The antiquated U.S. sugar program continues to cause trouble for American companies, consumers and taxpayers. While supporters of the program have always tried to claim that it doesn’t cost taxpayers any money, according to the Government Accountability Office (GAO), the highly restrictive import quota already costs U.S. consumers as much as $1.9 billion annually, which is nothing more than a sugar consumer tax.
Debt Watch
Most mundane procedural actions by Congress are not worthy of a headline or even a WasteWatcher article, but the raising of the debt ceiling will surely cause taxpayers to howl.
Budget Gimmicks Hide the True Costs of Obamacare –
There is a lot of discussion of how much the Obama healthcare plan will cost the federal government. The House bill, if passed, will spend more than $1 trillion over 10 years and the Senate bill would spend more than $800 billion over 10 years. This spending will be paid for with a lot of […]
Salvage the Good from the Healthcare Debacle
The healthcare reform juggernaut, arguably the most radical attempt to remake the economy and the nation’s healthcare infrastructure in history, was supposed to have flown through Congress before the August recess with nary a peep. Instead, as Americans have gotten wind of its alarming provisions and exorbitant costs, the plan appears to be fizzling fast in the summer heat.
Let the Sun Shine In on How The Government Spends Your Money
The nation just marked the six-month anniversary of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA), or the stimulus law, that Congress passed hurriedly in February. Billions of our hard-earned tax dollars were injected into the ailing economy. In that mad rush, we were told there wasn’t time to work out all the details.
Public Outrage Grounds Congressional Jets
In 2005, Rep. Don Young (R-Alaska) tried to fund the infamous “Bridge to Nowhere,” which would have connected the mainland of Alaska to an island of only 50 people. After the bridge became the “poster child” for pork and taxpayers expressed their disdain, funding for the “Bridge to Nowhere” was eliminated.
Will Obama’s IGs Be Blood Hounds or Lap Dogs?
Federal statutes currently allow for 69 inspectors general (IG) at all cabinet departments, large agencies and other designated federal entities. These offices are charged with overseeing how tax dollars are spent. Since they are, in effect, “first responders” to potential waste, fraud, and mismanagement within the government, IGs are granted broad powers to ensure a level of independence over those they are auditing or investigating.
Beach Houses: Owned By the Rich, Paid For By Everyone
Washington’s next fiscal giveaway: a bailout for wealthy homeowners living along risky, hurricane-prone coastlines. Attempting to find a solution to rising homeowners’ insurance rates, the House Financial Services Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations held a hearing on July 2, 2009 to discuss the Homeowners’ Defense Act as a possible solution.
Healthcare Reform: A Pricey Prescription
President Obama promised this would be the year of health care reform, but many are bracing for what this “reform” could really mean. After much anticipation, Democrats have started to unveil their healthcare reform plans, revealing new policy proposals that would, among other things, expand Medicaid, impose individual and employer mandates, enlarge the almost bankrupt Medicare program, create a new government-run healthcare plan, and cost at least $1 trillion over 10 years. The overall result will inevitably be higher taxes, less patient choice, and ultimately, rationing of care.
British Expense Scandal Should be Lesson for U.S. Lawmakers
The TaxPayers’ Alliance (TPA) in Great Britain was founded in 2004 by Andrew Allum, Matthew Elliott and Florence Heath to “represent taxpayers and to fight for lower taxes.” Citizens Against Government Waste (CAGW) has been working with the organization on a wide variety of issues, including more transparency in government for British taxpayers.