CTJ and ITEP Release Important New Report

Sep 23, 2004 by Guest Blogger

On September 22nd, Citizens for Tax Justice and the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy released an important report highlighting the taxes paid - or not paid - by many of the county's largest companies.

The report can be downloaded here.

BUSH POLICIES DRIVE SURGE IN CORPORATE TAX FREELOADING

Eighty two of America's largest and most profitable corporations paid no federal income tax in at least one year during the first three years of the George W. Bush administration. This is one of the many troubling findings of this major new report on corporate tax avoidance.

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Dietary guidelines and something called Data "Quality"

Sep 23, 2004 by Guest Blogger

The other day we mentioned new, weakened dietary guidelines that seem to promote industry interests over the public interest. In case you missed it: the weakening of the dietary guidelines can be traced back to a Data Quality Act challenge filed by industry-funded think tank Center for Regulatory Effectiveness. Check out this article from the OMB Watch Information and Access team, which also links you to information you'll need if you want to share your thoughts on the guidelines (deadline 9/27). Learn more about the Data Quality Act here.

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Live Now: FDA and anti-depressants

Sep 23, 2004 by Guest Blogger

Be sure to catch the live webcast of the House Committee on Energy and Commerce hearing on "FDA's Role in Protecting the Public Health: Examining FDA's Review of Safety & Efficacy Concerns in Anti-Depressant Use by Children." Live webcast (which requires RealPlayer)

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Say bye-bye to the bull trout...

Sep 23, 2004 by Guest Blogger

Remember the bull trout? The administration pulled some chicanery a while back and produced a cost-benefit analysis of plans to save the bull trout's habitat... but eliminated all references to benefits from the final report. Well, surprise, surprise: the new recovery plan "would sharply reduce the amount of federally designated critical habitat for the threatened bull trout in three Western states and eliminate federal requirements for such habitat in Montana," according to the AP. Adds the (Bend) Bulletin:

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Deficit Hits All-time High, Many Corporations Don't Pay Fair Share

Washington, DC, Sept. 22, 2004--The result of recent tax policy choices is that the 2004 deficit has reached an all-time high of $422 billion dollars. The Congressional Budget Office reported this month that only 11% of the FY 2004 deficit was due to cyclical factors, while 89% of the deficit was result of federal policy decisions. Not only is the current deficit the highest it has ever been in dollar terms, but in a recent analysis, OMB Watch Staff Economist John Irons projected that the deficit will reach $5.5 trillion over the next ten years. In addition, a new study released today by the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy (ITEP) finds that many of the country’s biggest corporations are not paying their fair share of federal income taxes.

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Balanced Budget Amendment Could Destabilize Economy, Tie U.S. Hands

WASHINGTON, D.C., September 20, 2004 -- The House of Representatives is again set to consider an ill-conceived constitutional Balanced Budget Amendment (H. J. RES. 22). The House Judiciary Committee is scheduled to address the proposal this Wednesday, September 22. Regardless of one’s opinions about the wisdom of balancing the budget or running massive deficits, the Balanced Budget Amendment is exceptionally bad economic policy.

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Agency wants to avoid responsibility for trucker safety

Sep 22, 2004 by Guest Blogger

In case you missed it: the Department of Transportation has requested an indefinite stay of a court decision vacating the Department's inadequate effort to redraft the rules that protect truckers (and, along the way, everyone else on the road) by regulating the maximum hours of service that trucking companies can demand of their drivers. Check out the arguments against this unusual request and a letter from public interest groups who fear that the agency will run to Congress for permission to avoid its responsibility to serve the public.

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EPA let industry write the rules on mercury

Sep 22, 2004 by Guest Blogger

For the third time, evidence has turned up revealing yet another way that industry was allowed to write the rules on mercury -- and EPA put their ideas in word for word: The passages state that the Environmental Protection Agency is not required to regulate other hazardous toxins emitted by power plants, such as lead and arsenic. Several attorneys general, as well as some environmental groups, have argued that the Clean Air Act compels the EPA to regulate these emissions as well as mercury.

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Industry Influence Weakens Dietary Guidelines

Sep 21, 2004 by Guest Blogger

The Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee, established by HHS and USDA, recently released their recommendations for an update of Dietary Guidelines for Americans. The thirteen member committee, appointed by USDA and HHS in August 2003, includes seven members with strong industry connections (See the report Special Interest Takeover for more information). Not surprisingly, the committee’s recommendations for controlling intake of carbohydrates, sugars and fats were vague and weak. The report urged Americans to choose fats and carbohydrates "wisely for good health." The report also diverged from previous guidelines by offering no direct recommendations on sugars, but instead hiding under other topics the message that sugar intake should be limited.

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Oceans in peril, and Bush admin. wants to make things worse

Sep 21, 2004 by Guest Blogger

Don't miss the latest analysis from U.S. PIRG: "Bush Receives Final Report from U.S. Commission on Ocean Policy: Administration Ignoring Science and Undercutting Ocean Protections." Here's an excerpt: The U.S. Commission on Ocean Policy, a panel appointed by President Bush, today issued its final report stating that the oceans are in peril and overfishing is a primary factor contributing to the collapse of entire ocean ecosystems. Today's report comes even as the Bush administration is actively seeking to weaken federal standards that protect fish populations from overfishing.

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