WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, the Taxpayers Protection Alliance (TPA) applauded the Department of Justice’s (DOJ) decision to approve the $26 billion merger between Sprint and T-Mobile. The approval, announced by DOJ on July 26, will result in the number-three and number-four players in the wireless market combining their resources and investing billions of additional dollars into 5G deployment.
If a driver is having their license plate number checked after being pulled over, chances are there’s a ticket in their near future. Except... if said driver’s plates are being scanned by McDonald’s to provide meal suggestions based on order history. That’s right: fast food chains are testing technology to make it easy for repeat consumers to get the food they want without having to lift a finger. From license plate recognition to fingerprint and facial scanning, a wide array of “intrusive” technologies have the potential to give people what they want faster than ever. With clear rules setting expectations for these technologies and keeping the government from abusing these tools, various recognition software has a bright future.
Like most Americans, actor Danny Glover has a warm place in his heart for the United States Postal Service. Writing in USA Today on July 11, Glover waxes nostalgic about how the USPS (then the Post Office) helped his father James get a leg-up in the workforce (in the 1950s and 1960s) and strengthened his community on the whole. Unfortunately, he uses this idyllic image as a springboard to rail against USPS reform attempts, excusing the role of Postal leadership in allowing roughly $70 billion in losses since 2007.
In response to consumer demand and heightened awareness of the dangers of smoking traditional combustible cigarettes, innovative reduced risk devices are being offered to consumers. It is important for Congress and the Food and Drug Administration to recognize the importance of these new products such as vaping and new “heat not burn” technology. Millions of people around the world are seeing the benefits of these new harm reduction products, and evidence shows they have the capacity to save 6.6 million American lives over the next decade.1
WASHINGTON, D.C. –Today, the White House and congressional leaders agreed on a “compromise” budget deal that raises spending levels across-the-board and suspends the debt ceiling limit until 2021. The Taxpayers Protection Alliance (TPA) promptly criticized the decision to increase debt across the government, citing the growing burden facing future generations of taxpayers.
In the never-ending struggle to lower drug prices, it’s tempting for policymakers to push the “Easy” button for government price-fixing. The trouble is, simple fixes and top-down solutions would cripple pharmaceutical development and lead to less availability of life-saving drugs for consumers. Austin Frakt, director of the Partnered Evidence-Based Policy Resource Center, said it best in The New York Times on July 15 when he noted that, “Although there appears to be a mandate to lower drug prices, it’s an issue that defies a simple solution.” Policymakers should acknowledge the limits of federal action and resist the urge to set prices that they find “fair.”
TPA's Director of Policy Ross Marchand discusses NASA- an organization most people love, but don't realize the cost overruns and unnecessary spending that plague the agency.
The Taxpayers Protection Alliance (TPA) sent a letter to NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine urging him to keep spending under control at the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) and prioritize low-cost missions that advance and enhance our understanding of the universe.
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has perhaps the widest umbrella of responsibility of any federal agency, ranging from medication testing to e-cigarette (dis)approval to making sure meat is fit for human consumption. Unfortunately, the FDA has gone to the dogs by biting off more than it can chew (and inspect).
Job relocations happen every day. Except in Washington, D.C. Tempers flared when the United States Department of Agriculture, or USDA, announced the impending relocation of more than 500 employees to the Kansas City region, even though the move was set to save taxpayers $20 million per year without hurting the agency's operations.
