Page 313 – Taxpayers Protection Alliance

House Reintroduces Legislation to Reform Patent Litigation

Post author:Taxpayers Protection Alliance
Post published:February 10, 2015
Post category:Congress House Intellectual Property Michi Iljazi Patents Senate Taxpayers Protection Alliance

US Patent & Trademark Office We are only in the second month of the year and 2015 is already shaping up to be a potentially major year on a wide range of issues related to technology. Even though net neutrality, Internet access taxes, and updating the Communications Act have all garnered attention, another issue has remerged, patent litigation reform. Protecting intellectual property is a core government function that will help grow the economy and help taxpayers and consumers.One of the major problems with patents right now and more so patent litigation are the so-called “patent trolls” and how the abuse of these patent trolls has corrupted the legal system with junk lawsuits that harm innovation and prevent real competition and expansion of the free-market that help generate a boost for the economy.

TPA Joins Coalition Urging Congress to Oppose Gas Tax Increase

Post author:Taxpayers Protection Alliance
Post published:February 9, 2015
Post category:Congress Gas Tax Michi Iljazi Spending Taxes Taxpayers Protection Alliance

Congress has always been very good at hitting taxpayers for more revenue just when relief is finally in sight. The latest example of this nasty habit is the seemingly bipartisan urge to raise the gas tax, something that would harm many working families just as they are starting to enjoy lower prices at the pump. Under the guise of paying for the Highway Trust Fund, members of Congress from both sides of the aisle have signaled they are open to raising the 18.4 cent-a-gallon tax on gasoline and the 24.4 cent-a-gallon tax on diesel fuel. This prompted TPA and others to sign a coalition letter led by Americans for Prosperity to urge Congress to oppose any efforts to raise the gas tax. Click 'read more' below to see the full letter

TPA Signs Coalition Letter to Congress Outlining Principles for Intellectual Property

Post author:Taxpayers Protection Alliance
Post published:February 6, 2015
Post category:Congress Copyright Intellectual Property Michi Iljazi Patents Taxpayers Protection Alliance

As technology and telecom continue to play a major role this year in Washington, Congress will have their work cut out for them on a wide range of issues that fall under this heading. Intellectual Property (IP) is one such issue as it continues to be a major factor in helping to drive today’s global economy. Innovation and economic expansion are strengthened as IP is preserved, and the US must continue to work to remain atop IP as shown by a new index produced by the US Chamber of Commerce’s Global IP Center. Keeping that in mind, and understanding that the new Congress will work on IP, Taxpayers Protection Alliance (TPA) signed onto a coalition letter with more than 60 other organizations/individuals outlining for Congress a set of principles on IP as they consider what steps to take legislatively when looking at how to move forward on common sense reforms. Click 'read more' to see the full letter

Congress Giving Terrible Internet Gambling Ban Another Spin

Post author:Taxpayers Protection Alliance
Post published:February 5, 2015
Post category:Casinos Congress Internet Gambling Michi Iljazi Taxpayers Protection Alliance

In 2014, members of Congress attempted to introduce legislation that would effectively ban internet gambling nationwide. The good news was that these attempts failed miserably even with the support of powerful allies in Nevada. The bad news? Well, yesterday the legislation resurfaced on Capitol Hill and it is still as bad an idea as it was in 2014.Internet gambling affects consumers, taxpayers, states’ rights, the economy, and Internet commerce. TPA is concerned that any move to restrict Internet gambling at the federal level would be a detriment to states who may want to allow online gambling. There is also the real possibility that any action taken at the federal level on this issue could lay the groundwork for increased regulatory power by the federal government, specifically regulations targeting the Internet.

TPA Opposes Plans from FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler to Move Forward on Net Neutrality

Post author:David Williams
Post published:February 4, 2015
Post category:Broadband Internet Net Neutrality Regulation Taxpayers Protection Alliance

The Taxpayers Protection Alliance (TPA), a national taxpayer watchdog group representing concerned citizens all across the country, is deeply opposed to plans announced today from Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Chairman Tom Wheeler on new rule making regarding net neutrality and reclassification of the Internet under Title II. Chairman Wheeler's proposals are completely antithetical to the innovative nature that has been a hallmark of the Internet for nearly two decades.

TPA Submits Comments to Postal Regulatory Commission on 2014 Compliance Report

Post author:Taxpayers Protection Alliance
Post published:February 3, 2015
Post category:Comments and Testimony Spending Taxpayers Protection Alliance

The Taxpayers Protection Alliance (TPA) continued our work on looking at how the United States Postal Service (USPS) is mismanaging time and resources, including taxpayer dollars, on services they should not be involved in. Last week, TPA submitted public comments to the Postal Regulatory Commission (PRC) in response to the agencies Annual Compliance Report for the year 2014. The comment stresses the need for “more thorough reporting and transparency with regard to Postal Service product cost attribution,” with the ultimate goal being that the USPS “fulfill its mission to deliver letters.” Click ‘read more’ below to see the full comment

TPA Responds to President Obama's FY2016 Budget Proposal

Post author:Taxpayers Protection Alliance
Post published:February 2, 2015
Post category:Budget Defense Michi Iljazi Spending Taxes Taxpayers Protection Alliance

Today, President Obama released his Fiscal Year (FY) 2016 budget. Unfortunately, this budget will harm taxpayers and do more damage to the country’s national debt. Just like Punxsutawney Phil saw his shadow and predicted 6 more weeks of winter, taxpayers will see many more years of deficit spending with the President’s budget. The bad news is that there are projected spending increases in both discretionary and mandatory accounts. “The FY 2016 budget request from President Obama offers nothing in the way of spending restraint at a time when our debt is $18 trillion and climbing. In fact it does the opposite by adding $3 trillion to the national debt between 2016 and 2020. As working families continue to make hard financial choices that are necessary to everyday Americans, the President is looking to ask those same working families to send more money to Washington and undo the spending limits he and Congress put in place only a few years ago,” said David Williams, President of the Taxpayers Protection Alliance. Click 'read more' below to see the full response from TPA

White House and Republican Congress Agree: Bust the Spending Caps on Pentagon Budget

Post author:David Williams
Post published:February 2, 2015
Post category:Budget Congress Defense Michi Iljazi Taxpayers Protection Alliance

In Washington, there are rare occasions when competing political parties and opposite branches of the federal government share a similar goal and work together to achieve it. Unfortunately, the fiscal year (FY) 2016 Pentagon budget, which breaks the spending caps set by sequestration, might be a time for bi-partisan agreement. The Defense spending caps is set at $499 billion; but President Obama appears to be preparing to send to Congress a Pentagon budget request of $534 billion, which will be coupled with a request of $51 billion for the Overseas Contingency Operations (OCO) account to fund conflicts in the Middle East. That additional $35 billion could present a problem because that increase could mean an automatic trigger in mandatory cuts. The $534 billion request for Pentagon spending is the highest base budget ever submitted. The $534 billion is a 7.9 percent increase over the $495 billion FY15 base budget. When adding in OCO funds, this budget is the largest since 2012.

TPA Signs Coalition Letter Detailing Principles for Congressional Action to Rein in the FCC on Net Neutrality

Post author:Taxpayers Protection Alliance
Post published:January 30, 2015
Post category:Congress Internet Michi Iljazi Net Neutrality Regulation Taxpayers Protection Alliance

The Federal Communication Commission (FCC) is continuing with their push to make new rules for net neutrality, and Taxpayers Protection Alliance (TPA) is watching closely to see what will come from the agency’s February 26th meeting. TPA has called on Congress to act noting that the time for waiting is over because the FCC and the President are poised to move forward. Keeping that mind, TPA signed onto a coalition letter spearheaded by TechFreedom that included Americans for Tax Reform, Americans for Prosperity, Center for Individual Freedom, Competitive Enterprise Institute, Council for Citizens Against Government Waste, Information Technology and Innovation Foundation, Institute for Liberty, Institute for Policy Innovation, International Center for Law & Economics, and Lincoln Labs (as well as a group of individual signers you can see here) that detailed principles for action by Congress that would “prevent a slippery slope towards broader regulation of the Internet.” Click 'read more' below to read the full letter

Larry Hogan, Republican candidate for Maryland governor, speaks with the media, Monday, Nov. 3, 2014, in Baltimore. Maryland voters will choose a successor to Maryland Gov. Martin O'Malley, who is term-limited, Nov. 4. (AP Photo/Patrick Semansky)

2016 Budget from Maryland Governor Hogan First Step in Cleaning Up O'Malley Mess

Post author:Taxpayers Protection Alliance
Post published:January 28, 2015
Post category:Budget Michi Iljazi Spending Taxes Taxpayers Protection Alliance

Maryland Governor Larry Hogan Last week, newly sworn in Gov. Larry Hogan (R-Md.) released his fiscal year 2016 spending plan. Though the budget must be passed ultimately by the Democrat-controlled State legislature, the details of the first budget proposal from Gov. Hogan show that he is making moves towards getting the state’s fiscal situation under control by addressing spending. This is a step forward following eight years of the tax and spend policies of Gov. Martin O’Malley, Gov. O’Malley’s budget grew by more than $10 billion from $28.8 billion in 2007 to $39 billion in 2014. Gov. Hogan’s $39 billion budget for FY2016 puts an emphasis on spending cuts that will help save the state money to make up for the $700 million budget gap left by Gov. O’Malley.