Subsidyscope

November 24, 2009 – The way American roads are funded is changing. Revenues that predominantly come from users of roads ("user fees") including fuel taxes, vehicle registration fees and tolls, pay for a decreasing share of road costs. Taxes and fees not directly related to highway use ("non-user fees") are making up the difference. The analysis shows that in recent years, these revenues are funding a greater share of highway construction and maintenance projects, with a corresponding decrease in the percentage of user contributions, thereby increasing the financial burden on "non-users."

Using Federal Highway Administration statistics, Subsidyscope has calculated that in 2007, 51 percent of the nation's $193 billion set aside for highway construction and maintenance was generated through user fees—down from 10 years earlier when user fees made up 61 percent of total spending on roads. The rest came from other sources, including revenue generated by income, sales and property taxes, as well as bond issues. Read more » Permalink

November 6, 2009 – The Boeing Co. was the biggest beneficiary of long-term loan guarantees by the Export-Import Bank of the United States in fiscal years 2007 and 2008, a Subsidyscope analysis shows. Of the $15.3 billion in guarantees issued by Ex-Im during the two-year period, nearly $10 billion, or 65 percent, went toward the purchase of commercial aircraft made by Chicago-based Boeing. Read more » Permalink

October 27, 2009 – Forty-one of Amtrak’s 44 routes lost money in 2008 with losses ranging from nearly $5 to $462 per passenger depending upon the line, according to analysis by Pew’s Subsidyscope.

The line with the highest per passenger subsidy—the Sunset Limited, which runs from New Orleans to Los Angeles—carried almost 72,000 passengers last year. The California Zephyr, which runs from Chicago to San Francisco, had the second-highest per passenger subsidy of $193 and carried nearly 353,000 passengers in 2008. Pew's analysis indicates that the average loss per passenger on all 44 of Amtrak’s lines was $32, about four times what the loss would be using Amtrak's figures: only $8 per passenger. Read more and view interactive Amtrak route map » Permalink

October 7, 2009 – Nearly $2 billion for more than 3,100 airport construction and rehabilitation projects has been obligated by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) during the past five years even though the projects received low priority ratings, a Subsidyscope review of FAA data has found.

A searchable database released today on Subsidyscope includes National Priority Ratings (NPRs) for every project awarded a grant under the FAA’s Airport Improvement Program (AIP) from fiscal year 2005 through most of fiscal year 2009. Users may search by airport name, code or state, and sort findings by NPR (ranging from 0 to 100, with higher numbers being the highest-priority projects), congressional district or whether funding came through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009. Read more » Permalink

October 2, 2009 – In an unprecedented move this week, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation is asking banks to prepay their quarterly fees for the next three years in order to stem steady losses to the fund that backs accounts when an insured bank or thrift fails. Read more » Permalink