This week's In The News looks at the 1998 budget surplus. The six resources discussed provide information about the budget surplus and suggestions on what to do with it from various quarters. The Fiscal Year 1999 budget proposal unveiled by President Clinton on February 2, 1998 showed a surplus of $9.5 billion, the first time the federal budget has been balanced in 30 years. Clinton plans to use...

The US Office of Management and Budget has released the Fiscal Year 1999 Federal Budget (Adobe Acrobat [.pdf] and .wk1 and .wk4 format only), which was presented to the Congress on February 2, 1998. The site provides "A Citizen's Guide to the Federal Budget." More detailed information can be found in the "Budget of the United States Government, Fiscal Year 1999," which contains the "Budget Message...

Transmitted to Congress on February 1, 1999, the FY 2000 Budget covers the fiscal year beginning October 1, 1999. At the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) site, users can view the full text of the budget and related documents in .pdf format. The latter include A Citizen's Guide to the Federal Budget (also available in HTML), Analytical Perspectives, supplements, historical tables, and a...

For readers looking for erudite libertarian and fiscally conservative arguments on the nature of social security, this special section from the Cato Institute provides well-informed critiques of the current system, as well as suggestions for how to trim budgets, roll back entitlements, and shrink government. Edited by Senior Cato Fellows, Jose Pinera and Michael D. Tanner, recent articles have...

The Center on Budget and Policy Priorities was founded in 1981 to take a close look at how various budget choices have affected the lives of low-income Americans. Since then the center has continued to grow more expansive, covering budget priorities at the state level as well. First-time visitors to the site will find a host of materials of note, including a number of “Issues In Depth” special...

In the past several decades, a number of policy institutes and think-tanks have been formed to open a substantial dialogue about issues affecting rural communities. The Rural Policy Research Institute is one of these organizations, and involves scientists and policy analysts from Iowa State University, the University of Missouri, the University of Nebraska and other affiliated institutions. The...

One policy issue that has befuddled some of the best minds in the federal government is how to reduce the growth and cut the cost of the prison system. Amidst much conversation about the so-called "prison-industrial complex," there is much to be said for such a timely report. Authored by Julie Samuels, Nancy G. La Vigne, and Samuel Taxy of the Urban Institute, this November 2013 report takes a...

Alan Greenspan's testimony to the Senate highlights concerns about the sustainability of Social Security in its current form in the future. The Social Security system currently collects more in taxes than benefits paid out, with the excess held in the Trust Fund. But this is expected to change in 2014 when the baby boomers and increased longevity of retirees is likely to result in benefits...

The Social Security Administration's 1997 Old-Age and Survivors Insurance and Disability Insurance (OASDI) Trustees Report provides data and projections about the state of the Social Security Trust Fund. The Social Security system currently collects more in taxes than benefits paid out, with the excess held in the Trust Fund. But this is expected to change in 2014 when the baby boomers and...

What is the mission of the National Science Foundation (NSF)? This nine-page document released by the NSF in April 2013 provides an elegant and thoughtful answer to this query. As the first page notes, "We support all fields of fundamental science and engineering, keeping our nation's scientific enterprise focused on the furthest frontiers of research." The piece goes on to talk about the NSF's...