Government Matters Articles

Freeze The Tax Cuts And Just Say No To More Tax Cuts

It's time to seriously work towards freezing the tax cuts that are scheduled to be phased in 2004, and oppose all new tax cuts. This is one of the most important issues facing us as a nation, and will affect our lives for decades to come.

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Data Quality Guidelines Continue to Churn

Even though the deadline of May 1st for agencies to produce drafts of their Data Quality Guidelines has long past, several agencies and departments have only recently completed and published their drafts for public comment. Among the recent drafters were several major departments such as the Department of Energy, Department of the Interior, Bureau of Land Management, Fish & Wildlife Service, Office of Surface Mining, National Parks Service, and U.S. Geological Survey.

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Federal Judge Holds Parts of Stealth PAC Law Unconstitutional

The “Stealth PAC” law of 2000 requires political action committees (PACs) exempt under Section 527 of the federal tax code to register with the IRS and report their contributions and expenditures. (Contributions to 527 organizations are not tax dedcutible.) The National Federation of Republican Assemblies filed a constitutional challenge to the law in federal court in Alabama soon after it passed. On August 27 Judge Richard Vollmer of the U.S. District Court for Southern Alabama upheld part of the law and overturned part as unconstitutional.

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Sensitive but Unclassified

Last week officials from the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) requested a meeting with various public interest groups concerned with public access to government information. The purpose was to discuss OMB’s upcoming efforts to define the category of "sensitive but unclassified" for government information. This vague term generated a great deal of confusion and concern among information advocates when addressed in a memo prepared at the request of Andrew Card, White House Chief of Staff.

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OMB Reviewing EPA Report on Children's Health

In an effort well outside the scope of its traditional activities, the Office of Management and Budget is reviewing an Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) report on children’s health before publication -- the first time, to our knowledge, OMB has ever involved itself in the shaping of a scientific study.

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White House to Propose Regulations Implementing Faith-Based Agenda

According to a Washington Post story on August 31, the Bush administration does not plan to wait for Congress to pass the CARE Act before moving forward with proposed changes in regulations aimed at making it easier for faith-based groups to apply for and receive federal funds. The proposed regulations are to be completed by the end of this year. The White House Office on Faith Based and Community Initiatives will also host a series of conferences around the country, beginning in Atlanta on October 10. Details are not yet available.

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FEC Holds Hearings on Broadcast Regulations

Last week the Federal Election Commission (FEC) held public hearings on its proposed regulations implementing the ban on broadcasts that refer to federal candidates within 60 days of an election or 30 days of a primary. The Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act of 2002 creates the new restriction on broadcasts by corporations, including nonprofits, and labor unions, but gives the FEC authority to create exemptions for broadcasts that are not related to elections. The hearing focused on how broad or narrow these exemptions should be.

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No Roses In CBO's Garden -- New CBO Estimates of Increased Deficit, Uncertain Future

The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) has released two analyses of the country’s current budget picture that anticipate a deficit even larger than that predicted in March and confesses to a great deal of uncertainty for the long-term budget forecast.

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Experts Divided on the Digital Divide

For the past few months, a steady stream of articles, studies, and analyses have suggested evidence that digital divide skeptics say underscores their contention that technology access gaps are not a policy problem, while also suggesting that if it were a problem, the problem's really not that bad. Read this NPTalk discussion -- Is there legitimate cause for celebration, or is more evidence suggesting a problem whose actual implications are more difficult to pinpoint than previously thought?

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The Need to Reduce Risks Demonstrated

A recent chemical accident reinforced the importance of Sen. Jon Corzine’s (D-NJ) pending legislation, the Chemical Security Act (S.1602). In Crystal City, MO, a hose used to remove chlorine from freight cars ruptured creating a toxic cloud that sickened dozens. The leak began around 9:30 in the morning on August 14, 2002 and was stopped around noon. Even though light wind and steady rain kept the cloud from spreading beyond the relatively sparsely populated area near the leak, hundreds of people were evacuated and over 50 people were treated for exposure.

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