Post a Comment On: A Nod to Nothing

Tax Prof Blog posted "Where Do Your Tax Dollars Go?", a link to a web site where you can input your federal tax bill (if you're not paranoid about that sort of thing) and get back a breakdown of where your money went, in a general sense, such as:

Smithsonian Institution: $1.01
US Institute of Peace: $0.13
Intelligence Community Mgmt. Account: $0.63
Institute of Museum & Library Services: $0.38
United Mine Workers Benefit Funds: $0.13
Corporation for National Service: $1.14
Court Services Agency for DC: $0.25
Denali Commission: $0.13
Broadcasting Board of Governors: $0.89
Public Company Acct. Oversight Board: $0.13
Anticipated Hurricane Supplemental: $7.35

Denali Commission? The program needs hyperlinks so I know what the heck I'm paying for - it reminds me of those bills I used to get at the University of Minnesota for student services that listed 85 separate groups and services.

Apparently the Denali Commission is a way to fund programs in Alaska. I believe it targets the poorest of the poor in Alaska, so I think I can afford the $0.13. I just wish I spent more than $0.13 on the United States Institute of Peace - after all, they only recently started an Iraq Study Group. Nice website though, and extremely up to date. I also spend $0.13 on Spectrum Relocation, which is, as near as I can tell, money I'm paying so they government can move radio/wireless networks so that private companies have access to those bandwidths. When the government finally sells those airwaves, I better see a $0.13 a year cashback on my taxes, plus interest for the length of time since I spent the money. I'm not fond of funding wireless initiatives for private companies considering they tend to pursue monopolistic practices in individual communities.