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September 04, 2007
Headlines - Second Report on Marketing Practices in the Federal Family Education Loan Program
- Closing the Tax Gap
- E-Gov Site Helps Consumers Keep Track of Product Recalls
- New GAO Reports: DOD's Predatory Lending Report, Securing, Stabilizing, and Rebuilding Iraq, U.S. Visitor Program
- DHS OIG Review of FEMA's Recommendation Tracking Process
- DOJ Summaries of New Decisions in FOIA Cases
- Secrecy Report Card 2007: Report Finds Expanded Federal Government Secrecy in 2006
- CBO: The Cyclically Adjusted and Standardized Budget Measures: An Update
- Data Track the Expansion of International and U.S. Organic Farming
- AmLaw's Midlevel Associates' Paycheck Report
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 Second Report on Marketing Practices in the Federal Family Education Loan Program : "Today, Senator Edward M. Kennedy, Chairman of the United States Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee, released a report on the student loan system entitled Second Report on Marketing Practices in the Federal Family Education Loan Program (50 pages, PDF). The report discusses the findings of Chairman Kennedy's investigation of inappropriate marketing practices in the student loan industry." Report Documentation (312 pages, PDF) Closing the Tax Gap House Report 110-207: Financial Services and General Government Appropriations Bill, 2008 - Closing the Tax Gap: "According to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), taxpayers paid about $1.8 trillion in taxes on time in 2001. Research conducted by the IRS has estimated that the 'tax gap', or the difference between total Federal taxes owed and the tax collections received, was $345 billion for tax year 2001. Once IRS collection and enforcement actions are taken into account, the net tax gap is estimated to be $290 billion. Others have disputed this figure and argued that the actual figure is higher. In addition to the effect of the tax gap on overall Federal resources, the very existence of the tax gap stands contrary to IRS efforts to promote compliance. The Committee agrees with the assessment of the IRS Oversight Board in its most recent annual report that 'the tax gap is an injustice to compliant taxpayers who ultimately are bearing the financial burden of those who do not pay what they owe, whether intentionally or not.' As the IRS National Taxpayer Advocate noted in her annual report this year, the existence of the tax gap effectively amounts to a per-taxpayer 'surtax of more than $2,200 to subsidize noncompliance by others.'" E-Gov Site Helps Consumers Keep Track of Product Recalls USA.gov: "Keeping track of recalls on toys, cars, and other products can be a challenge, but there are several government resources available to help you. Visit Recalls.gov to find the latest recalls and to search for past recalls. You'll find information from the following sources: Consumer Product Safety Commission – Consumer Products Food and Drug Administration – Food, Medicine, and Cosmetics Department of Agriculture – Meat and Poultry National Highway Traffic Safety Administration – Vehicles and Car Seats Environmental Protection Agency – Pesticides U.S. Coast Guard – Boats New GAO Reports: DOD's Predatory Lending Report, Securing, Stabilizing, and Rebuilding Iraq, U.S. Visitor Program Military Personnel: DOD's Predatory Lending Report Addressed Mandated Issues, but Support Is Limited for Some Findings and Recommendations, GAO-07-1148R, August 31, 2007,(PDF, 39 pages) Securing, Stabilizing, and Rebuilding Iraq: Iraqi Government Has Not Met Most Legislative, Security, and Economic Benchmarks, GAO-07-1220T, September 04, 2007 (PDF, 15 pages) Securing, Stabilizing, and Rebuilding Iraq: Iraqi Government Has Not Met Most Legislative, Security, and Economic Benchmarks, GAO-07-1195, September 04, 2007 (PDF, 92 pages): "Our analysis of the 18 legislative, security and economic benchmarks shows that as of August 30, 2007, the Iraqi government met 3, partially met 4, and did not meet 11 of its 18 benchmarks. Overall, key legislation has not been passed, violence remains high, and it is unclear whether the Iraqi government will spend $10 billion in reconstruction funds. These results do not diminish the courageous efforts of coalition forces." Homeland Security: U.S. Visitor and Immigrant Status Program's Long-standing Lack of Strategic Direction and Management Controls Needs to Be Addressed, GAO-07-1065, August 31, 2007 (PDF, 163 pages) DOJ Summaries of New Decisions in FOIA Cases New FOIA Post Feature -- Summaries of New Decisions in FOIA Cases, (posted 9/4/2007): "Each year the federal courts issue hundreds of decisions in FOIA cases, addressing all aspects of the law. These decisions shape the way the law is interpreted and applied by the many attorneys and access professionals across the government who handle FOIA requests, administrative appeals, and litigation. To aid those professionals, and to facilitate greater understanding of the FOIA overall, OIP [Office of Informationn and Privacy] will begin publishing summaries of FOIA decisions on a regular basis." Secrecy Report Card 2007: Report Finds Expanded Federal Government Secrecy in 2006 Press release: "Government secrecy saw further expansion last year despite growing public concern, according to a report released today by a coalition of open government advocates. The Secrecy Report Card 2007, produced annually by OpenTheGovernment.org in order to identify trends in public access to information, found a troubling lack of transparency in military procurement, assertions of executive privilege, and expansion of "sensitive" categories of information, among other areas. In 2006, the public's use of the Freedom of Information Act continued to rise. Agency backlogs are significant; the oldest FOIA request in the federal government has now been pending for more than 20 years." CBO: The Cyclically Adjusted and Standardized Budget Measures: An Update The Cyclically Adjusted and Standardized Budget Measures: An Update, August 2007, PDF and Data Data Track the Expansion of International and U.S. Organic Farming Economic Research Service: "The consumption of organic food and beverages is concentrated in Europe and the United States, but the production of certified organic products is scattered worldwide. U.S. production and domestic consumption of organic products continues to increase. Organic farming systems rely on ecologically based practices, such as cultural and biological pest management, and virtually exclude the use of synthetic chemicals in crop production and prohibit the use of antibiotics and hormones in livestock production. The international statistics on organic production are compiled by the Research Institute of Organic Agriculture (FiBL), based in Germany. ERS has collected data from U.S.-based organic certification groups since 1997 to calculate the extent of certified U.S. organic farmland acreage and livestock. In 2002, USDA made organic certification mandatory and has accredited 55 domestic and 41 foreign groups to certify farmers and handlers to U.S. organic standards." Related government documents: 2007 Farm Income Forecast: "Net farm income is forecast to be $87.1 billion, up $28.1 billion from 2006 and $29.7 billion above its 10-year average of $57.4 billion. The forecast for 2007 is on par with the record-setting $85.9 billion (established in 2004) for net farm income." Latest U.S. Agricultural Trade Data AmLaw's Midlevel Associates' Paycheck Report The Paycheck Report - Midlevel associates gave us their salary information. "Here's how Am Law 200 firms stack up in several key markets," by David Brown, The American Lawyer, September 1, 2007. firm-by-firm breakdown
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