Good morning.  I’d like to welcome everyone to this morning’s hearing on improper payments in the administration of refundable tax credits. In the course of less than a decade, improper payments arising from refundable tax credits have cost taxpayers an estimated $106 billion according to government reports.  To put this amount of money in perspective, it’s more than the… Read more

Today, in a hearing examining the administration of refundable tax credits, Ways and Means Democrats refused to address the rampant waste, fraud and abuse in the current tax code which has led to over $100 billion in improper payments — robbing taxpayers of their hard-earned tax dollars.     Despite testimony offered by witnesses from the Internal Revenue Service (IRS),… Read more

HEARING ON IMPROPER PAYMENTS IN THE  ADMINISTRATION OF REFUNDABLE TAX CREDITS HEARING BEFORE THE … Read more

Good morning, and welcome to this morning’s Oversight Subcommittee hearing on the transparency and funding levels of state and local pension plans. Across the federal, state, and local levels of government, our country faces a growing burden of public debt.  Too often, governments have deferred difficult choices by pushing obligations off into the future without responsibly saving… Read more

HEARING ON TRANSPARENCY AND FUNDING OF STATE AND LOCAL PENSION PLANS HEARING BEFORE THE … Read more

Washington, DC – Ways and Means Chairman Committee Dave Camp (R-MI) and Oversight Subcommittee Chairman Charles Boustany (R-LA) sent a letter to Internal Revenue Service (IRS) Commissioner Douglas Shulman today seeking information about how the IRS is spending monies its received from the $1 billion Health Insurance Reform Implementation Fund (“HIRIF”) - a fund established by the… Read more

Congressman Charles W. Boustany, Jr., MD, (R-LA), Chairman of the Subcommittee on Oversight of the Committee on Ways and Means, today announced that the Subcommittee will hold a hearing on the transparency and funding of State and local defined benefit pension plans.  The hearing will take place on Thursday, May 5, 2011, in Room 1100 of the Longworth House Office Building, beginning… Read more

Washington, DC – Today, Ways and Means Health Subcommittee Chairman Wally Herger (R-CA), Ways and Means Oversight Subcommittee Chairman Charles Boustany (R-LA) and Congressman Dave Reichert (R-WA) sent a letter to AARP CEO Barry Rand seeking further clarification and information pertaining to concerns raised in a Ways and Means Committee hearing. The hearing focused on findings uncovered… Read more

Washington, DC – Today, Ways and Means Health Subcommittee Chairman Wally Herger (R-CA), Ways and Means Oversight Subcommittee Chairman Charles Boustany (R-LA) and Congressman Dave Reichert (R-WA) sent a letter to IRS Commissioner Douglas Shulman, requesting IRS to review and examine whether AARP, Inc. should continue to be exempt from federal taxation.  Specifically, the… Read more

As Chairman Herger said in his opening statement, AARP was created with the praiseworthy goal of promoting independence, dignity, and enhancing the quality of life for older Americans.  Founded with this goal, it was incorporated under section 501(c)(4) of the Internal Revenue Code.  This meant that in return for promoting social welfare and the common good, it would enjoy… Read more