Overview
How government collects and spends money is critically important. Tax and budgeting decisions are the most concrete way that government declares its public priorities and balances between competing values.
Unfortunately, budget-making rules and public laws about taxes and spending often fail the public interest in a number of ways. For instance:
• Special-Interest Giveaways – Subsidies and tax breaks are often granted on the basis of private influence or connections instead of their public merits.
• Lack of Transparency and Accountability – It is not possible to ensure that government decisions are fair and efficient unless information is accessible and officials can be held to task for their actions.
• Wasteful and Counter-Productive Expenditures – Resources too often get wasted or programs create incentives that are unwarranted or undesireable
• Unfair Taxes – Ordinary households bear an increasing burden while large corporations increasingly avoid paying their share.
• Short-Sighted Decisions – Laws and regulations often fail to address long-term consequences, instead deferring difficult decisions or opting for short-term “fixes” that can make problems worse.
U.S. PIRG advocates improvements in fiscal policy to stop special-interest giveaways, increase budget transparency and accountability, eliminate waste, ensure that subsidies or tax breaks serve the public, and make taxes fairer.
Public money should be spent for the most effective pursuit of clear public benefits or to encourage beneficial behaviors undervalued by the market. U.S. PIRG believes that taxes should be fair, reliable, transparent, and guided by policy goals rather than political deal making. Budgeting should similarly be open, accountable, and follow long-term planning.
