In March 2014, Citizens Against Government Waste (CAGW) released “Telecom Unplugged: Unleashing a New Digital Era,” which highlighted topical telecommunications issues. Now that summer is in full swing, politicians and bureaucrats are feverously pitching to finish their work on telecommunications legislation and regulations before the glorious August recess, when only the tourists trudge their way down the scorching hot Mall.
Definitely Not a Free Lunch
In fiscal year (FY) 2012, 30.7 million out of 50 million, or 61 percent, of U.S. students enrolled in public and non-profit private schools participated in both the National School Lunch Program (NSLP) and the School Breakfast Program (SBP), federally assisted meal programs funded by the United States Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Food and Nutrition Service. Unfortunately, a June 15, 2014 Government Accountability Office (GAO) report found that when it comes to certifying beneficiaries for the NSLP, the federal government’s eyes are certainly bigger than its stomach.
Roosevelt’s Baby Still Making Taxpayers Cry
On February 2, 1934, President Franklin Roosevelt issued Executive Order 6581 to create the Export-Import (Ex-Im) Bank in order to facilitate “exports and imports and the exchange of goods between the U.S. and the world.”
The Consumer Financial Protection Racket – er, Bureau
The Cambridge Dictionary defines a “protection racket” as “a situation in which a criminal group demands money from a store owner, company, etc. in exchange for agreeing not to harm them: run a protection racket [:] These thugs ran a vast protection racket with which all property-owners had to co-operate if they hoped to survive.”
USPS Inspector General’s Foray Earns Ire of Top House Fiscal Watch Dog
“Mr. Williams, I was madder than hell at your proposal. I think the idea that you’re trying to be the chief innovation officer and promoting banking within the [Inspector General’s] office is reprehensible. I am shocked than an Inspector General would go from the waste, fraud, and abuse and inefficiency to promoting a specific agenda, and I’m disappointed.”
The Cost of Free
Clay County, Missouri Police Captain Matt Hunter described his department’s new acquisition, a 54,000-pound, 10-foot tall vehicle known as a Mine-Resistant Ambush Protected vehicle (MRAP), as a “$750,000 machine that we got for absolutely nothing…taxpayers didn’t have to pay anything for it.”
Here We Go…AGAIN!
President Obama has told the Congress and the country that he will be using his pen and phone to get his priorities implemented. That has meant bypassing Congress and changing, or ignoring, current law. It is well known that this has occurred several times during the horrendous rollout of the Affordable Care Act (ACA / […]
Is Another Special Exemption from Obamacare on the Way?
Last week on June 18, Inside Health Policy reported that lobbying efforts were underway by organizations that represent Medicaid-dependent providers, such as home care services, establishments that care for the disabled, hospice care facilities, etc., to get a special carve-out from the employer health insurance mandate found in the Affordable Care Act (Obamacare.) Under the […]
City Residents Tell Investment Group No
According to a June 18, 2014 article by Deseret News, residents of Lindon, Utah rejected a proposed partnership with the Australian-based Macquarie Group that would have given Macquarie control of the Lindon fiber optic network for 30 years. Lindon is the first member of the Utah Telecommunications Open Infrastructure Agency (UTOPIA) to decline the Macquarie […]
Inefficiencies in Coin Management Lead to Soaring Costs
A June 2014 report by the Government Accountability Office (GAO) revealed that, from 2008 to 2012, coin management costs associated with the Federal Reserve increased by 69 percent. Additionally, the agency had failed to identify potential measures to save costs. The Federal Reserve Banks of the United States are in charge of meeting the coin […]