(Washington, D.C.) – The Council for Citizens Against Government Waste (CCAGW) today opposed the special interest tax breaks found in the conference report on the Transportation Equity Act – A Legacy for Users (TEA-LU).  The conference version of the bill passed the House of Representatives today by a vote of 412-8.  The Senate is scheduled to take up the bill before recess. 

“This legislation is yet another example of lawmakers catering to special interests,” CAGW President Tom Schatz said.  “Leave it to Congress to include unrelated tax breaks in a transportation bill.”

The highway bill contains about 5,000 earmarks worth more than $20 billion.  The bill includes $200 million for the infamous “Bridge to Nowhere,” now renamed “Don Young’s Way,” connecting Gravina Island (population: 50) with the Alaskan mainland. 

Also coming to light are questionable tax breaks in the bill that have little to do with transportation, including:

• Repeal of special occupational taxes on producers and marketers of alcoholic beverages
• Income tax credit for distilled spirits wholesalers
• Cap on excise tax on certain fishing equipment
• Tax breaks for luxury transportation: Exemption from taxes on transportation provided by seaplanes and certain sightseeing flights exempt from taxes on air transportation

“This bill is just the latest in last minute pieces of pork-laden legislation that Congress has passed before summer recess,” Schatz said.  “As members of Congress pack their pork-laden bags and head out on vacation, taxpayers are left with a $333 billion budget deficit.  CCAGW recommends the following reading material for summer recess to remind Congress of the proper role of the federal government: Burning Money by Peter Grace, The Federalist Papers, and The Road to Serfdom by Friedrich Hayek.”

The Council for Citizens Against Government Waste is the lobbying arm of Citizens Against Government Waste, the nation’s largest nonpartisan, nonprofit organization dedicated to eliminating waste, fraud, abuse, and mismanagement in government.