Critics of the pension-consulting industry have raised strong concerns about whether brokerage commissions are a powerful source of so-called pay to play abuses.

FORBES: The Heat is On Pension Consultants (May 2, 2004 )

Most of the firms peddling this model, such as Amazon and Google, use open-source software, since having to pay licensing fees would make the business unprofitable.

ECONOMIST: Open-source software in the recession: Born free | The

That's a source of disagreement with Democrats, who want to see lower-income folks who pay Social Security but not income taxes get relief in the form of a rebate check too.

FORBES: Devilish Details

As I noted in my piece on some New Hampshire lawyers who find themselves having to pay Maine income taxes, multi-state tax issues are a source of aggravation for ordinary regional businesses or even local businesses in areas like New England, where, unless you start in northern Maine and drive south, it is very hard to go an appreciable distance without crossing a state line.

FORBES: Sprint Uses Partnership Structure to Dodge Louisiana Corporate Tax