To mark the end of 2009 and the beginning of our 15^th year of service to taxpayers, TCS staff selected the top ten Wastebasket titles over the years. Help us pick #1. Please take a look and vote for your favorite . We’ll tally the results and rerun the top vote getter as the end of the year Wastebasket. Here’s a chronological list of the top ten with a short description and a hyperlink to the original article:

“Frankly, my dear, we don’t need a dam!” (1996) – Then Reps. John Doolittle (R-CA) and Bob Matsui (D-CA) were trying to revive the $700 million Auburn Dam that had already been voted down by Congress as a boondoggle.

Alfalfa for the Little Rascals (1997) – Utah irrigation interests were pushing for a $200 million project so farmers in Southern Utah could grow alfalfa. The Government Accountability Office (GAO) found that the project would only return 23 cents for every dollar invested.

Creamed By the Corn Belt (2003) – Detailing the myriad of ethanol subsidies for Midwest corngrowers highlighting the (ultimately successful) attempts to mandate the nation use an increasing amount of the wasteful fuel additive.

A Pain in the Tongass (2005) – In 2004 taxpayers spent $48 million on logging in the Tongass National Forest, gaining only $800,000 in revenue. And even though the Tongass had a $100 million road maintenance backlog, the Forest Service was ramping up another road building and logging season.

The Duke of Hazard (2005) – Rep. Randy “Duke” Cunningham was caught taking bribes to direct contracts to a defense contractor. This was an extreme case of the pay-to-play atmosphere that permeates Washington.

Contractors Gone Wild (2006) – The FBI is supposed to catch crooks, but the contractors developing the agency’s Trilogy case management system were involved in highway robbery. Without adequate oversight the contractors flew first class on the taxpayer dime and had invoices approved that had little, if anything, to do with Trilogy.

Veni, Vidi, Veto (2007) – I came, I saw, I vetoed. After staying in a secure, undisclosed location for most of the Bush presidency, the veto pen was finally wielded on spending bills after the Democrats took control of Congress.

Pimp My Budget (2007) – In Washington, budgetary gimmicks and tricks abound making the budget look slimmer and fancier than it is in reality, much like how the crew of “Pimp My Ride” can turn a clunker into to tricked out auto on MTV.  

Dancing with the Czars (2009) – The use of policy “Czars” to tackle challenging issues in the federal government ramped up in the Obama administration. Many of these posts represent a quick public relations fix rather than deal with real structural problems.

Sur-Tax-A-Lot (2009) – Instead of dealing with the real revenue and spending problems facing the federal budget, members of Congress have grown found of proposing special extra taxes or surtaxes to fund particular programs or initiatives.

Again, please vote and we look forward to writing some more great wastebaskets in 2010. Happy Holidays to everyone from the staff here at Taxpayers for Common Sense.