What's Happening in Rein in Deficits

Defense Savings Strengthen Our Economic Security

February 6, 2013 Dear Member of Congress, On behalf of the undersigned organizations and...

TCS Moderates Congressional Briefings on Reforming the Renewable Fuel Standard

            February 5, 2013 CONTACTS: Steve Ellis, 202-546-8500 ext...

Big Oil Boasts High Profits; Subsidies Continue

Oil and gas companies continue to boast substantial profits while reaping billions in taxpayer-backed subsidies. As of February 1st, four...

It’s Official: 2012 Drought Cost Taxpayers a Record $14 Billion

This week, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) confirmed what taxpayers have feared for months. After tallying losses from last...

House Science Subcommittee Debates Oil Shale Subsidies

The House Science, Space, and Technology Subcommittee on Energy and Environment held a hearing November 30th to discuss the development...

Fiscal Conservatives: Taxpayers Won’t Harvest Farm Bill Savings

Taxpayers for Common Sense sent a joint letter today urging Congress to reject a five-year farm bill as part of a deficit reduction package....

Use Common Sense to Rappel the Fiscal Cliff

Today, Taxpayers for Common Sense sent a “Common Sense Proposal to Rappel the Fiscal Cliff” to the President and congressional...

Don’t Toy With the Cliff: Support TCS Today

Dear Friends: Congress, the administration, and the punditry at large have been bemoaning the federal government’s fiscal situation....

Drought Fails to Dry Up Farm Profits

Earlier this week, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) announced that even after this year’s drought, farm profits are on pace to...

Congress: Avoid Fiscal Cliff and Go Home

Taxpayers for Common Sense sent a letter today to all members of the 112th Congress outlining what they should do regarding the fiscal cliff....

Remarks by TCS President Ryan Alexander on Fiscal Cliff

Taxpayers for Common Sense held a media conference call earlier today to discuss the outcomes of the election and what the Lame Duck...

President Ms. Ryan Alexander Sliding Past Sequestration Statement

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE October 1, 2012 CONTACTS: Steve Ellis 202-546-8500 x126 or steve@taxpayer.net Taxpayers for Common Sense...

Letter to the Speaker: Don’t Cut the House out of the Farm Bill Debate

Taxpayers for Common Sense joined 13 other organizations representing a diversity of interests in calling on Speaker Boehner to not let taxpayers be subjected to a "bait and switch" on the Farm Bill. Recent comments from House Agriculture Committee leadership clearly outline a strategy to use supplemental drought assistance and a one year extension of the Farm Bill as a “Trojan Horse” to get to conference with the Senate on a five-year Farm Bill....

Fiscal Conservatives: Farm Bill Will Not Solve Drought

Following the old adage "never let a crisis go to waste," special interests in Washington are trying to exploit the current drought...

TCS Statement on Amendment to Freeze Pentagon Budget

The following is a written statement by Ms. Ryan Alexander, president of Taxpayers for Common Sense on the adoption of the Frank-Mulvaney...

Ideologically diverse coalition sends letter to Congress: Stop the NAT GAS Act

Taxpayers for Common Sense Action joined an ideologically diverse coalition in a letter to the Senate urging them to oppose Amendment...

Senate Defeats Attempt to Attach NAT GAS Act to Transportation Bill

Today the Senate defeated an amendment offered by Senators Menendez (D-NJ) and Burr (R-NC) that would have provided billions in lucrative...

Letter to Congress: Vote NO: S. 1813 Support Taxpayer Positions on Amendments

Taxpayers for Common Sense Action sent a letter to members of the Senate urging them support taxpayer positions on amendments to the...

TCS Action Letter to Congress: Budget Gimmicks Hit the Road

Taxpayers for Common Sense Action sent a letter to members of Congress as they consider H.R. 7, The American Energy & Infrastructure Jobs...

Coalition Letter Urges Congress to Reject Linking Drilling Revenues to the Highway Trust Fund, Preserve User-Pays

Taxpayers for Common Sense, Competitive Enterprise Institute, Reason Foundation, National Taxpayers Union, and Natural Resources Defense...

Coalition Demands Deficit Plans be Public

Taxpayers for Common Sense and a coalition of groups sent a letter to the President, Speaker Boehner, and Majority Leader Reid today...

Super Failure: Time for Congress to Do Its Job

For Immediate Release November 21, 2011 Contact: Steve Ellis 202-546-8500 x126 Super Failure: Time for Congress to Do Its...

November 4, 5:43 PM—The Latest on the Deficit Cutting Super Committee

November 4, 2011-5:43 PM This way madness lies. Because the vast majority of the Super Committee’s activities have occurred behind...

TCS Letter In Support of S. 1775, the Public Lands Renewable Energy Development Act

Taxpayers for Common Sense Action sent a letter to several senators regarding S. 1775, the Public Lands Renewable Energy Development Act...

TCS Statement on DOI’s Plans to Lease Public Lands for Solar Development

Statement of Ryan Alexander, President of Taxpayers for Common Sense in response to Department of Interior release of the Supplement to...

Coalition Letter to Support Transparency in Super Committee

A coalition of watchdog groups, along with Taxpayers for Common Sense, sent a letter to the Joint Committee on Deficit Reduction, or the...

TCS Letter to the ‘Super Committee’

Yesterday, Taxpayers for Common Sense sent a letter to all 12 members of the Joint Select Committee on Deficit Reduction, or the "Super...

TCS Statement and Analysis on Debt Ceiling Agreement

A statement from TCS President Ms. Ryan Alexander is below.  Analysis on the debt ceiling legislation agreed to by leadership from both...

TCS on the Debt Ceiling

Taxpayers for Common Sense statement on the debt ceiling and deficit reduction bills.          ...

TCS Testifies on Revenue Sharing from Offshore Drilling

Ms. Ryan Alexander President Taxpayers for Common Sense Written Testimony submitted to the United States House of...

Support Gang of Six Bi-Partisan Plan to Reduce Our Nation’s Deficit

    Support “Gang of Six” Bi-Partisan Plan to Reduce Our Nation’s Deficit   July 20,...

Senate Committee Passes Energy Financing Entity

With little debate, the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee passed by voice vote a bill to create the Clean Energy Deployment...

Ethanol Update: Coalition Applauds Two Important Votes to End Taxpayer-Funded Ethanol Subsidies in t

WASHINGTON, DC – June 16, 2011 – A broad and diverse coalition that includes business associations, taxpayer advocates, hunger and...

Coalition Letter Supporting Ending Wasteful $6 Billion Annual Ethanol Subsidy

Taxpayers for Common Sense joined a broad and diverse coalition supporting Senators Coburn (R-OK), Feinstein (D-CA), and McCain (R-AZ) and their amendments this week which will end the $6 billion annual, taxpayer-funded subsidies for conventional ethanol which go to Big Oil when they blend ethanol with gasoline. ...

TCS Releases Report on Largest Ethanol Subsidy

Today Taxpayers for Common Sense released a comprehensive report on the largest subsidy to corn ethanol, the Volumetric Ethanol Excise...

TCS Action Letter: Tax Reform Must Tackle Oil and Gas Subsidies

TCS Action sent a letter to Senate Finance Chairman Max Baucus (D-MT) to urge crafting of a bill that will trim unnecessary wasteful oil and gas tax breaks. By eliminating wasteful and outdated tax breaks, Congress can bring valuable revenue to the Treasury and begin chipping away at the nation's trillion dollar deficit....

TCS Letter in Opposition to H.R. 1380, the NAT GAS Act

Taxpayers for Common Sense sent a letter to the U.S. House of Representatives calling for Congress to oppose H.R. 1380, the New Alternative Transportation to Give American Solutions or NAT GAS Act....

Letter Supporting Bipartisan Effort to Cut Billions in Ethanol Giveaway

Taxpayers for Common Sense joined a broad and diverse coalition applauding Senators Coburn (R-OK) and Feinstein (D-CA) for combining their efforts to end billions of dollars in taxpayer-funded subsidies for conventional ethanol by introducing the bipartisan “Ethanol Subsidy and Tariff Repeal Act.”...

TCS Letter to House Speaker John Boehner Agreeing with his Recent Comments on Oil Subsidies

Taxpayers for Common Sense sent a letter to Speaker of the House John Boehner, regarding his recent comments that oil companies "ought to be paying their fair share."...

Budget Gimmicks in FY11 Defense Bill

Washington is abuzz with talk of the deficit-reduction plan President Obama announced Wednesday, mostly along the lines of “wait, what...

Taxpayer Letter to the Senate: End Ethanol Tax Credit

Taxpayers for Common Sense sent a letter to senators today urging them to support efforts to immediately end spending billions of taxpayer dollars on a wasteful tax credit that was set to expire last year. Read our letter below and contact your senators to ask for their support on this common sense taxpayer-friendly amendment. ...

Coalition Letter to Congress Calls for an End to Energy Subsidies

Taxpayers for Common Sense along with a coalition of nearly 30 groups sent a letter to Congress calling for an end to energy...

Broad Coalition Supports Senators Efforts to End VEETC

Taxpayers for Common Sense alongside a broad and diverse coalition of groups sent a letter supporting the Volumetric Ethanol Excise Tax...

TCS Testifies at the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform

On March 3, 2011 Taxpayers for Common Sense President Ryan Alexander testified at a House Committee on Oversight and Government reform...

Ongoing Analysis of Debate Over FY11 Continuing Resolution

The House of Representatives is debating a Continuing Resolution to fund the federal government for the rest of fiscal year 2011 (through...

Legislation Introduced to end Reverse Royalty for Hardrock Mining

Last week, Senator Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH) introduced legislation to eliminate an unnecessary giveaway for mining companies that cost...

Letter to Congress: Where to Start Cutting to Trim the Deficit

Today Taxpayers for Common Sense delivered to leadership in both the House and Senate a report on how Congress can quickly cut nearly...

TCS Action Letter Urges Congress to Oppose ANY Extension to the Volumetric Ethanol Excise Tax Credit

Today, Taxpayers for Common Sense Action sent a letter to Congress urging members to oppose ANY extension to the Volumetric Ethanol...

TCS Letter to Deficit Commissioners: Support the Final Report

Taxpayers for Common Sense sent a letter to the commissioners of the National Commission on Fiscal Responsibility and Reform urging...

Deficit Commission Releases its Final Report—The Moment of Truth

So the "The Moment of Truth" is here. We've been combing through the specifics of the aptly titled final report of the National...

Diverse Coalition Calls for Congress to End the Volumetric Ethanol Excise Tax Credit (VEETC)

Taxpayers for Common Sense, together with a diverse coalition of 58 groups, sent a letter to congressional leaders today urging them to...

TCS Letter to Deficit Commissioners

TCS applauds the Co-chairs for not leaving any stone unturned and acknowledging the difficult budgetary choices that must be made given...

Keep it Clean

The key word here is simply.  Congress can pass and should pass what is referred to as a “clean” CR, where nothing changes from last...

U.S. Deficit Double-Edged Sword for Defense Budget Cuts

TCS National Security Analyst Laura Peterson published the following commentary as a guest writer on Budget Insight, the blog of the...

New Report Urges Pentagon Role in Deficit Reduction

Today, the Sustainable Defense Task Force held a press conference at the Capitol Visitors Center releasing a report identifying roughly $1 trillion in Pentagon budget savings over the next ten years. ...

Interest Payments on Debt Skyrocket

3:25 p.m. -- With the economy in the tank and rising federal debt, the costs of servicing the federal debt is skyrocketing. According to...

TCS Commissioned Report—Billions Spent to Deter Marijuana Use, But Program Effectiveness Remains Unknown

Marijuana is the most widely used illegal substance in the United States, and study after study shows that despite spending billions of...

Engineering Boondoggles

While Washington is wringing its hands about the automatic across-the-board budget cuts known as...