Center for Effective Government

03/15/2017

Project On Government Oversight

Project On Government Oversight

The Pentagon's "inability to pass a clean audit is a longstanding travesty,” Chairs John McCain (R-AZ) and Mac Thornberry (R-TX) of the Senate and House Armed Services Committees said recently in a joint statement.
The Trump Administration wants to add $54 billion to the Pentagon’s budget without knowing where the money is really going. Is the Pentagon’s already exorbitant budget being used in the best way possible?
We need to find out. Join us in asking to audit the Pentagon.

02/23/2017

Project On Government Oversight

Project On Government Oversight

Whether it involves the direct disclosure of documents and information or simply a tip for what we should ask and look for, we want to hear from whistleblowers who can expose government and contractor wrongdoing.

If you're considering blowing the whistle, come to POGO before making a disclosure - we can help. At POGO, it's very important for us to protect the anonymity of our sources, to make sure whistleblowers avoid retaliation and make their disclosures safely. Please share this link to help more people learn about our services available to whistleblowers.

01/12/2017

Project On Government Oversight

Project On Government Oversight

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announced a proposal to expand the Toxics Release Inventory (TRI) program to include natural gas processing plants. The TRI program has not only informed the public, it also spurred action by companies to significantly reduce the toxic pollution being generated. It is a terrific example of the power of information and expanding the program to the natural gas industry would be a significant open government victory.

EPA’s proposed regulation comes in response to a 2012 petition filed by 19 environmental and public interest groups, including the Center for Effective Government, which became a part of the Project On Government Oversight last year. The petition urged the EPA to include oil and gas extraction facilities in the toxic pollution reporting program.

07/13/2016

Faulty Blood Testing Devices to Be Withdrawn from Market

Well, well...

Alere, maker of INRatio blood testing devices whose potentially fatal flaws POGO spotlighted, said it is taking the machines off the market.

03/28/2016

We have joined forces with Project On Government Oversight - be sure to follow their page to stay up to date on efforts to hold the government accountable and make it more effective.

03/22/2016

Two Longstanding Good-Government Groups Join Forces

We are joining forces with Project On Government Oversight and continuing our efforts toward a more effective government through them. Follow them for more news relating to our work.

“We are honored to build upon and continue the vital work CEG has been doing for more than three decades to strengthen democracy by connecting national policy debates with the concerns of everyday Americans," said Project On Government Oversight Executive Director Danielle Brian. "POGO’s mission of a government that’s more effective and accountable will be bolstered and enriched by the work and legacy of CEG.”

This page will remain as an archive for the work done by the Center for Effective Government, formerly OMB Watch. All future related work will appear on Project On Government Oversight.

Center for Effective Government to become part of Project on Government Oversight.

02/10/2016

Don’t let Congress run out the clock on Pres. Obama's plan to provide millions with overtime pay. http://on.epi.org/1KDKqV8

02/06/2016

12% of ALL poor black children in the US!! New report: http://foreffectivegov.org/shadow-of-danger #BlackHistoryMonth

02/05/2016

Appalling. We can change this. New report: http://foreffectivegov.org/shadow-of-danger

02/04/2016

Chlorine Bleach Plants Needlessly Endanger Millions - Greenpeace USA

Huge rail cars full of chlorine gas travel the US freely putting
millions at risk.

Eighty-six bleach plants across the country put 63.8 million people in danger of a potential worst-case release of chlorine gas, a substance so toxic it has been used as a chemical weapon.

02/03/2016

Flint Mom Shares The Heartbreak Of Giving Her Kids Poisoned Water

"My kids were complaining of muscle and bone pain. I was feeling it, too. Our arms hurt, our bones hurt. And then one day my 11-year-old son -- who was otherwise healthy -- fell over on his bike and his wrist shattered. The doctor didn't understand why it shattered so easily, but it turns out lead makes your bones weak. I knew nothing about bad water and what it could do."

Most of us don't think twice about hopping in the shower or running a load of dishes in the dishwasher. But for Flint, Michigan, resident Melissa Mays, 37, these daily acts are fraught with anxie...

02/02/2016

It’s Time for the U.S. to Deal With Tax Evaders

"America now ranks third in the world, behind only Switzerland and Hong Kong, on the list of nation’s that promote and profit from secret accounts used by drug dealers, arms traders, tax evaders, and even terrorists to hide their money."

America is the world’s newest tax haven.

02/02/2016

The staggering economic cost of air pollution

Really interesting study.

Damages are less than they used to be but worse than expected - and more complex.

02/01/2016

Flint evokes the public health racism of years past - The Boston Globe

Great use of our recent report to show how environmental justice issues are widespread.

Just as Tuskegee is America’s most horrific case of medical racism, Flint now epitomizes the worst kind of environmental racism.

01/30/2016

What could these lost corporate taxes fund?
http://www.foreffectivegov.org/burning-our-bridges

01/29/2016

Toxic reality facing the poor, Americans of color - CNN.com

✔ States and localities should require "buffer zones" around new and expanding facilities, ensuring that they are not built near homes, schools or playgrounds.
✔ Similar buffers should be used when building new residential neighborhoods and schools.
✔ States and localities should assess the potential impact of unplanned chemical releases, more serious incidents and the cumulative health impact on surrounding communities.
✔ The EPA should require facilities to use safer chemicals and technologies when feasible.

People of color and the poor continue to face social and economic inequality, including greater exposure to toxic chemicals, Ronald White and Richard Moore say.

01/29/2016

How does your retirement stack up? It's time to unrig the rules that help the 1% and leave the rest of us out: http://www.foreffectivegov.org/two-retirements

01/28/2016

The Flint disaster is Rick Snyder’s fault

"The Flint disaster, three years in the making, is not a failure of government generally. It’s the failure of a specific governing philosophy: Snyder’s belief that government works better if run more like a business."

A failure of the Michigan Republican’s governing ideology.

01/28/2016

Methane Causes Climate Change. Here's How the President Plans to Cut Emissions by 40-45 Percent....

Last week the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) released its proposed rule to reduce methane emissions from oil and gas production on public and tribal land. The rule would contribute to the Obama administration’s strategy for cutting methane emissions while also reducing waste of this non-renewable resource.

*UPDATE (Jan. 22, 2016): *Today, the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) released its proposed rule..

01/28/2016

Environmental Justice: What the Candidates Missed in Flint, Michigan - and the Rest of the Country

A good read...

Presidential candidates have commented on Flint's contaminated water crisis, but less so on systemic environmental racism.

01/27/2016

Beyond Flint: Poor Blacks, Latinos Endure Oversized Burden Of America’s Industrial Waste And Hazards

"The Flint water crisis continues to generate headlines, but the negligence and mismanagement of public resources in largely minority communities reaches far beyond the borders of that central Michigan city. Across the country, blacks and Latinos are more likely than whites to live dangerously close to environmental hazards."

The negligence and mismanagement of public resources in largely minority communities such as Flint reaches far beyond the borders of that Michigan city.

01/22/2016

Appeals court rules Clean Power Plan can proceed

A victory for the environment.

Obama's plan to cut carbon emissions at existing power plants has been challenged by more than two dozen states

01/22/2016

As Flint Struggles With Contaminated Water, Congress Tries To Gut Clean Water Rule

Despite everything that's happened in Flint, some members of Congress are still trying to block water protections!

Streams that supply drinking water to a third of the country are still under federal protection, but challenges to the Clean Water Rule remain.

01/21/2016

Where are chemical facility hazards happening? Find out:
http://www.foreffectivegov.org/blog/new-report-interactive-map-show-that-people-color-and-poor-are-more-likely-live-near-chemical-h

01/21/2016

Black Women For Wellness

Black Women For Wellness

"A report from the Center for Effective Government finds that people of color are almost twice as likely to live within one mile of our nation's most dangerous industrial facilities compared with white residents. Poor residents are 1½ times more likely than nonpoor residents to live in these areas. Living so close to stockpiles of hazardous chemicals puts these residents in danger of a catastrophic disaster. It also pollutes their air, water and soil.

The people of Richmond, California, understand these dangers all too well. On August 6, 2012, residents heard a tremendous explosion at the nearby Chevron oil facility, then watched a toxic cloud engulf their neighborhoods. More than 15,000 people sought medical treatment in the following weeks due to breathing problems, chest pains and headaches. Twenty were admitted to the hospital.

The majority of Richmond's residents are people of color. Neighborhoods surrounding the Chevron facility have poverty rates several times the national average. Such scenarios occur across the country: hazardous, polluting facilities operating alongside communities of color and poor neighborhoods."

01/20/2016

Unbelievable. More than 80 days later…methane is still leaking in Southern California and harming the climate: http://bit.ly/1Q11rrj

01/20/2016

It's not just Flint — every major American city has hazardous amounts of lead hurting kids

Flint is an extreme case. But the problem is widespread.

Decades-old leaded gasoline is still poisoning brains via contaminated soil.

01/19/2016

Living in the Shadow of Danger: Poverty, Race, and Unequal Chemical Facility Hazards

People of color living in poverty are significantly more likely to live in fenceline zones than whites not living in poverty. The greatest disparities are among poor children of color. For example, poor black and Latino children are more than twice as likely to live in fenceline zones compared to white children who are living above the poverty line.

01/19/2016

Toxic reality facing the poor, Americans of color - CNN.com

"Roughly half of U.S. residents living within one mile of a hazardous facility -- 11.4 million -- are people of color. We have the solutions at hand to protect these communities by making dangerous facilities safer and preventing industrial development near homes and schools. As we celebrate the life of the late civil rights leader King, let us also pick up the work of fighting injustice and ensure that all Americans can live without fear of a chemical disaster."

People of color and the poor continue to face social and economic inequality, including greater exposure to toxic chemicals, Ronald White and Richard Moore say.

01/19/2016

And 2/3rds of those children are children of color. We can change this.

NEW Report: http://foreffectivegov.org/shadow-of-danger

01/18/2016

John Lewis

Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. was my friend, my mentor, my brother. He represented the very best in all of us. Martin Luther King Day is a day on, not a day off. It is a day of service so we may seek progress in our communities and create a world at peace with itself.

01/16/2016

Living in the Shadow of Danger: Poverty, Race, and Unequal Chemical Facility Hazards

NEW Report out today: http://foreffectivegov.org/shadow-of-danger

01/16/2016

Social inequality in the U.S. has expanded over the past several decades. People of color and those living in poverty, especially children, near dangerous chemical facilities know this all too well. NEW Report:
http://www.foreffectivegov.org/shadow-of-danger

01/14/2016

Federal Agency Condemns Militants Removing Refuge Fences

Public lands are preserved for the American public. Not for a handful of ranchers breaking the law.

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is condemning the removal of fences boarding the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge by militants occupying the public property.

01/13/2016

Jobs With Justice

Nailed it. #SOTU