Read more about the article Will President Obama Bypass Congress & Raise Wireless Taxes with ConnectEd?

Will President Obama Bypass Congress & Raise Wireless Taxes with ConnectEd?

The hot summer in DC is coming to a close, but the action in Congress will soon heat up as lawmakers will return in less than a month and with issues ranging from the budget, to Obamacare there’s plenty on the agenda. The President, in a pattern we have seen again and again, has decided to attempt to bypass Capitol Hill again as he seeks a new goal of providing high-speed Internet for nearly all schools across the country over the next five years through his ConnectEd program. According to The Washington Post, this is “an ambitious plan to expand high-speed Internet access in schools that would allow students to use digital notebooks and teachers to customize lessons like never before.” The plan is ambitious and down right sneaky because President Obama wants to circumvent congressional approval for the new tax and pass the tax directly through the Federal Communication Commission (FCC). The cost of this program is estimated at upwards of $6 billion dollars and the mechanism used to pay for it: raising fees of mobile phone users. The FCC is supposed to be an ‘independent’ agency, but is stacked with Obama appointees including incoming Chairman Tom Wheeler. Wireless users already pay an average of 17 percent in taxes for their wireless (see study here).

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Read more about the article Social Distortion: President Obama Looks to ‘Social Cost of Carbon’ to Tap Into Taxpayers’ Wallets

Social Distortion: President Obama Looks to ‘Social Cost of Carbon’ to Tap Into Taxpayers’ Wallets

EPA building (Washington, D.C.) One of the key hallmarks of the Obama Administration is their perpetual use of the regulatory process as a means to accomplish goals that cannot be done within the scope of the normal way of passing legislation through Congress. A key element is the direction and power the President gives to his executive branch agencies to carry out these harmful regulatory ‘recommendations’. The latest example is the so-called ‘social cost of carbon’ being used by the Obama Administration as a means to yet again impose more costs on taxpayers and consumers. According to Reason, the social cost of carbon refers to “the economic and ecological damage caused each time we add a ton of carbon dioxide to the atmosphere by burning fossil fuels.” The hitch is that is the figures were put together in 2010 by the White House Interagency Working Group using questionable computer models and outdated information with which projections were being based upon to reach a cost assessment. The original estimation by the group and agreed upon by the Administration was recently revised upwards setting off a chain reaction that has put this issue at the forefront in Congress as many members view this as just another way to burden businesses, consumers, and taxpayers with needless and counterproductive regulations.

Continue ReadingSocial Distortion: President Obama Looks to ‘Social Cost of Carbon’ to Tap Into Taxpayers’ Wallets
Read more about the article RECESS WATCH: Farm Bill

RECESS WATCH: Farm Bill

Last week, the Taxpayers Protection Alliance began a series called “Recess Watch,” focused specifically on issues and legislation that will be waiting to be dealt with once Congress returns in September. The first edition (last week, read here) focused on the train wreck that is Obamacare and the efforts by TPA to delay the implementation of the health care law. This week, the issue at hand is something else that TPA was and still is heavily focused on, the Farm Bill. The Farm Bill is still unfinished, and to date the work that has been done collectively by both chambers has been nothing short of an embarrassment as well as an insult to taxpayers from every state and every district in America. Heading into this year there was a real need and legitimate opportunity for common sense steps aimed at reforming agriculture policy that could save taxpayers and help pay down the debt. This Congress had a wide-open shot to enact meaningful reforms with a number of steps can to create a more accountable, responsive, and cost-effective approach with a new Farm Bill. As TPA wrote earlier this year, “despite the 2012 drought being one of the most severe in history, the agriculture industry “suffered” with near-record profits. Given today’s extraordinarily high commodity prices and farm profits and our monumental fiscal crisis, agriculture subsidies should be reduced by at least $100 billion over the next decade.“ TPA expanded its efforts on the Farm Bill by joining in a coalition to push for real reform. TPA also identified specific areas where taxpayer money was being wasted including the Rural Utilities Service Broadband Loan Program, sugar subsidies, and even duplicate catfish inspections! The sheer amount of money wasted couldn’t have been clearer not only to TPA and other like minded groups that we continually worked with in attempting to gain steam for a reform-minded Farm Bill, but also those outside of Washington after the amount of attention that was focused on exposing the continued unnecessary spending that has been a part of the Farm Bill for decades.

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Read more about the article Tobacco Taxes: Fool’s Gold for Foolish Politicians

Tobacco Taxes: Fool’s Gold for Foolish Politicians

Raising tobacco taxes is popular in the United States and abroad (see TPA’s work on international tax issues here and here). State and national governments think that they can raise revenue and discourage people from smoking with higher tobacco taxes. In reality what happens is that the revenue never materializes and consumers shift their smoking behavior from legal tobacco products to illegal products. As the title suggests, the promised revenue from increased tobacco taxes is nothing more than Fool’s Gold. The Minnesota State News pointed out that “Since 2003 there have been 57 cigarette tax increases across the nation and 68% of them have failed to meet projected revenues. In 2006, New Jersey raised cigarette taxes with the hope of pulling in $30 million in extra revenue each year. Not only did the tax hike fail to bring in extra revenue, but the state actually collected $20 million less in cigarette sales.” Yet, every year numerous states offer legislation to raise tobacco taxes. One of the highest profile states this past year was Minnesota. After a protracted battle Minnesota raised it’s tobacco tax by $1.60 per peck of cigarettes, which brings the total to $2.83 per pack, giving Minnesota the 6th highest tax on cigarettes. A new study by the National Taxpayers Union Foundation (NTUF) shows that Minnesota may have just made a big mistake.

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Read more about the article TPA Sends Coalition Letter to Congress Urging Reform on Outdated Video Marketplace Rules

TPA Sends Coalition Letter to Congress Urging Reform on Outdated Video Marketplace Rules

Retransmission consent and the Cable Act of 1992 may not initially sound like a hot button issue for taxpayers and consumers. But, a closer look shows that it is an issue that affects millions of people when major sports championships like the World Series or Super Bowls are blacked out because of disputes between content providers (CNS, ABC, et.) and video distributors (cable systems, satellite providers). In fact, in 2012 the Federal Communications Commission’s (FCC) retransmission consent rules almost stopped some Bostonians from watching the Super Bowl. According to a January 26, 2012 article in the Union Leader, “Villandry is among 200,000 DirecTV subscribers who may be blacked out from watching Super Bowl XLVI, the result of an ongoing dispute between the satellite provider and Sunbeam Television Corporation, which owns the NBC affiliate in Boston. A conflict over retransmission consent fees has prevented DirecTV customers in Greater Boston and New Hampshire from watching NBC since Jan. 14.” The Taxpayers Protection Alliance has been writing about retransmission consent and the need to update the Cable Act of 1992, and how there is an inherit advantage for broadcasters: leverage in negotiations with monopoly cable providers, granting broadcasters the right to choose between guaranteed carriage or insisting that multichannel video programming distributors (cable and satellite providers) obtain and pay for a station’s consent to retransmit the station to local subscribers. The latest consequence of this leverage is the continued standoff between CBS and Time Warner which has led to blackouts for certain regional customer bases. The conflict not only gives more incentive to revisit current legislation, but it also serves as a reminder of the dangers of other legislation, specifically net neutrality and why it would be harmful for customers and businesses in the industry. That is why today, along with Americans for Job Security, Center for Individual Freedom, Council for Citizens Against Government Waste, and Less Government, the Taxpayers Protection Alliance sent a letter to the House of Representatives urging them to follow the example set by the Next Generation Television Marketplace Act, which was introduced in the 112th Congress by Rep. Steve Scalise (R-La.) and former Sen. Jim DeMint (R-S.C) in order to get government out of the video marketplace, and to allow negotiations to take place in a true free market. Click 'read more' below to see the coalition letter

Continue ReadingTPA Sends Coalition Letter to Congress Urging Reform on Outdated Video Marketplace Rules
Read more about the article LEED Watch: Seal of Green or Greed?

LEED Watch: Seal of Green or Greed?

More than a year ago the Taxpayers Protection Alliance started to investigate the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) green building certification system that is owned by the United States Green Building Council (USGBC) and used by the General Services Administration (GSA) as the exclusive system to certify federal buildings as “green.” TPA is concerned about a private, non-consensus based non-profit organizations like the USGBC being involved in creating non-science standards that are then relied upon to dictate government policies with broad influence over the entire green building marketplace. Besides LEED being a phony green building standard, TPA has been stonewalled by the GSA in our attempt to get information through Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests. The New Republic in their story, "Bank of America’s Toxic Tower," has joined the chorus of interested parties calling into question the credibility and effectiveness of LEED. The story reveals that Al Gore’s Bank of America Tower which was praised as one of the world’s “most environmentally responsible high-rise buildings” actually “produces more greenhouse gases and uses more energy per square foot than any comparably sized office building in Manhattan” according to the report. This includes the Empire State Building – at 80 years old.

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Read more about the article RECESS WATCH: Obamacare

RECESS WATCH: Obamacare

The Obamacare 'nightmare' (courtesy Joint Economic Committee) With much of Washington D.C. on vacation this month, the Taxpayers Protection Alliance (TPA) will remind everybody each week during the congressional recess about the amount of unfinished business politicians still have waiting for them when they return to work. This first edition of the “Recess Watch” focuses on the President’s Health Care law, also known as Obamacare. The President arrives in Martha’s Vineyard on August 10 for an eight-day vacation while Americans everywhere continue to feel the impact of the train wreck implementation of his signature domestic legislation. There has been great concern among many Americans on all sides of the table about the impact the law is having and will have once fully functional. These concerns have manifested themselves into real action taken by stakeholders including insurance companies having tovraise rates due to the increasing costs of Obamacare, employers dropping coverage because they can’t afford it, entities who once supported the bill looking for ways out seeing how it would dramatically change the existing coverage they currently enjoy. Sadly, the group most impacted by the law are average Americans who will be mandated starting in 2014 to carry some form of approved insurance or else face a massive tax (or penalty, or fee depending on who is interpreting the language). As expected, TPA has been vehemently opposed to Obamacare and critical of the way in which the law has been selectively applied, or in some cases not applied, to groups that clearly have garnered favor and special treatment from the Obama Administration throughout his Presidency. Some of the most blatant “waivers” have come in the form of a “blanket exclusion.” A recent exclusion that received a great deal of publicity is the one made with Capitol Hill staff (on both sides) to ensure that their coverage can be retained and won’t face any change as the enrollment for exchanges begins this October. However, the most troubling “selective” treatment came just a few weeks ago on July 4th weekend when it was quietly announced that the employer mandate in Obamacare would be “delayed” giving businesses a temporary reprieve from a law that they long feared would negatively impact their businesses. There are two problems with this and it is important to identify each one in order to clearly understand why this legislation continues to be destructive and loaded with inconsistencies and inefficiencies.

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Read more about the article In On Going Smart Phone Battle, Government Holds Most Important Card

In On Going Smart Phone Battle, Government Holds Most Important Card

The smart phone battle is heating up in preparation for a major marketing blitz from four companies as they see who can outsell each other with their new smart phones. According to uSwitch.com, “In recent weeks we’ve seen endless gossip about the iPhone 5S and budget iPhone 5C. On top of that, there’s also been plenty of speculation around HTC’s One Max phablet, Samsung’s Galaxy Note 3 and the now-official Moto X. The next few weeks should see rumours about all these devices reach fever pitch, culminating in their launch either at Berlin’s IFA trade show, which starts on September 6th, or, in Apple’s case, at a special event later in the month.” What many consumers may not realize is that even if they buy the most advanced (and cool) smartphone, the government, specifically the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), holds the trump card, wireless spectrum, in being able to enjoy the smart phone to its best ability. The Taxpayers Protection Alliance (TPA) has been a key advocate of allowing the release of as much government held spectrum as is possible without endangering any abilities of the federal, state, and local agencies to their job. Currently, it is estimated that the amount of spectrum the government has is nearly 60% of what is available and this is something that has been the subject of Congressional inquiries over the last several months. The sale of this spectrum could bring in $20 billion.

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Read more about the article TPA Joins Coalition Urging Support for Bipartisan Internet Tax Freedom Forever Act

TPA Joins Coalition Urging Support for Bipartisan Internet Tax Freedom Forever Act

The Taxpayers Protection Alliance has been a strong supporter of free-market principles when it comes to the government’s repeated attempts to impose harmful and excessive amounts of Internet taxes that are paid by taxpayers, consumers, and businesses. This week, the bipartisan Internet Tax Freedom Forever Act was introduced in the Senate by Sens. John Thune (R-S.D.) and Ron Wyden (D-Ore.). This legislation would permanently extends the moratorium on Internet access taxes and prohibit multiple and discriminatory taxation of Internet commerce. It has been fifteen years since the Internet Tax Freedom Act (ITFA) was first enacted. The Internet has become one of the primary forces driving commerce in the global economy today. There is no way anyone could have conceived fifteen years ago the immense importance the Internet has on our everyday lives today, and TPA applauds this effort to ensure the spirit for which the ITFA was originally enacted. Last week, TPA signed on to a coalition letter urging support for the Internet Tax Freedom Forever Act in the hopes that consumers can be protected from new taxes that would ultimately be imposed on Internet access by state and local governments searching for new sources of revenue to fund government. Taxpayers and consumers shouldn't be penalized with higher taxes for spending mistakes or lost revenue by state governments. Click "read more" below to read the full letter

Continue ReadingTPA Joins Coalition Urging Support for Bipartisan Internet Tax Freedom Forever Act
Read more about the article Nothing Fair About the “Internet Radio Fairness Act” as TPA Joins Coalition Against House Legislation

Nothing Fair About the “Internet Radio Fairness Act” as TPA Joins Coalition Against House Legislation

There are a number of ways that consumers can listen to music including downloads and streaming "radio" services like Pandora radio or Spotify. And, with any burgeoning technology there comes some government officials who just don't understand what the government should or shouldn't be doing. The Taxpayers Protection Alliance keeps a close eye out whenever the government or government officials talk about “fairness” and with the recent passage in the Senate of the destructive Marketplace Fairness Act, it is no surprise that the Internet Radio Fairness Act is something TPA strongly opposes considering there is nothing “fair" about the proposed law. This legislation “would require the government to grant subsidized, below-market rates to Internet radio companies for their input costs.” This is an approach that clearly ignores free-market principles and allows the government to pick and choose winners and losers in the marketplace. The government being involved in setting rates will prohibit a truly free market from existing when compensating music owners and creators for their labor. The best way forward is to get the government out of rate-setting, rather than perpetuate government involvement by granting below-market rates to favored groups. A broad coalition of free-market thinking groups joined together to send this coalition letter last week expressing opposition and urging members to defeat the Internet Radio Fairness Act. Click "read more" below to read the full letter

Continue ReadingNothing Fair About the “Internet Radio Fairness Act” as TPA Joins Coalition Against House Legislation