What is becoming increasingly clear is the Affordable Care Act (ACA), often referred to as Obamacare, is changing and will change how Americans work. Here are some examples. According to Obamacare, any employer with 50 or more employees must provide health insurance to any employee that works 30 or more hours a week. Dealing with […]
Obamacare: Defund or Delay?
Before the 113th Congress left town in early August for their five-week “summer recess,” they kicked yet another can down the road. On the one hand, it wasn’t time-sensitive enough that action couldn’t wait until their return on September 9. On the other, because of the hoopla surrounding it before their departure, they left themselves […]
And More Costly Duplication
As part of a continuing series, CAGW will be providing you examples of duplication and overlap within the federal government that has been researched by the Government Accountability Office (GAO). In the 2013 GAO annual report, “Actions Needed to Reduce Fragmentation, Overlap, and Duplication and Achieve Other Benefits,” some 31 areas within in the federal government […]
Lame Brain Drain
I am not suggesting that the Congressional staffers who may be seeking greener career pastures (due to changes in health care benefits) are “lame brains;” however, if they are responsible for most of the madness that emanates from Capitol Hill, I may have to reassess. Rather, the much-ballyhooed, “sky-is-falling” brouhaha over the potential for intellectual […]
Private Sector Solution to Digital Literacy
As students return to school this fall, they are finding that their teachers are using technology tools, such as online curriculums and textbooks, and assigning online homework more frequently. Today, virtually all schools and libraries are connected to the Internet. However, once the school day has ended, students may find a different picture when they […]
It is None of Their Damn Business!
Last month the New Jersey Comptroller released a report on widespread fraud in their state’s school lunch program. More than 100 people on public payrolls, or members of their family, lied about their income in order to get their children on the free school lunch program. One school board member did not report any of […]
The White House Office of Nudging
There have been a series of news reports of a new project underway in the White House led by Maya Shankar, Senior Advisor for Social & Behavioral Sciences within the Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP). According to a column written by David Martosko in the U.K.’s Mail OnLine , “her mandate is to […]
The Article 1 President
All legislative Powers herein granted shall be vested in a Congress of the United States, which shall consist of a Senate and House of Representatives. As the U.S. Constitution clearly states, it is the Legislative Branch that writes law. The role of the Executive Branch and the president is to enforce the laws. But disturbingly, […]
The Sequester is Working
The biggest underreported story out of Washington this year is that the federal budget is shrinking and much more than anyone in either party expected.” Thus begins Stephen Moore’s piece today in the Wall Street Journal about the budget sequester. He lays out some notable numbers: The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) annual outlays peaked in […]
The Fix is In…
The deal has been made; Congress and President Obama figured out a way to provide continued subsidies for healthcare premiums for congressional staff. The Office of Personnel Management (OPM) just released the proposed regulation, which can be found here. Despite what many have noted is a lack of statutory authority to issue this regulation, it nonetheless […]