The collapse of the housing bubble has led to difficult times for the U.S. economy.  On February 17, 2009, less than a month into his term, President Barack Obama signed into law the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, a $787 billion package to stimulate the economy.  However, the unemployment level has remained above 8-percent.   National debt crossed the $15 trillion mark on November 15, 2011; interest on the debt in FY 2011 was $454 billion.  "Big government" was a dominant theme in the 2010 midterm elections.  Heading into Fall 2012, a major concern is sequestration, or automatic budget cuts that could be implemented as a result of the Budget Control Act of 2011.  Achieving fiscal responsibility will require tough decisions.


GENERAL
The White House-Economy

Council of Economic Advisers

Recovery.gov


U.S. Department of the Treasury
Financial Stability  |  TARP


U.S. Congress-Joint Economic Committee


Federal Reserve

"The Federal Reserve System is the central bank of the United States. It was founded by Congress in 1913 to provide the nation with a safer, more flexible, and more stable monetary and financial system. Over the years, its role in banking and the economy has expanded."
(Other views: Audit the Fed | The Gold Standard Now)

Financial Crisis Inquiry Commission



U.S. Department of Commerce
U.S. Department of Labor

U.S. Small Business Administration


National Federation of Independent Business
U.S. Chamber of Commerce

National Association of Manufacturers

National Retail Federation
AFL-CIO
Change to Win


ECONOMIC INDICATORS
Economic Briefing Room (U.S. Census Bureau)


Economy at a Glance (Bureau of Labor Statistics)

see latest numbers column on the right

Overview of the Economy (Bureau of Economic Analysis)


Economic Indicators (U.S. Department of Commerce)

National Debt  | Interest on the National Debt (Bureau of Public Debt--Treasury)


Consumer Confidence Index (The Conference Board, Inc.)


Dow Jones Averages
 
RealtyTrac-National Real Estate Trends



BUDGET, SPENDING, AND FISCAL RESPONSIBILITY
The White House-Fiscal Responsibility

The 2010 effort: National Commission on Fiscal Responsibility and Reform

Office of Management and Budget
OMB Watch


U.S. Senate Budget Committee

U.S. House Budget Committee
Congressional Budget Office


U.S. Senate Committee on Appropriations
U.S. House Committee on Appropriations

Government Accountability Office


Campaign to Fix the Debt

The Campaign to Fix the Debt will serve as an educational initiative, mobilizing key communities—including leaders from business, government, and policy—and people all across America, to build support for a comprehensive plan to fix our long-­‐term debt and deficits.  (project of the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget, launched July 17, 2012).

Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget

"a bipartisan, non-profit organization committed to educating the public about issues that have significant fiscal policy impact. The Committee is a bipartisan group of leading budget experts including many of the past Directors of the Budget Committees, the Congressional Budget Office, the Office of Management and Budget and the Federal Reserve Board. The Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget is housed at the New America Foundation. New America is an independent, non-partisan, non-profit public policy institute that focuses on long-term issues facing the country."
US Budget Watch

Peter G. Peterson Foundation

"Our mission is to increase public awareness of the nature and urgency of key fiscal challenges threatening America's future and to accelerate action on them."
Comeback America Initiative  |  InDebtEd  |  Budgetball

The Concord Coalition

"a nationwide, non-partisan, grassroots organization advocating generationally responsible fiscal policy."

Taxpayers for Common Sense

"an independent and non-partisan voice for taxpayers working to increase transparency and expose and eliminate wasteful and corrupt subsidies, earmarks, and corporate welfare."

Citizens Against Government Waste

"mission is to eliminate waste, mismanagement, and inefficiency in the federal government. Founded in 1984 by the late industrialist J. Peter Grace and syndicated columnist Jack Anderson, CAGW is the legacy of the President's Private Sector Survey on Cost Control, also known as the Grace Commission."

National Taxpayers Union

"a nonprofit, non-partisan citizen group whose members work every day for lower taxes and smaller government at all levels."

Bankrupting America

"a project of Public Notice, a nonpartisan nonprofit organization 100 percent focused on arming people with the economic facts and figures needed to evaluate the policies our leaders are proposing."

The Common Sense Balanced Budget Amendment Coalition

"a collaborative effort by over 150+ groups, and growing, to pass a Balanced Budget Amendment to the United States Constitution, specifically the Common Sense Balanced Budget Amendment. We The People believe it is time to force the government to handle its budget like our families have to, by balancing it."

No American Debt

"No American Debt is an organization that seeks to advance the national dialogue about America’s debt crisis. No American Debt will educate the general public about the severity of America’s $14 trillion debt and how this debt impacts everyday Americans." (launched by former Gov. George Pataki April 20, 211)


TAXATION
The White House-Taxes


U.S. House Ways and Means Committee
U.S. Senate Finance Committee
U.S. Congress: Joint Committee on Taxation

Internal Revenue Service

-Tax Statistics



The Tax Foundation

"The mission of the Tax Foundation is to educate taxpayers about sound tax policy and the size of the tax burden borne by Americans at all levels of government." Founded in 1937.

Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy

"ITEP's mission is to ensure that elected officials, the media, and the general public have access to accurate, timely, and straightforward information that allows them to understand the effects of current and proposed tax policies."

Citizens for Tax Justice

"a 501 (c)(4) public interest research and advocacy organization focusing on federal, state and local tax policies and their impact upon our nation. CTJ's mission is to give ordinary people a greater voice in the development of tax laws."

Americans for Fair Taxation (Fair Tax)

advocates "a single-rate, federal retail sales tax collected only once, at the final point of purchase of new goods and services for personal consumption. Used items are not taxed. Business-to-business purchases for the production of goods and services are not taxed. A rebate makes the effective rate progressive."

Americans for Tax Reform

"Americans for Tax Reform (ATR) opposes all tax increases as a matter of principle. We believe in a system in which taxes are simpler, flatter, more visible, and lower than they are today...  ATR was founded in 1985 by Grover Norquist at the request of President Reagan. The flagship project of Americans for Tax Reform is the Taxpayer Protection Pledge, a written promise by legislators and candidates for office that commits them to oppose any effort to increase income taxes on individuals and businesses."

 

POVERTY AND INEQUALITY
The White House-Poverty

U.S. Census Bureau: Poverty


Pew Center on the States: Economic Mobility Project

United States Conference of Catholic Bishops: Catholic Campaign for Human Development


Wikipedia: Gini Coefficient


Economic Policy Institute

"EPI was established in 1986 to broaden the discussion about economic policy to include the interests of low- and middle-income workers."

Center on Budget and Policy Priorities

"...working at the federal and state levels on fiscal policy and public programs that affect low- and moderate-income families and individuals."

Institute for Policy Studies-Working Group on Extreme Inequality
 
National Coalition for the Homeless




STATES
National Conference of State Legislatures-Budget & Tax

Stateline-Taxes & Budget news

State Budget Solutions Project




TRADE
U.S. Census Bureau: Foreign Trade Statistics
Office of the United States Trade Representative
Public Citizen: Global Trade Watch
CATO: Center for Trade Policy Studies
World Trade Organization

World Fair Trade Organization