-
Earmark Season: Republicans up the ante on Democratic for-profit ban
By Bill Allison Mar 11, 2010 5:03 p.m.Following the announcement by Rep. David Obey, chairman of the House Appropriations Committee, and Rep. Norm Dicks, incoming chairman of the House Defense Appropriations Subcommittee, that members can no longer earmark funs to for profit companies, the House Republicans have adopted a one-year moratorium on earmark requests.
Read all about it -
How a grant grew from $35,000 to almost a million
By Bill Allison Mar 11, 2010 11:27 a.m.In 2004, the National Park Service gave the George Wright Society, a Hancock, Mich.-based nonprofit that promotes preservation and understanding of natural and cultural resources, a $35,000 cooperative agreement (a kind of grant in which the recipient will work closely with a federal agency to accomplish a public purpose) to host a pair of conferences. Over five years, that initial cooperative agreement grew in value to more than $800,000, and came to include such projects as coordinating the complex travel arrangements for archaeologists to visit Afghanistan (something the nonprofit has yet to do).
Read all about it -
OGD: Freeing health care data
By Nancy Watzman Mar 10, 2010 9:11 a.m.We're still tracking government's performance under the Open Government Directive, and we're also asking for specific information to be released. Here's the data we'd like to see on food and drug safety, which we posted over at the Department of Health and Human Services "open" Web page. The agency set up this commenting system as part of President Barack Obama's open government directive. Please take a moment to visit and vote for our suggestions. (Unfortunately the HHS comment format made our paragraphs run together and slightly truncated our comment. This is fixed below.) We'll be posting more of these at other /open pages in the coming days and weeks.
Read all about it -
Recovery rail funds could benefit freight industry
By Ryan Sibley Mar 10, 2010 8:59 a.m.USA Today reported yesterday that an inspector general investigation and congressional critics say that the Federal Railroad Administration, which awarded $8 billion in American Recovery and Reinvestment Act funds for high speed rail projects around the country, lacked the technical expertise to choose projects. Rep. John Mica, R-Fla., the ranking member of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, described the process as “amateur hour,” according to the paper, and complained that too much money is dedicated to increasing speeds on existing Amtrak routes. The Sunlight Reporting Group ran a piece highlighting that a few weeks ago.
Read all about it -
U.S. Sugar's Sweet Deal
By Nancy Watzman Mar 8, 2010 3:56 p.m.In the everything that's old is new again department, today The New York Times reports that Florida's ailing U.S. Sugar Corporation stands to profit mightily from a deal originally meant to preserve the Everglades:
Read all about it -
D.C. lobbyists drive Burr's fundraising
By Nancy Watzman Mar 8, 2010 2:38 p.m.Sen. Richard Burr, R-N.C., formally announced his reelection bid on Feb. 22, 2010, with an open house at his Winston-Salem campaign headquarters, but the first term member has been raising money since he took office. Since January 2009 alone, he and his campaign have sent out at least 38 invitations to fundraisers, according to our Party Time database, the great majority of them in Washington, D.C. The events have helped him raise a total of $6.7 million, $4.3 million of which he still has in the bank.
Read all about it -
Members, staffers on both sides of "Chinese wall" between earmarks, fundraisers?
By Bill Allison Mar 7, 2010 8:57 a.m.If nothing else, Jeffrey Smith's story in the Washington Post proves that Mark Twain's critique of congressional investigations still holds: "One does not blindfold one's self in order to investigate an object." So it is in the matter of PMA Group, the lobbying group that was a top donor to members of the Defense Appropriations Subcommittee who were top earmarkers for PMA Group's clients.
Read all about it -
Farm Subsidies Still Missing from USDAs Data-Rich Website
By Jim Morris Mar 5, 2010 noonFarm subsidies have a way of inciting people. Here, in the words of the Environmental Working Group, is why:
Read all about it -
New Ways and Means head courted by tax lobbyists
By Anupama Narayanswamy Mar 4, 2010 4:48 p.m.The Ways and Means committee skipped the seniority process and appointed Rep. Sander Levin to the helm of the powerful tax committee, and lawyers and lobbyists that specializes in tax issues will have an early opportunity to congratulate him.
Read all about it -
Rangel bows out at Ways and Means
By Bill Allison Mar 3, 2010 4:01 p.m.The Hill reports that House Speaker Nancy Pelosi has tapped California Democrat Rep. Pete Stark to fill in for Charles Rangel, who's taken a leave of absence from the chair of the House Ways and Means Committee after being admonished by the Select Committee on Ethics. Unlike Rangel, who was a favorite of banks, brokerages and insurers, Stark's most generous supporters are tax exempt organizations.
Read all about it -
Barney Frank deals a bill, internet poker lobby antes up
By Bill Allison Mar 2, 2010 10:13 p.m.Via the Real Time Ticker, the Federal Election Commission has posted the latest form 3-L -- or bundling report -- from Rep. Barney Frank's campaign. The disclosure lists the names of lobbyists who have raised at least $16,000 from donors to give to Frank's campaign committee. Page two of the latest filing from the Frank campaign shows that John Pappas, a lobbyist for the Poker Players Alliance, bundled $51,200 for the chairman of the House Financial Services Committee, who also happens to be the sponsor of the Internet Gambling Regulation, Consumer Protection and Enforcement Act. The Poker Players Alliance supports that bill.
Read all about it -
In Indiana, stimulus grows rainy day fund
By Bill Allison Mar 2, 2010 5:45 p.m.The North West Indiana County Times recently pointed out something fascinating about how Indiana was using funds granted to it under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act:
Read all about it -
How are House members spending taxpayer money?
By Anupama Narayanswamy Mar 2, 2010 4:56 p.m.The House of Representatives released its tabulations of members' office expenses--including personnel costs, travel, district office expenses and vehicle expenses--last Friday, and the Sunlight Foundation turned the 3,000 page PDF into a searchable database, enabling reporters and curious constituents to do easy aggregation.
Read all about it -
Pentagon Weapons Test Report Harder to Get Since 9/11
By Nick Schwellenbach Feb 26, 2010 1:52 p.m.Until Sept. 11, 2001, a little-known but indispensible annual report by the Defense Department gave the public a window into whether the tens of billions of taxpayer dollars spent each year led to weapons that work. Then, the reports by the Pentagons director of Operational Test and Evaluation were pulled from the website.
Read all about it
Search the Blog
Real Time Ticker
Recent Posts
- Thanks to lobbying, farm bill yields crop insurance funds
- Surge of immigration lobbyists fueled by push for high-skilled foreign workers
- Health group airs ad backing Obama EPA nominee
- Apple lobbies on taxes more than any other subject
- Reporter's notebook: How we came up with that campaign finance maze
Reporting we're watching
- OpenSecrets: Millionaire Freshmen Make Congress Even Wealthier
- OpenSecrets: Just Who Was Rand Paul's Apology For?
- OpenSecrets: Shape-Shifting by Liberal Dark Money Groups Seems Meant to Confuse
- Sunlight Foundation: OpenGov Voices: Network, collaborate, and innovate at CityCamp NC
- Sunlight Foundation: 2Day in #OpenGov 5/22/2013
