Taxpayers for Common Sense

What Taxpayers for Common Sense does

Taxpayers for Common Sense (TCS) is an independent, nonpartisan nonprofit policy research and advocacy organization founded in 1995 by Jill Lancelot and Rafael DeGennaro in Washington, DC. It operates as a fiscal watchdog dedicated to identifying wasteful federal spending, exposing earmarks and special-interest giveaways, and advocating for budget process reforms across defense, agriculture, energy, transportation, disaster policy, and budget and tax issues. The organization has historically achieved bipartisan policy outcomes, including contributing to the cancellation of the F-22 Raptor program, elimination of the Volumetric Ethanol Excise Tax Credit, and the end of the Overseas Contingency Operations slush fund.

TCS's core deliverables include the Weekly Wastebasket newsletter distributed to thousands of Congressional staff, agency officials, journalists, and activists; the Budget Watchdog All Federal podcast; multiple public databases tracking earmarks, Congressional Pentagon budget increases, IRA/IIJA spending, wildfire spending, and federal onshore oil and gas leasing revenue losses; analytical reports and deep dives; Congressional testimony and formal comments; and recognition awards including the Golden Fleece Award, Mr. Smith Goes to Washington Award, and Taxpayers Hall of Fame. It holds Charity Navigator Four-Star and GuideStar Platinum transparency recognitions.

The business model is donation-based: TCS is funded entirely by individual donors and private foundations and explicitly does not accept government funding, corporate donations, or money from parties with a financial stake in its advocacy. All content is distributed free of charge, with 90% of expenditures allocated to program activities per independent audit. The organization is governed by a Board of Directors chaired by Meredith McGehee, with operational leadership from President Steve Ellis and Vice President Autumn Hanna, supported by a small staff of policy analysts, directors, and operations personnel.

Name

Taxpayers for Common Sense

Legal name

Taxpayers for Common Sense

Website

https://taxpayer.net

Company type

Private

Founded year

1995

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Taxpayers for Common Sense is an independent, nonpartisan nonprofit watchdog founded in 1995 that researches federal spending, publishes the Weekly Wastebasket newsletter and Budget Watchdog AF podcast, maintains public spending databases, and testifies before Congress on wasteful programs and earmarks.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Government Budget Advocacy and Fiscal Policy Research

NAICS

Executive, Legislative, and Other General Government Support (921), Public Finance Activities (921130), Professional Organizations (81392), Public Administration (92)

akta.pro primary industry

Policy, Regulatory & Public Affairs Research (BPAHALAF)

akta.pro secondary industries

Central Government Policy, Strategy & Performance (incl. OMB-style functions) (BPAIAAAB), Taxpayer Services, Education & Outreach (BPAIADAM)

Keywords

• Fiscal policy advocacy
• Budget watchdog research
• Government spending oversight
• Nonpartisan budget analysis
• Taxpayer advocacy services

Headquarters

HQ city

Washington

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. Individual Donations: TCS is funded entirely by individual donors and private foundations. They explicitly do not accept government funding, corporate donations, or money from anyone with a financial stake in their advocacy work.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

Taxpayers for Common Sense (TCS) is an independent, nonpartisan budget watchdog that conducts fiscal policy research and advocacy on federal spending. Its core work includes identifying wasteful government programs and special-interest giveaways across defense, agriculture, energy, transportation, and disaster policy; producing analytical reports, deep-dive briefings, and Congressional testimony; and publishing public databases, the Weekly Wastebasket newsletter, and the Budget Watchdog All Federal podcast to inform policymakers, journalists, and the public. The organization operates without government, corporate, or special-interest funding and is supported entirely by individual donors and private foundations.

Product overview

Taxpayers for Common Sense is a nonpartisan watchdog organization (not a technology product company) that provides fiscal oversight through advocacy and transparency tools. Its offerings include the Weekly Wastebasket newsletter, the Budget Watchdog All Federal podcast, multiple public databases tracking government spending (Congressional Pentagon Budget Increases, Wildfire Spending, IRA/IIJA Spending, Earmarks, and Federal Oil & Gas Leasing Revenue Loss), analytical reports and deep dives, Congressional testimony and comments, and recognition awards including the Golden Fleece Award, Mr. Smith Goes to Washington Award, and Taxpayers Hall of Fame. The organization focuses on budget and tax, agriculture, energy and natural resources, national security, transportation, and disaster policy issues.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Weekly Wastebasket Newsletter Free weekly newsletter that highlights wasteful government spending, provides analysis of federal budget decisions and their impact on taxpayers, and is distributed to thousands of Congressional staff, agency officials, journalists, and activists.
• Budget Watchdog All Federal Podcast Free podcast dedicated to making sense of budget, spending, and tax issues facing the nation, featuring TCS experts and guests discussing federal fiscal policy; available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and Overcast.
• Congressional Pentagon Budget Increases Database Free public database tracking Congressional additions to the Pentagon budget, documenting program increases for transparency on defense spending.
• Wildfire Spending Database Free public database tracking federal wildfire spending to promote transparency and smarter use of taxpayer dollars.
• Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) Spending Database Free public database tracking Inflation Reduction Act spending to monitor federal investments and fiscal impacts.
• Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) Spending Database Free public database tracking Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act spending to ensure accountability for infrastructure investments.
• 2024 Earmarks Database Free public database cataloging Congressional earmarks included in the 2024 federal budget to promote transparency on special-interest spending.
• Federal Onshore Oil & Gas Leasing Revenue Loss Dashboard Free interactive dashboard tracking projected revenue lost since July 4, 2025 from federal onshore oil and gas leasing decisions, showing approximately $1.46 billion in losses.
• Golden Fleece Award Award presented by TCS to federal programs deemed wasteful and outrageous, continuing the tradition started by Senator William Proxmire.
• Mr. Smith Goes to Washington Award Award recognizing lawmakers and citizen activists whose leadership and dedication have made a difference to taxpayers.
• Taxpayers Hall of Fame Honor recognizing leaders whose work has left a lasting mark in the fight against wasteful spending.
• Analysis and Research Reports Detailed analytical reports on budget, tax, agriculture, energy, national security, and transportation issues affecting taxpayers.
• Comments & Testimony Formal comments submitted to government agencies and Congressional testimony advocating for taxpayer interests.
• Deep Dives In-depth explorations of federal budget issues including the Presidential Budget Request, Budget Reconciliation, Congressional Appropriations, Earmarks, the Farm Bill, and Pentagon Audits.

Quantifiable outcome

• Helped kill the $944 million Auburn Dam
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers1 record

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Green Scissors CoalitioncoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerTCS partners with conservation and consumer groups in the Green Scissors project to cut wasteful and environmentally harmful spending. The coalition opposes subsidies that harm both taxpayers and the environment, including biofuel mandates and fossil fuel subsidies.
• Project on Government Oversight (POGO)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerTCS and POGO released a joint 'Pentagon Cut List' in July 2026, identifying areas for defense spending reductions.
• Fiscal Responsibility Groups CoalitioncoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerTCS collaborates with other fiscal responsibility groups to urge appropriators to reduce Pentagon spending and promote budget process reforms.
• Inspectors General for Iraq and AfghanistanminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerTCS helped create Inspectors General for Iraq and Afghanistan war spending and tracked billions in bailout dollars going to banks.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Citizens Against Government Waste: Nonpartisan watchdog founded in 1984 by billionaire industrialist J. Peter Grace. Publishes Congressional Pig Book, Prime Cuts, and operates the Council for Citizens Against Government Waste. Directly comparable as a long-standing fiscal accountability nonprofit targeting earmarks and wasteful spending.
• Common Cause: Nonpartisan watchdog founded in 1970 that promotes government accountability and campaign finance reform. Overlaps with TCS on Congressional testimony, transparency advocacy, and special-interest influence investigations.
• National Taxpayers Union: Oldest taxpayer advocacy organization in the U.S. (founded 1969). Focuses on tax policy, federal spending, and government reform; comparable as a fiscal watchdog that engages with Congress on budget issues and produces taxpayer-focused research.
• Project on Government Oversight (POGO): Independent nonpartisan government watchdog investigating corruption and misuse of power. TCS actively partnered with POGO on the Pentagon Cut List in July 2026, demonstrating their overlapping focus on federal spending oversight and accountability.
• Center for Responsive Politics / OpenSecrets: Research group tracking money in U.S. politics and lobbying influence. TCS's Director of Campaigns Michael Surrusco tracked special-interest influence via campaign contributions at prior roles, making this a closely adjacent transparency peer.

Emerging players

• OpenTheBooks: Transparency nonprofit run by Adam Andrzejewski that uses open records requests and AI to map federal, state, and local spending. Comparable as a modern public-spending watchdog with a stronger technology/data orientation than TCS.
• Government Accountability Project: Nonprofit protecting whistleblowers and promoting government accountability. Complementary mission to TCS in exposing waste, fraud, and abuse in federal agencies, with some overlap in Pentagon and contractor oversight.
• U.S. PIRG: Federation of state Public Interest Research Groups advocating for consumer protection, government reform, and fiscal responsibility. Comparable as a nonpartisan advocacy organization that publishes research and engages in coalition advocacy.
• Center for Effective Government: Formerly OMB Watch, this nonprofit promotes transparent, accountable government and open records. Comparable as a focused transparency advocate with similar Congressional engagement and coalition partnerships.

Broad incumbents

• Pew Charitable Trusts: Major nonprofit that funds research and advocacy across multiple policy areas including government performance and fiscal policy. Significantly larger and broader in scope than TCS but shares the model of donor-funded, evidence-based policy research.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/taxpayers
• YouTubeyoutube.com/user/TaxpayersVideo
• Facebookfacebook.com/taxpayers
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/taxpayers-for-common-sense

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles18 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Taxpayers for Common Sense