More on Oversight and Government Reform
Rep. Maloney Expresses Concerns to Sec. Rumsfeld About System to Help Overseas Voters
WASHINGTON, DC - Today, Rep. Carolyn Maloney (NY-14) sent a letter to Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld expressing concerns about the Interim Voting Assistance System (IVAS), which has a stated purpose “to provide information on electronic voting options for service members and other U.S. citizens living overseas.” In her letter, Maloney asked a series of questions about the IVAS program (letter to Rumsfeld).
New Report from Congress on Prices at the Pump: New York Families Pay an Estimated $880 More Than 5 Years Ago
NEW YORK, NY – Sky high gas prices in the Big Apple are hitting New York families in the wallet to the tune of $880 a year more than what they paid in 2001, according to a new Congressional staff report (click here for report). Rep. Carolyn Maloney (D-Manhattan and Queens) commissioned the report by the Democratic staff of the House Committee on Government Reform, which analyzed gas prices in the New York City metropolitan region and in New York State as a whole over the past five years since President Bush unveiled the Administration’s new energy plan in May 2001. More than 95% of the recommendations in the energy plan have been implemented.
Working to Save Essential Poverty and Income Survey on the Bush Administration Chopping Block
WASHINGTON, DC – Top Democrats on the Joint Economic Committee are fighting to save a governmental survey that is critical for evaluating American living standards and the effectiveness of government programs. Rep. Carolyn Maloney (NY-14), JEC’s senior House Democrat, and Sen. Jack Reed (D-RI), JEC’s Ranking Member, today introduced legislation in the House and Senate that would keep the Census Bureau’s Survey of Income and Program Participation intact and create a multi-agency commission to review proposed changes to or elimination of the survey (Text of the legislation).
JEC Dems Warn Administration that Loss of Key Census Survey Will Hurt Lawmakers’ Ability to Assess Programs and Spending
WASHINGTON, DC – The Bush administration is being asked to answer questions about the elimination of a widely-used Census survey and its potentially broad impact on lawmakers’ ability to evaluate government programs and spending. Joint Economic Committee ranking member Sen. Jack Reed (D-RI) and senior House Democrat Rep. Carolyn Maloney (D-NY), along with 10 colleagues in the House and Senate, have directed their questions about the Census Bureau’s endangered Survey on Income and Program Participation (SIPP) to Office of Management and Budget Director Rob Portman (letter on SIPP).
Shays, Maloney, 9/11 Families Push for More Action on 9/11 Commission Recommendations
WASHINGTON, DC – Nearly two years after the 9/11 Commission issued its final report, Representatives Christopher Shays (R-CT) and Carolyn Maloney (D-NY), Co-Chairs of the 9/11 Commission Caucus, again called for Congressional action on the 9/11 Commission’s recommendations which still have not been fully implemented. They were joined by family members who lost loved ones on September 11th, including Carol Ashley, mother of Janice; Rosemary Dillard, wife of Eddie; Mary Fetchet, mother of Brad & co-founder of Voices of September 11th; Don Goodrich, father of Peter; and Abraham Scott, husband of Janice Marie.
GAO Report Examines Process By Which Census Bureau Releases Data
WASHINGTON, DC – The Government Accountability Office has released a report examining the manner in which the Census Bureau releases data, which found that the Bureau departed from the traditional date and location when releasing recent poverty data and that the Bureau lacks standardized dissemination policies (GAO report).
Census Bureau Calls Survey on Income and Government Programs “Invaluable” – So Why Is It on The Bush Administration Chopping Block?
WASHINGTON, DC – A Census Bureau news release last week touted a survey that the Bush administration has targeted for elimination as “invaluable” (click here for release – text below). The Survey for Income and Program Participation has tracked income, employment and government programs for more than 20 years, but the Bush FY07 budget would terminate the survey.
Elimination of Key Census Survey Would Prevent Important Studies on Poverty and the Uninsured
WASHINGTON, DC – The elimination of a key Census Bureau survey, as proposed by the Bush administration, would prevent the production of important studies on income and health insurance. One such eye-opening study was released Wednesday by The Commonwealth Fund, revealing that young adults are the fastest growing uninsured population in the United States. Utilizing existing data, the researchers were able to analyze the age of the uninsured, as well as the length of time they go without health insurance.
States and Tribes to Get More Funds to Track Royalties Owed on Oil and Gas Extracted From Their Lands
WASHINGTON, DC – At a time when oil and gas values are up and oil and gas companies are making record profits, Congress took action today that will help states and tribes ensure that royalties owed on resources taken from their lands are paid in full. Reps. Carolyn Maloney (D-NY) and George Miller (D-CA) successfully amended the Interior Appropriations bill (H.R. 5386) to increase by $1 million the funds available for states and tribes to conduct auditing. Data has shown that for every $1 dollar spent auditing the royalties program, $5 in money that is owed to governments or tribes is returned to them.
Renewing the Push for Paid Family Leave for Federal Workers
WASHINGTON, DC - Bipartisan legislation reintroduced in Congress would help federal workers care for new additions to their families. Reps. Carolyn Maloney (D-NY); Tom Davis (R-VA), chairman of the House Government Reform Committee; and Steny Hoyer (D-MD), House Minority Whip, have sponsored the Federal Employees Paid Parental Leave Act (H.R. 5148), which would give civil servants six weeks of paid leave for the birth of a child or an adoption. Currently, federal workers have to use annual leave and sick leave to care for their newborns.
