On October 9, the House of Representatives voted 375 to 3 to approve the War Profiteering Prevention Act [H.R. 400] to make war profiteering a felony, subject to up to 20 years in prison and fines of up to $1 million or twice the profits of the crime. There is currently no federal statute specifically targeted at prohibiting contracting fraud during times of war, military action, or reconstruction activities.

War profiteering and reconstruction fraud by U.S. companies has become a significant problem in the Iraq war. The U.S. has devoted more than $50 billion to U.S. contractors for relief and reconstruction activities in Iraq alone, with billions of these dollars unaccounted for. In February, the head of the Defense Contract Audit Agency testified that the agency estimated that there have been more than $10 billion in questioned and unsupported costs related to Iraq reconstruction and troop support contracts since 2003.

For detailed information on Iraq contracting abuses from the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, click here.

In the News

The Macomb Daily recently ran a story detailing Rep. Levin’s role in the new Congress. The article reports that Levin has emerged as the Hill’s "leading advocate of ‘tax fairness’ issues," a strong voice on economic policy and trade, and a frequent thorn in the side of Washington lobbyists.

To read the Macomb Daily article, click here.

Lawmakers Vote to End Use of Private Tax Collectors

On October 10, the House voted 232 to 173 to approve the Tax Collection Responsibility Act [H.R. 3056]. The measure would repeal the Internal Revenue Service’s authority to contract out tax collection to private collection agencies. Speaking in support of the legislation, Rep. Levin said, "The outsourcing of tax collection has led to widespread harassment of taxpayers and now the IRS admits that allowing private companies collect these tax debts is far more expensive than having IRS employees do the work. We need to restore accountability and professionalism to the basic government task of collecting taxes."

For more information, click here.

House Approves Child Product Safety Notification Act

On October 9, the House approved the Danny Keysar Child Product Safety Notification Act [H.R. 1699]. The legislation, which was introduced earlier this year by Rep. Schakowsky of Illinois, requires the manufacturers of a defined list of 12 durable infant and toddler products – including cribs, high chairs, strollers, bath seats, walkers and swings – to provide postage-paid, privacy-protected recall registration cards with the products to allow consumers to register them by mail. This legislation is intended to improve the effectiveness of recalls of these children’s products, which currently rely heavily on the media.

To view additional information on the bill from the sponsor of H.R. 1699, click here.

Legislation Introduced to Protect Alaskan Rainforest

On October 4, Rep. Rosa DeLauro of Connecticut, Rep. Levin and 34 other House members introduced the Alaska Rainforest Conservation Act [H.R. 3757]. Most Americans associate rainforests with faraway countries in Central and South America and West Africa. But there is actually a rainforest here in the United States, and like rainforests in other corners of the world, it is at risk from logging. Along the coast of Southeast Alaska lies the largest intact temperate rainforest left in the world. Most of it falls within the boundaries of our nation’s two largest national forests: the Tongass and Chugach National Forests. Some of the trees in these forests are more than 700 years old! The area also provides critical habitat to threatened species like the grizzly bear and bald eagle. H.R. 3757 seeks to provide permanent protection status for 14 million acres of the Chugach and Tongass National Forests. 
 

The Week Ahead

This week the House is expected to consider a resolution [H.Res. 734] expressing the sense of Congress that the State Department is misusing the national security classification process to withhold from the American people information about widespread and increasing corruption within the Government of Iraq. The House will also debate the Free Flow of Information Act [H.R. 2102], the Federal Railroad Safety Improvement Act, and the Responsible Electronic Surveillance that is Overseen, Reviewed, and Effective (RESTORE) Act [H.R. 3773]. Finally, the House will attempt to override the President’s veto of H.R. 976, the Children’s health Insurance Program Reauthorization Act.

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