USASpending.gov

Hi All,

Government spending isn't as glamorous a subject as movie stars or the latest scandal on a soap opera.  But it is so relevant to our life that it may as well be as important. 

After finding out about the website USASpending.gov I knew that I wanted to blog about it.

USASpending.gov is a result of the Federal Funding Accountability and Transparency Act.  Users of the site can find the following types of information on USASpending.gov: "All the data on prime recipient transactions is submiyted by the federal agencies making federal contract, grant, loan, and other financial assistance awards. Agencies are required to submit data within 30 days of making the award or after making a modification or amendment to an award. The exception is the Department of Defense which delays its submission by 90 days to protect operations. The data on sub-awards is provided by the prime recipients.  ​

The charts, graphs, and maps display data from October 1, 2008.  All data prior to September 30, 2008 can be downloaded.   For more information on the data displayed on USAspending.gov, the data sources, and the timing for refreshing the site, go to About the Data.

An example of the information available will make it more interesting and more understandable.

I did a search for 'navy seals' on the site.  The results summary lists the total number of transactions, total prime recipient transaction amount, total sub-aware transaction amount,  the number of contracts, the number grants, the number of loans and the amount of financial assistance.

Under the topics listed above is a table with the 36 transactions.  Clicking on the first one (ACS Cable Systems, LLC) yields contact information and even more information on transactions, total funds awarded and more. Under the search results, users can click on the Award ID to get more information about the transaction details.  Also in the table (which can be sorted by various columns) users can find the award amount, award type, awarding agency, funding agency and the role of the recipient.

Finally, note that in the Fall 2017 USASpending.gov will be releasing a new version of the site.  The new site will continue to provide data on federal awards as well as include data on agency expenditures. For a preview, go to this link from USASpending.gov.

I hope the site enables you to find out what the government is exactly spending its money on!  Hopefully transparency is more than just a catch-phrase - USASpending.gov might help that come to fruition!

Regards,
Stu 

Saving Money Is Where It's At!

Hi All,

Back in December 2014, Yahoo Finance! published an article with the title '11 Websites That Will Make You Smarter About Money'. 11 websites were mentioned, but I want to discuss the first one - heck, I might even revisit the article in the future and discuss other sites mentioned in the article - or not...I'll see.

Anyway the site in question is Wise Bread. It bills itself as 'personal finance and frugal living forums'. It also bills itself as 'Living Large on a Small Budget' on the masthead of the website. So if you want to learn how to save money from everyday people, this is the place to go.  Wise Bread writers share both their own experiences and tips...so the site is really, really good for advice on the everyday challenges of spending less and saving more.

Wise Bread has sections on Credit Cards, Personal Finance, Frugal Living, Career, Life Hacks, Best Deals, Top PF Blogs and more.  Note also that the site has a search box at the top right side of the screen.  Discussing each of these sections in detail would result in far more than a simple blog post. It has the makings of a chapter of book.  So I'll discuss just one section of the Wise Bread website: Frugal Living.  Readers can click this link to go to the main Wise Bread page and peruse the rest of the site on his or her own...besides, isn't that half the fun of the web?

The Frugal Living section of Wise Bread is broken up into sub-channels: Budgeting, DIY, Entertainment, Food and Drink, Green Living, Health and Beauty, Home, Lifestyle, Shopping, Style and Travel.

Under the various sub-channels are popular articles and the latest articles in budgeting.  As of 10/14/15 the top 3 articles on budgeting were:
1. How Much Engagement Ring Can You Actually Afford?
2. These 5 Apps Will Help You Finally Organized Your Money?
3. Best Money tips: Common Mistakes in Your Family Budget

And the list has at least a dozen other articles that readers might do well to read.  Readers can make comments on the various articles, share them via Facebook, Tweet them via Twitter and Pin them via Pinterest.

Finally, readers can subscribe to the site by clicking on this link.  Content is powered by Feedburner and users can subscribe using a variety of web-based news readers. 

So if you are interested in saving money, or learning about personal finance or getting career information or getting the inside scoop on credit cards, you might want to visit Wise Bread!

Regards,
Stu

A Possible Government Shut Down...

Hi All,

You've probably all heard the phrase recently, 'Government Shut down' regarding the budget deal that might not get approved by the U.S Congress...If not, click on this link from CBS News for some video and accompanying text that explains that might happen, and why, if Congress doesn't strike a budget deal.

Let me make it clear at the outset of this post - I am NOT taking any political sides to this issue. I'm being a political agnostic and just giving readers - as they say - the facts....

Long-time readers know that I like to use Wikipedia for a quick look-see for various topics that I write about.  The possible government shutdown is no different.  Readers should click on this link to see a Wikipedia entry about 'government shutdowns'.

Let us start at the beginning...what is causing the possibility of us having a government shutdown? Well, as this video and article explain, its simply a budget issue...click here for the link to the article and video - via USA Today.   Finally, you might want to get the New York Times view from this link, or the Washington Post view from this link.

So what actually happens when there is a government shutdown?  Indeed, the exact details of which government functions that would stop is determined by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB).  Click here for a link to the OMB. Specifically, this link will give readers more information about what exactly happens during a government shutdown.

Unfortunately the OMB told various government agencies to start making shutdown plans on September 18th in preparation of the October 1st deadline.   USA Today posted a helpful article about the affects of the government shutdown back on September 28th. Entitled, 'Questions and Answers About Government Shutdown' this is a good summary article of the whole event - which may, or may not take place. Click here for the article.

So there you have it - a few good links that will help you understand the government shutdown in more detail. Enjoy!

Regards,
Stu