The Tax Policy Center has recently posted tables displaying the impact of the estate tax. The analysis shows just how few people would benefit from a repeal of the estate tax:


Bush Tax Shifts (04/19/2004)
Two recent analyses show that the so-called "Bush tax cuts" are as much about shifting the burden away from wealthy Americans as they are about lower taxes for all.

Understanding the AMT (Alternative Minimum Tax) (04/19/2004)
The cost of "fixing" the Alternative Minimum Tax (AMT) is often mentioned as one of the "hidden" tax expenditures that must be addressed.

Moving Towards A Long-Term Proactive Tax and Budget Initiative (04/19/2004)
As a community, nonprofit service providers, issue advocates, and policy wonks alike spend most of their time fighting against "bad" policies like program cuts or tax giveaways to the wealthy. Rather than remaining on the defensive, the sector should begin laying the groundwork for a positive vision of what it considers to be sound tax and budget policy.

Where Do Your Tax Dollars Go? (04/19/2004)
Learn how the federal government spends your income tax dollars, how the tax dollars of the average household are spent in your state (and selected cities and counties), and how your taxes might be spent differently (with trade-offs and the like) by reading the National Priorities Project’s tax day release "Where do your tax dollars go?"

9/11 Tops Ten Most Wanted Documents Report by New Anti-Secrecy Coalition (04/19/2004)
The federal government too often uses terrorism and national security as an excuse to keep unnecessary secrets. There is a great need for more information from government to make our families and communities safer, and this need has been clearly articulated in the results of a survey released last week by OpenTheGovernment.org, a new coalition aimed at fighting secrecy and strengthening democracy.

OMB's Peer Review Proposal Improved But Still Flawed (04/19/2004)
After receiving strong opposition for its peer review proposal from scientists, environmentalists, and public interest groups, the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) released a massively revised version of the guidance and is seeking public comment on the new version. While many of the changes are significant improvements over OMB's initial policy, the new proposal fails to address some of the most fundamental complaints.

FEC Holds Hearings on Proposed Rule After Receiving Record Number of Comments (04/19/2004)
After two days of public hearings with testimony from thirty witnesses and over 200,000 public comments received, the Federal Election Commission (FEC) was no closer to resolving the complicated issue of re-defining the reach of its regulation than it was when it published its proposed rule in March. The FEC is scheduled to make a final decision on the proposed rules in mid-May; however, some Commissioners have publicly commented that they may take additional time to consider the volume of comments they received before taking any further action. A group of nonprofits, including OMB Watch, held a Congressional briefing on the issue the day before the hearings began.

Open Debates Calls for the Revocation of the Commission on Presidential Debates? Tax-Exempt Status (04/19/2004)
Open Debates, a coalition of reform groups, filed a complaint at the IRS last week asking that it revoke the tax-exempt status of the 501(c)(3) organization in charge of general election presidential debates.

Administration Calls Cost-Benefit Analysis 'Unreliable' (04/19/2004)
The Bush administration altered a study of the economics of saving a threatened species by deleting 55 pages on the benefits of saving the species and leaving only discussion about the costs to industry.

UPDATE: Overtime Cutback Imminent (04/19/2004)
The Bush administration's reduction of overtime rights may be finalized as soon as this Tuesday, sources on the Hill report.



White House Changes Experts' Report on Health Effects of Mercury (04/19/2004)
The White House and the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) made changes to a report from the National Academy of Sciences on the toxicology of mercury, a powerful neurotoxin that is especially dangerous to pregnant women and young children.