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Connect America Fund: Continuing the Universal Service Fee with No End in Sight

On November 18, 2011, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) issued its much-anticipated 759-page proposed rulemaking for the Connect America Fund (CAF), which sets out to reform the Universal Service Fund (USF) and the Intercarrier...

Deborah Collier January 30, 2012
The WasteWatcher

Time to End Earmarks Once and For All

Year after year, lawmakers have sullied the political process by directing chunks of the federal budget back to their home districts and states to promote their own reelections and reward special interests. In an attempt to put an end to this form...

CAGW Staff January 30, 2012
The WasteWatcher

News from ALEC

The American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) held its States and Nation Policy Summit in Scottsdale, Arizona from November 29, 2011 to December 2, 2011. Citizens Against Government Waste (CAGW) staff was present during several meetings of the...

Deborah Collier January 30, 2012
The WasteWatcher

Minibus Drives Savings

On November 18, 2011, President Obama signed the “minibus” appropriations legislation, which contained three fiscal year (FY) appropriations bills: the Department of Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies...

Sean Kennedy January 30, 2012
The WasteWatcher

Congressional Meddling in USPS Makes Bailout More Likely

Congress seems to have two legislative speeds: inertia in the face of an oncoming fiscal disaster, or ugly, last-minute scrambles to ram through sham legislation that often exacerbates already fraught situations.

Leslie Paige January 30, 2012
The WasteWatcher

California High-Speed Rail: Way Off Track

In November 2008, California voters approved Proposition 1A, a $9.95 billion bond measure to fund part of the state’s share of the proposed high-speed rail line from Anaheim to San Francisco. The bond was approved by a narrow margin of 52.7 percent...

CAGW Staff January 30, 2012
The WasteWatcher

Federal Contractor Pensions Protected at Taxpayers’ Expense

Taxpayers may be surprised to learn that they are currently bankrolling the retirement plans of profitable, private sector companies. With a record-breaking national debt, a sinking economy, and millions of Americans facing losses to their own...

CAGW Staff January 30, 2012
The WasteWatcher

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...

CAGW Staff January 12, 2012
The WasteWatcher

Sequestration Option Discussed After Super Committee Fails to Deliver

Since the Budget Control Act (BCA) was signed into law on August 2, 2011, all eyes had been on the Joint Select Committee on Deficit Reduction. With a looming $15 trillion national debt, weak economy and failing financial markets, this “Super...

CAGW Staff December 21, 2011
The WasteWatcher

On Fannie, Freddie, and the FHA, Two Steps Back

Taxpayers are both in awe of and enraged by the schizophrenic behavior of government officials and lawmakers when it comes to taking action on the nation’s thorniest public policy conundrums. Over and over, taxpayers hear the rhetoric emanating from...

Leslie Paige December 21, 2011
The WasteWatcher

Another Failing Federal Loan Program

The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Rural Electrification Administration (REA) program began during the New Deal Era of the 1930’s. The program’s primary goal was to promote rural electrification to farmers and residents in out of the way...

Deborah Collier December 21, 2011
The WasteWatcher

GAO Skewers United Launch Alliance Contract Plans

The Evolved Expendable Launch Vehicle (EELV) program began in 1995 and was designed to allow the Department of Defense (DOD) access to space with the intention of reducing the cost of satellite launches by at least 25 percent while striving for up...

CAGW Staff December 21, 2011

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