On August 29, 2013, The Washington Post published an article about Internal Revenue Service (IRS) Chief Information Officer (CIO) Terence Milholland and his desire to make the agency’s information technology (IT) program “world-class.” The article cited the uphill battle Milholland faces in merging disparate IT systems, retraining programmers in newer technologies, and dealing with entrenched […]
Just Words?
Yesterday, The Daily Caller highlighted a continuing issue I have with the Obama Administration and that is using words that attempt to hide or do not describe what the government is talking about. For example, the President constantly uses the word “revenue” instead of taxes and “investment” instead of more government spending. But that is not the […]
Another Delay?
The Obama Administration is changing the requirements again for the Affordable Care Act, better known as Obamacare. Reuters reports the administration has decided to delay signing the final agreements with insurance plans that are going to be sold in the healthcare insurance exchanges. The exchanges are supposed to be up and running on Oct. 1. According […]
Yucca – Law = Expensive Black Hole
Yesterday, Senator Ben Cardin (D-MD), a member of the Senate Finance Committee, visited and took questions regarding the sequester from the leadership at the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) located in Rockville, MD. The agency is charged with regulating civilian use of nuclear power and according to the Senator’s press release, the NRC had to take a […]
Welcome Spendopedia
There’s a new sheriff in town called Spendopedia and its going after the big, wasteful spenders. The web-based site was launched this month and is a project of the Public Notice Research and Education Fund. Its home page says it is “a Wikipedia-like resource for questionable spending by the United States federal government to which […]
Will Earmarks Make a Comeback?
In today’s (August 26, 2013 ) National Journal, there is a column by Fawn Johnson entitled, “Does the Earmark Moratorium Hurt Congress?” (The National Journal is a subscription service and I think you might still see it, but if not I describe it anyway.) The article starts with a disclaimer, “the earmark moratorium in the House is […]
Back in Black
Senator Coburn (R-OK) and his staff have been leaders in fighting a bloated federal government, rife with waste, fraud, and abuse. His office has produced several reports on where spending could be cut in the federal government and would certainly help return its role back to what it was envisioned to be – small with […]
The New Normal?
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 […]