The Waxman-Markey and Kerry-Boxer bills send the wrong message to those who would abuse the public trust

Taxpayers should demand a permanent ban on funding to ethically challenged ACORN

By Online: Caroline May Friday, January 22, 2010

WASHINGTON, D.C. — If you think Congress stripped all federal funding from the ethically-challenged group ACORN, think again.

Though it voted to ban federal funding for ACORN — aka the Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now — this September, funding for the disgraced group could resume whenever Congress stops renewing the continuing resolution containing the funding ban.

What’s more, ACORN could receive a windfall should the cap-and-trade legislation now making its way through the Senate eventually become law.

In June, the U.S. House passed the American Clean Energy and Security Act — better known as Waxman-Markey for its Democratic sponsors, Henry Waxman of California and Ed Markey of Massachusetts — ostensibly to alleviate global warming by mandating an 83 percent reduction in U.S. carbon emissions by 2050.

A similar bill, introduced in the Senate by Barbara Boxer (D-CA) and John Kerry (D-MA), has been approved by the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee. Buried in both bills are provisions that would allocate vast amounts of federal money to community development organizations such as ACORN.

Members of Congress who played to public outrage by vociferously objecting to ACORN’s abuses may now want to take the time to read some of the more obscure provisions of the proposed climate bills.

Section 264 in the Waxman-Markey bill provides up to $300,000,000 in funding for “community development organizationsâ€