GASB proposed pension reform will get some attention

http://accounting.smartpros.com/x69680.xml   To have government underfunded pensions be looked at more realistically, some recommendations have been made

The States who file but may not have to pay income tax

http://www.taxfoundation.org/publications/show/26336.html

I thought this map was interesting showing the data on the 50 states, as to who files, but may not have a tax liability.

State and local governments shifting to selling taxable bonds

http://www.bondbuyer.com/issues/119_352/monthly_muni_volume-1012894-1.html
While this article in the Bond Buyer newspaper indicates May was the fourth heaviest bond issuance for May since the information has been tracked, it also has some complexities as governments are shifting their financing somewhat to non-tax exempt issuances.  Read to see why this is happening

Should nonprofits help fill state's budget gap?

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=127092795
NPR article proposes fees.

Nonprofits had better file the forms

http://www.irs.gov/newsroom/article/0,,id=222668,00.html
Tax exempt organization must file 990 or lose their tax exempt status See the attached guidance.

Ten Thousand Commandments of Federal Regulation

So ten were not enough. http://cei.org/10kc
This synopsis was provided by Accounting Education News at accountingeducation.com

The costs of federal regulations often exceed the benefits, yet receive little official scrutiny from Congress. The report urges Congress to step up and take responsibility as lawmakers to review and roll back economically harmful regulations. “Rolling back regulations would constitute the deregulatory stimulus that the U.S. economy needs,” said Crews.

Among the report’s findings: • 3,503 new regulations took effect last year. The burden of government is heavier than ever. • How much does government cost? Government is spending $3.518 trillion of our money and imposing another $1.187 trillion dollars in the form of regulatory compliance costs. • How much of our economic output should be eaten by regulatory costs? Regulatory costs now absorb 8.3 percent of the U.S. gross domestic product. • What's the federal government's total share of the economy? Regulations + spending combined puts the federal government's share of the economy at over 30 percent. • Regulations cost more than the income tax. • New rules that cost at least $100 million increased by 13 percent between 2007 and 2008.

The report urges reforms to make the regulatory costs more transparent and accountable to the people, including annual “report cards” on regulatory costs and benefits, and congressional votes on significant agency rules before they become binding.

Tim Berners Lee commenting

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/8572809.stm
about government data transparency. Countries should be judged on their willingness to open up public data to their citizens, the inventor of the world wide web has told the BBC. author is Chris Vallance