Federal Budget Policy

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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JEC Report: the Cost of Stay-the-Course in Iraq

Nov 13, 2007 by Dana Chasin

If you are like many Americans who perceive geometrically escalating costs of the wars in Afghanistan and especially Iraq, unaccountably greater now than in recent years, you might look ahead at cost projections and just drop your jaw. There appears to be a very serious misunderstanding. Many Americans are suffering under the misapprehension that current troops levels in Iraq are unsustainable and that, in any case, the weight of political sentiment strongly militates against maintaining current troop strength and increases in American treasure expended on the war going forward.

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Appropriations Update- Standoff Over Labor/HHS

Nov 13, 2007 by Matt Lewis

Congress has now sent the President the Defense appropriations bill, an extension of this year's continuing resolution, and the Labor/HHS appropriations bill. The President will sign the Defense bill, the first appropriations bill of the year to be enacted, and the CR, but he's expected to veto Labor/HHS, and doesn't even seem to be considering negotiating with Congress over its funding levels. The Hill:

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Approps Update: Chambers Approve Defense, Labor-H

Nov 9, 2007 by Craig Jennings

Thursday evening, the Senate approved the Defense spending bill conference report, and the House gave thumbs-up to the Labor-H conference report. Meanwhile, a conference committee approved the $50.9 billion Transportation-HUD spending bill. November 9, 2007 House Senate Conf. Cmte. President Cmte. Floor $ Agriculture 18.8 18.7 $ Commerce-Justice- Science 53.6 54.6 54.6 Defense 459.6 459.6 459.6 459.3 $ Energy & Water 31.6 32.3 Financial Services 21.4 21.8 $ Homeland Security 36.3 37.6 37.6 $

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House Approves Labor/HHS- Next Stop, President

Nov 9, 2007 by Matt Lewis

Yesterday, the House approved Labor/HHS conference report on its own by 274-141 (roll call). If 3 nay votes switch, it'd enough to override a presidential veto. Now the bill will be sent to the President, though its not clear exactly when that will happen. The President then will most likely veto it, and the onus will be on the House to override it. Update: See this Coalition on Human Needs pamphlet for the budget cuts a veto-sustaining vote would be supporting.

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Checks

Nov 8, 2007 by Matt Lewis

Congress had its first veto override today. That wasn't so awful now, was it?

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Deficit/Spending

Nov 8, 2007 by Matt Lewis

Here's an interesting paper on the "starve the beast" school of government reduction by tax cut (via Inclusion). The abstract:

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John Edwards Has A Secret

Nov 8, 2007 by Matt Lewis

An interesting article in the Times on who's advising the presidential candidates on economic policy. So far, only John Edwards has broken Washington taboos and (quietly) declared that he'd increase the deficit to pay for more social spending.

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Senate Strips MilCon/VA from Labor/HHS

Nov 8, 2007 by Matt Lewis

Yesterday, the Senate separated the MilCon/VA funding from the Labor/HHS appropriations bill, and then it passed the Labor/HHS bill by a much lower margin than it had previously. The House will now have to vote on the Labor/HHS conference report on its own. It will almost certainly pass, and then the bill will be sent to the President. Here's the roll call on final passage, and the roll call on the procedural vote to separate the two bills.

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Labor/HHS-MilCon/VA Package Passes House

Nov 7, 2007 by Matt Lewis

Last night, the House passed the Labor/HHS-MilCon/VA package by 269-142 (roll call). That's not quite enough to override a veto, but 22 members didn't vote, half of whom were Democrats who'd almost certainly support the bill. So only five or so Republican "nay" votes stand between a veto override and more gridlock. Now the action's in the Senate. There's some chance the package could be split apart, which could mean it will take even longer to send this bill to the President.

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Do I Dare to Legislate? How Much do Vetoes Hurt?

Nov 6, 2007 by Dana Chasin

... and other in-appropriate paralyzing questions Another part of the Collender article that Matt blogs on below concerns the role or strategy (if such exists) of the House and Senate Appropriations Committees and congressional leadership regarding the FY 2008 budget process. Collender's perspective:

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