On January 29, 2013, President Obama signed into law a $50.5 billion relief bill aimed at helping victims of Hurricane Sandy. Despite complaints from many fiscal conservatives – Citizens Against Government Waste included – that the bill had been unnecessarily fattened up in order to serve parochial interests, the deal got done. Its passage marked an important victory for politicians like New Jersey Governor Chris Christie and Rep. Peter King (R-N.Y.), both of whom had publicly and loudly excoriated Congress for dragging its feet.
Sequestration: The Sky is Not Falling
WasteWatcher
January, 2013
Higher Taxes Will Lead to New Spending
The fiscal cliff, a combination of automatic budget cuts and tax increases set to take effect at the beginning of 2013, has dominated the news since the 2012 Presidential election. The effect of going off the cliff would be detrimental to the U.S. economy, potentially leading to a 3.6 percent decline in the gross domestic product. These impending negative consequences have led to Congress and the president scrambling to strike a deal.
Sandy Relief Bill is a Disaster
On November 18, 2012, Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee Chairman Joseph Lieberman (I-Conn.) told Politico that spending cuts triggered by the “fiscal cliff” projected to take effect on January 1 would be “devastating,” and that they would “really compromise our domestic security and our capacity to respond to emergencies and disasters like [Superstorm Sandy].” For that bit of scare-mongering, Sen. Lieberman was named Citizens Against Government Waste’s (CAGW) Porker of the Month.
GM Bailout Could Get Much Worse
WasteWatcher, January, 2013
More Oversight Needed for our Veterans
On January 24, 2011, the Office of the Inspector General (OIG) of the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) issued a report detailing the improper benefits given to disabled veterans. The report discussed temporary 100 percent benefits, which the Veterans Benefits Administration (VBA) is supposed to continually monitor and reduce when necessary and concluded that the VBA made mistakes in “about 27,500 (15 percent) of these veterans’ evaluations.” These mistakes “will overpay veterans a projected $1.1 billion over the next 5 years.”
Two Different Worlds: Public vs. Private Sector Compensation
Despite the popular belief that federal employees are underpaid public servants, the data tells a very different story. When all of the factors that affect compensation are accounted for, there is significant evidence that federal employees make considerably more than their private sector counterparts.
Identity Fraud Hits Taxpayers in the Wallet
For many years, it has been clear that identity theft is a grave threat to the fiscal sovereignty of millions of Americans. For its victims, many of whom are saddled with the new and unwelcome full-time job of battling fraudulent credit card charges and mounting debt, normal life can seem a long way off. Even those who do everything right, from hiring lawyers to disputing each new charge, can be in for a long, painful battle. And while there is nothing good about identity theft, it is at least fortunate that the problem has historically been largely contained to the individual – until recently.
Identity Fraud Hits Taxpayers in the Wallet
Luke Gelber For many years, it has been clear that identity theft is a grave threat to the fiscal sovereignty of millions of Americans. For its victims, many of whom are saddled with the new and unwelcome full-time job of battling fraudulent credit card charges and mounting debt, normal life can seem a long way […]
No Last-Minute Delivery on Postal Reform
By Leslie Paige WasteWatcher, December, 2012 The United States Postal Service (USPS) announced on November 15, 2012 that in fiscal year (FY) 2012, which ended on September 30, the agency lost a record $15.9 billion. In June, 2012 at a PostalVision 2020 conference in Washington, Postmaster General (PMG) Patrick Donahoe flatly stated that if the […]