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Daily Archives: April 9, 2009

New Agency Data Show IRS Downgraded Large Financial Services Audits

“This is the second in a two-part series of TRAC reports based on IRS information obtained under the FOIA, including a series of court orders requiring the release of hundreds of thousands of pages of internal IRS reports. In the previous report, TRAC documented how in FY 2008 the IRS only allocated 15% of its available revenue agents to the special group within the organization which had the lead authority for examining large and mid-size financial services businesses. This occurred even though these auditors consistently uncovered higher levels of tax underreporing in that area than was noted in other groups…But completely new data — only provided TRAC late on Friday, April 3 — show in concrete terms how the IRS’s disproportionate staffing decisions affected the agency’s actual audit rates for the financial services corporations. Last year, looking at the largest corporations with assets of $250 million or more, nearly two out of every three returns (64%) filed by large corporations outside of the financial services sector were audited by the IRS. In contrast, for the more than 10,000 of large financial services companies, only 15% of them were audited in FY 2008…”

  • Related postings on financial system
  • Science: Financial Crisis Reshaping the Life Sciences Industry

    Science: Financial Crisis Reshaping the Life Sciences Industry, By Clifford S. Mintz, April 10, 2009 “The financial crisis now gripping the world has caused many companies in the financial services, retail, and manufacturing sectors to lay off millions of employees. Every month, thousands more lose their jobs, many of them professionals and knowledge workers. Although… Continue Reading

    President Obama's Fiscal Year 2009 Supplemental Appropriations Request

    “President Obama today submitted to the Congress a Fiscal Year (FY) 2009 supplemental appropriations request totaling $83.4 billion to fund ongoing military, diplomatic, and intelligence operations. An overwhelming amount of this money — nearly 95 percent — is to move forward with the President’s agenda of ending the war in Iraq responsibly and his new… Continue Reading

    Interior & FERC Sign Agreement to Spur Renewable Energy on the U.S. Outer Continental Shelf

    News release: “Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar and Federal Energy Regulatory Commission Chairman Jon Wellinghoff today signed an agreement that clarifies their agencies’ jurisdictional responsibilities for leasing and licensing renewable energy projects on the U.S. Outer Continental Shelf. The Memorandum of Understanding clears the way for developing wind, solar, wave, tidal and ocean current… Continue Reading

    CEA Notes on Refinancing Activity and Mortgage Rates

    Council of Economic Advisors (CEA) Notes on Refinancing Activity and Mortgage Rates: “The Administration’s homeownership plan, along with actions taken by the Federal Reserve, has had a notable impact on mortgage rates and refinancing activity. This fact sheet summarizes mortgage rate and refinancing activity since the plan was announced on February 18.” Related postings on… Continue Reading

    New GAO Reports: Military Buildup on Guam, NASA's National Aviation Operations Monitoring Service

    High-Level Leadership Needed to Help Guam Address Challenges Caused by DOD-Related Growth, GAO-09-500R, April 09, 2009: “In an effort to improve the U.S. military’s flexibility to address conventional and terrorist threats worldwide, the Department of Defense (DOD) plans to relocate more than 8,000 Marines and an estimated 9,000 dependents from Okinawa, Japan, to Guam as… Continue Reading

    Airline On-Time Performance Improves In February 2009

    News release: “The nation’s largest airlines had a higher rate of on-time flights this past February than in either February of last year or in January 2009, according to the Air Travel Consumer Report released today by the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT). According to information filed with the Bureau of Transportation Statistics (BTS), a… Continue Reading

    Homicide in New York City is indeed down 23 percent so far in 2009, and crime overall is down 13 percent

    Peter R. Orszag, Director, OMB: “The economic downturn imposes significant costs on families. But does it also increase crime? Mayor Bloomberg recently mentioned to me that crime in New York City has declined despite the ongoing recession – which seemed surprising to me, so I looked into it a bit more. Homicide in New York… Continue Reading

    DOD OIG Audit – Use of Global War on Terror Supplemental Funding

    D-2009-073 DoD Components’ Use of Global War on Terror Supplemental Funding Provided for Procurement and Research, Development, Test, and Evaluation, April 8, 2009 (Project No. D2006-D000AE-0241.001) “What We Did: We reviewed 130 sample dollar points associated with Global War on Terror supplemental and bridge funds provided to the Army, Navy, Marine Corps, Defense-wide agencies, National… Continue Reading

    New Report Recommends Nuclear Policy on the Path Toward Nuclear Disarmament

    “The Federation of American Scientists (FAS) and the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) released a report calling for fundamental changes to U.S. nuclear war planning, a vital prerequisite if smaller nuclear arsenals are to be achieved. From Counterforce to Minimal Deterrence — A New Nuclear Policy on the Path Toward Eliminating Nuclear Weapons calls to… Continue Reading