Eric Pianin
The Fiscal Times
Washington, DC, United States
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Past articles by Eric:
The US Spends Billions on Cybersecurity — but No One Is Sure Exactly How Much
There is no universally accepted definition of what cybersecurity actually means. Moreover, the public and even lawmakers don’t have a clue as to how much the government is actually spending overall on this vital activity. → Read More
How Could the VA Make $5.5 Billion in Improper Payments Last Year?
Sen. Claire McCaskill of Missouri has been on a tear recently in going after government fraud and waste. The ranking Democrat on the Senate’s chief oversight committee and a former state auditor in Missouri helped blow the whistle on a multibillion-dollar federal program to pay for cell phones for the poor that is rife with fraud. → Read More
Congress Just Handed Trump Bragging Rights on Expanded GI Education Benefits
For a chief executive preparing to leave town on a 17-day summer vacation after suffering a humiliating setback → Read More
Why Republicans Are Going It Alone on Tax Cuts
Republicans made it clear on Tuesday that despite their debacle in pressing for health care reform without any Democratic assistance, they would again go their own way in drafting and passing major tax reform. → Read More
US Employers Are Skipping Out on Billions in Payroll Taxes
A new report by the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration says the IRS is doing too little to go after employers suspected of hiding wages and failing to report billions of dollars in federal payroll taxes, including for Social Security and Medicare. → Read More
Obamacare Insurers Are Seeking Premium Hikes of as Much as 30%
Amid President Trump’s threats to undercut the Affordable Care Act, the nation’s health insurers are warning of → Read More
How Drug Companies Are Driving Up Costs in US Prisons
The combination of an aging population, rising medical service costs and staggering increases in prescription drug prices for treating hepatitis C and cancer sparked a 37 percent overall increase in the federal prison system’s health care costs over the past eight years, according to a new Government Accountability Office study. → Read More
The Big Risk Trump Is Taking by Threatening Congress’ Health Insurance
Congress has an even lower approval rating than the president, and lawmakers frequently have been criticized for putting themselves above the legislation they pass. → Read More
Pentagon Again Evades Scrutiny Over Number of Contract Workers
The Defense Department makes generous use of contract employees to supplement its hundreds of thousands of full- → Read More
Price Says Eliminating the ACA’s Individual Mandate Is Trump’s Top Priority
In the wake of the collapse of the Republicans’ seven-year effort to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act, → Read More
Can Trump Get Anything Done? Conservatives Push 3 Simple Tax Cuts for 2017
Some Republicans and conservative activists believe President Trump and Congress should push for passage of a narrow tax cut aimed at corporations and middle class families. → Read More
The government is worried that the IRS, which has all of your tax info, is too vulnerable to cyberattacks
The GAO’s latest report highlights the vulnerability of massive amounts of tax data and government-wide personal information. → Read More
How the Republican Drive to Boost Defense Spending Could Backfire Big Time
The House is on the verge of approving a massive, $790 billion spending bill for defense, military construction → Read More
Raise the Debt Ceiling Now, or Face Another Post-Summer Crisis: Meadows
Rep. Mark Meadows, R-NC, one of the most influential conservatives in the House, said Monday he favors quick action this summer to raise the debt ceiling, taking a stand on an issue that is threatening to divide the GOP and raise the risk of a first-ever default on U.S. borrowing later this fall. → Read More
How Phony Cops Got $1.2 Million in Weapons From the US Government
An extraordinary Government Accountability Office sting operation revealed that the U.S. Department of Defense continues to play fast and loose with a program to sell surplus military weaponry to law enforcement agencies, despite years of controversy over the dangers of militarizing local police departments or allowing weapons to fall into the hands of terrorists. → Read More
The Pentagon Skips Out on a $10 Billion Debt
By law, the free-spending Defense Department is required to implement a plan to achieve at least $10 billion in administrative cost savings within the next two years. But the Government Accountability Office (GAO), which for years has complained about the Pentagon’s shoddy budget and auditing practices, issued a new report this week saying those savings, for now, are just a fantasy. → Read More
Here’s What It Would Take to Slash Government Waste: Better IT Departments
A House Republican proposal to reduce improper payments for Medicare, Medicaid, Earned Income Tax Credits and ot → Read More
TSA Agents Ferreting out Terrorists May be Flying Blind
For years, a government watchdog has been highly skeptical of the federal Transportation Security Administration → Read More
Pentagon Sticker Shock: US Weapon Systems Will Cost Taxpayers $1.89 Trillion
The Department of Defense reported this week that its current major weapons acquisition programs will ultimately cost about $1.89 trillion, roughly $105 billion more than the previous estimate. → Read More
Trump Revives a Radioactive Plan for Storing Nuclear Waste
Seven years ago, President Barack Obama, urged by then Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid drove a stake through the heart of a controversial and costly plan → Read More