(Washington, D.C.) – Citizens Against Government Waste (CAGW), in recognition of Cost of Government Day, today expressed outrage at the federal, state, and local governments’ continued abuse of hundreds of billions of tax dollars in outdated, ineffective, duplicative, and wasteful programs and agencies.  Cost of Government Day is the date on which the average American worker has earned enough to pay off his or her share of tax and regulatory burdens imposed by all levels of government, according to Americans for Tax Reform (ATR).  CAGW recommends that governments at all levels move to aggressively cut taxes and waste and reduce regulations to diminish American families’ tax burden.

“It does not require more than half the national income for the government to protect the life and liberty of every American,” CAGW President Tom Schatz said.  “A huge chunk of these tax dollars gets regurgitated in the form of wasteful programs.”

According to the report, Americans now work more than half of the year – 189 days – to pay their share of the cost of government.  Americans worked one day less than last year, but this meaningless decline was after a 10-day jump from 2000 to 2003.  To put the modern tax burden in historical perspective, the American Revolution was fought over British taxes that consumed 3 percent of colonial income.  Serfs of the Middle Ages turned over about one-third of what they produced to their landlords.  

“We surrender more than half of our working lives to the government,” Schatz continued.  “In exchange, we get $50 million for an indoor rainforest in Coralville, Iowa.  Taxpayers should be outraged by the government’s ongoing waste of their hard-earned money.” 

Earlier this year, CAGW identified 10,656 federal pork projects in its 2004 Congressional Pig Book, an increase of 13.8 percent from last year.  The cost of these projects was $22.9 billion, or 1.6 percent more than last year’s total of $22.5 billion.  The group also identified $1.3 trillion in savings over five years in its Prime Cuts report.

“As the cost of government turns more American lives into a financial struggle, the government invents new ways to increase its share,” Schatz continued.  “Cost of Government Day is today because members of Congress have chosen to spend tax dollars on projects such as the International Fund for Ireland and the National Wild Turkey Federation in South Carolina.”

“Cost of Government Day reminds taxpayers how much easier their lives would be without profligate government spending,” Schatz concluded.  “The vigilant uncovering of waste, fraud, abuse, and mismanagement exposes the lie that high taxes are necessary for essential government services.”

The complete report can be accessed on ATR's website: http://www.atr.org.

Citizens Against Government Waste is a nonpartisan, nonprofit organization dedicated to eliminating waste, fraud, mismanagement and abuse in government.