional by the Supreme Court.

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House Passes Skewed, Dangerous Disclosure Bill

Jun 22, 2006 by Matthew Madia

Yesterday the House, under suspension of the rules, passed H.R 5060 - a one-sided bill sponsored by Reps. Roy Blunt (R-MO) and Tom Davis (R-VA) that would require all domestic grants made by the federal government to be posted to a new free, searchable public website.

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Social Security is the Solution

Jun 21, 2006 by Craig Jennings

In all the talk about the deficit and Social Security one rarely hears of the heroic role that Social Security plays in masking a $170 billion in budget shortfalls.

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Coburn/Obama Disclosure Bill Gains Array of Endorsements

Jun 21, 2006 by Matthew Madia

We previously blogged on an effort by Sens. Coburn and Obama (and Carper and McCain) to establish a comprehesive website the public could search for information on federal financial assistance, including federal contracts and grants, by Jan. 1, 2007. OMB Watch has circulated an endorsement letter for the legislation that currently has 32 organizations signed on. The National Taxpayers Union circulated their own endorsement letter, attracting additional support from conservative circles.

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