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Burn The Playbook

Follow the money. Show the work.
Household Bill Ledger · A growing record

Who decided.
Who pays.

Every row is one decision that lands on a household bill, with the date, the institution or vote behind it, the number, and the primary source. This ledger grows every week. Health costs come first because they are the biggest line.

28 rows · started October 2026 · each row links to its source and to the issue that argued it

Get the new rows every Tuesday →

Health 12

  1. $2.2 billion

    Subsidy money CMS expects to claw back; 440,000 more enrollees under investigation

    Decided by
    CMS
    Who pays
    Enrollees in cancelled or flagged plans
    Date
    2026-09-23

    Source: Morgan Lewis, Sep 2026 (citing 91 Fed. Reg. 60317) Read the issue #hb-007

  2. 760,000+ people

    Marketplace coverage cancelled as unauthorized enrollments

    Decided by
    CMS
    Who pays
    Enrollees whose coverage was cancelled
    Date
    2026-09-22

    Source: AHA News, Sep 22, 2026 Read the issue #hb-006

  3. +15% median

    Median proposed 2027 premium increase across 276 insurers

    Decided by
    ACA Marketplace insurers, in 2027 rate filings
    Who pays
    Everyone buying 2027 Marketplace coverage
    Date
    2026-07-08

    Source: Peterson-KFF Health System Tracker, Jul 2026 Read the issue #hb-008

  4. 80 hours a month

    Medicaid community engagement requirement

    Decided by
    CMS, interim final rule CMS-2454-IFC
    Who pays
    Medicaid adults subject to the rule
    Date
    2026-06-03

    Source: Federal Register, Jun 3, 2026 Read the issue #hb-010

  5. 22.1M to 19.2M (-13%)

    Paid Marketplace enrollment

    Decided by
    Congress, by letting the enhanced ACA premium tax credits expire
    Who pays
    People who dropped or lost Marketplace coverage
    Date
    2026-02

    Source: KFF, June 2026 Read the issue #hb-003

  6. +58% (avg $113 to $178 a month)

    Monthly premium payments for Marketplace customers after tax credits

    Decided by
    Congress, by letting the enhanced ACA premium tax credits expire
    Who pays
    People buying their own coverage on the ACA Marketplace
    Date
    2026-01-01

    Source: KFF, May 2026 Read the issue #hb-001

  7. +114% (KFF projection)

    Projected premium payment increase for subsidized enrollees who kept the same plan

    Decided by
    Congress, by letting the enhanced ACA premium tax credits expire
    Who pays
    Subsidized Marketplace enrollees
    Date
    2026-01-01

    Source: KFF, May 2026 Read the issue #hb-002

  8. $2,759 to $3,786 (+37%)

    Average ACA Marketplace deductible

    Decided by
    Marketplace buyers pushed from silver to bronze plans after the credits expired
    Who pays
    Marketplace enrollees
    Date
    2026-01-01

    Source: AJMC, May 2026 Read the issue #hb-004

  9. 51-48, short of the 60 needed

    Cloture on extending the enhanced premium tax credit failed

    Decided by
    U.S. Senate, Roll Call Vote 644 on S. 3385
    Who pays
    Marketplace enrollees who lost the enhanced credit
    Date
    2025-12-11

    Source: U.S. Senate, Dec 11, 2025 Read the issue #hb-005

  10. -5.2 million adults (CBO)

    Federal Medicaid coverage by 2034 under work requirements

    Decided by
    Congress, 2025 budget reconciliation law (work requirements)
    Who pays
    Adults on Medicaid
    Date
    2025-07-04

    Source: KFF, citing CBO Read the issue #hb-009

  11. 3.2M denials; 81.7% of appeals overturned

    Prior authorization denials in 2023, and how often appeals win

    Decided by
    Medicare Advantage insurers
    Who pays
    Medicare Advantage enrollees
    Date
    2025-01-29

    Source: AHA News, citing KFF, Jan 2025 Read the issue #hb-011

  12. 75% (~216,000 a year)

    Share of their own denials overturned on appeal, 2014 to 2016

    Decided by
    Medicare Advantage organizations
    Who pays
    Medicare Advantage enrollees
    Date
    2018-09

    Source: HHS OIG, OEI-09-16-00410 Read the issue #hb-012

Food 1

  1. 100% of Indiana's SNAP caseload

    Soft drinks and candy barred from SNAP purchases; comment period opened Sep 15, 2026

    Decided by
    USDA, approving Indiana's SNAP food-restriction waiver
    Who pays
    Indiana SNAP households
    Date
    2026-01-01

    Source: Federal Register 2026-18894 Read the issue #hb-013

Mail 3

  1. +$1.40 to $20.80 a package

    Temporary holiday surcharge on Priority Mail Express at retail, Zones 1 to 9

    Decided by
    U.S. Postal Service
    Who pays
    Anyone mailing a package for the holidays
    Date
    2026-08-25

    Source: USPS, Aug 25, 2026 Read the issue #hb-014

  2. +$0.50 to $3.90 a package

    Temporary holiday surcharge on retail Priority Mail and Ground Advantage, Zones 1 to 4

    Decided by
    U.S. Postal Service
    Who pays
    Anyone mailing a package for the holidays
    Date
    2026-08-25

    Source: USPS, Aug 25, 2026 Read the issue #hb-015

  3. 78 cents to 82 cents (+5%)

    First-Class Forever stamp price

    Decided by
    U.S. Postal Service, reviewed by the Postal Regulatory Commission (Docket R2026-1)
    Who pays
    Anyone mailing a letter, bill or ballot
    Date
    2026-07-12

    Source: USPS, Apr 9, 2026 Read the issue #hb-021

Freight 1

  1. 4 Class I railroads

    BNSF, CSX, Norfolk Southern and Union Pacific found revenue adequate for 2025

    Decided by
    Surface Transportation Board
    Who pays
    Shippers, and buyers of anything moved by rail
    Date
    2026-10-08

    Source: Federal Register 2026-20878 Read the issue #hb-016

Wages and rent 7

  1. +3.6% (about +$75 a month average retirement benefit)

    Social Security cost-of-living adjustment

    Decided by
    Social Security Administration, by formula
    Who pays
    Paid to about 72 million beneficiaries; Medicare Part B comes out of most checks
    Date
    2027-01-01

    Source: SSA, Oct 14, 2026 Read the issue #hb-022

  2. $184,500 to $192,300

    Maximum wages subject to Social Security tax

    Decided by
    Social Security Administration, by formula
    Who pays
    Workers earning above the old cap
    Date
    2027-01-01

    Source: SSA, Oct 14, 2026 Read the issue #hb-023

  3. $17.40 an hour

    California minimum wage

    Decided by
    California Department of Finance, annual inflation adjustment
    Who pays
    Employers; raises pay for minimum-wage workers
    Date
    2027-01-01

    Source: California DIR, Aug 13, 2026 Read the issue #hb-024

  4. $16.94 to $17.48 an hour

    Connecticut minimum wage

    Decided by
    Connecticut, 2019 indexing law
    Who pays
    Employers; raises pay for minimum-wage workers
    Date
    2027-01-01

    Source: CT Governor, Aug 5, 2026 Read the issue #hb-025

  5. $17.13 to $17.73 an hour (+3.5%)

    Washington minimum wage

    Decided by
    Washington Department of Labor and Industries
    Who pays
    Employers; raises pay for minimum-wage workers
    Date
    2027-01-01

    Source: WA L&I, Sep 30, 2026 Read the issue #hb-026

  6. $34.73 an hour needed

    National two-bedroom Housing Wage versus the average renter wage of $24.84

    Decided by
    Rental market (no federal action)
    Who pays
    Renters
    Date
    2026-07

    Source: NLIHC, Out of Reach 2026 Read the issue #hb-018

  7. $7.25 an hour

    Federal minimum wage

    Decided by
    Congress, which has not raised it since
    Who pays
    Workers paid the federal minimum
    Date
    2009-07-24

    Source: U.S. Department of Labor Read the issue #hb-017

Tariffs 1

  1. $166 billion collected

    Tariffs collected; at least $100 billion refunded to importing companies as of Aug 4, 2026

    Decided by
    The administration, under IEEPA tariffs later ruled illegal
    Who pays
    Consumers who paid higher prices
    Date
    2026-08-07

    Source: Sen. Warren press release, Aug 7, 2026 Read the issue #hb-019

Government 1

  1. $11 billion

    CBO estimate of output lost in a six-week shutdown

    Decided by
    Congress, in last fall's shutdown
    Who pays
    Federal workers, contractors and the economy
    Date
    2025-10-29

    Source: CNBC, citing CBO, Oct 29, 2025 (secondary) Read the issue #hb-020

Energy 2

  1. Request $68.6M (+21.9%); about +$9.31 a month at 826 kWh for the full request

    Delmarva Power electric distribution rates; half of the requested increase in effect subject to refund

    Decided by
    Delaware Public Service Commission (Docket 25-1555, Order No. 11037)
    Who pays
    Delmarva residential and business customers
    Date
    2026-07-09

    Source: Delaware PSC notice, Jul 2026 Read the issue #hb-027

  2. About $456M a year requested (company figure)

    Consumers Energy electric rate request

    Decided by
    Michigan Public Service Commission (Case U-22070), decision pending
    Who pays
    Consumers Energy electric customers
    Date
    2026-06-02

    Source: MPSC ALJ schedule, Jul 1, 2026 Read the issue #hb-028

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