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NEWS ABOUT: Government waste

It's Not Just Waste: Fraud Rampant at GSA

It clawed back $376M last year

(Newser) - The General Services Administration's Vegas shindig was just the tip of the iceberg. The GSA is so loaded with cash that it's a magnet for fraud and abuse, the Los Angeles Times reports. From October 2010 to September 2011 alone, the agency prosecuted 64 cases in which people... More »

Prime Sign of California Waste: Kangaroo Report

And Gov. Jerry Brown wants it, 717 other reports, eliminated

(Newser) - If Gov. Jerry Brown has his way, California's lawmakers will soon find themselves much less informed about pertinent topics like Australia's annual kangaroo harvest and the DOT's use of waste tires. Brown ordered that state agencies and departments be audited at the end of last year, and... More »

GSA Officials Did 1 Hour of Work on 7-Day Hawaii Trip

Flew out on a Saturday, returned on Friday to attend ribbon-cutting

(Newser) - The General Services Administration is truly the gift that keeps on giving , at least for those who love tales of government malfeasance. Rep. John Mica yesterday revealed another juicy tidbit born from the probe into the agency, reports The Hill . A number of GSA officials traveled to Hawaii on a... More »

GSA Nixes New Vegas Conference

Sin City conference canceled in wake of uproar

(Newser) - In the wake of all the uproar over its $822,000 conference in Las Vegas in 2010, the General Services Administration has decided it may not be a good idea to return to Sin City this year, the Washington Post reports. Thus, the GSA axed "GreenUP 2012 Training Conference... More »

US Agency's Vegas Scandal: They Had a Talent Contest

The winner rapped about government excess ... seriously

(Newser) - One last cherry on top of that $822,000 Vegas party thrown by the General Services Administration that cost three top officials their jobs: They had a talent contest. Better yet: The winner of the contest is a ukulele-playing federal employee who made a six-minute video in which he raps... More »

Federal Heads Roll Over $822K Vegas Party

Waste included $6K in coins honoring GSA's work on stimulus

(Newser) - What happens in Vegas ... has come back to bite a federal agency that decided to throw itself an $822,000 conference that was every bit as posh as it was ill-advised. Martha Johnson, the administrator of the General Services Administration, has quit over the brouhaha, acknowledging in her resignation letter... More »

Kiss $1 Coins Goodbye

US Mint will stop attempting to circulate unpopular coins

(Newser) - The US government has caught on, once again, to the fact that nobody really likes $1 coins, and it will cut production of the latest version. The coins, bearing the likenesses of dead presidents, were mandated by Congress in 2005 and began production in 2007. But government vaults have built... More »

On Way Out, Medicare Boss Bashes 'Extreme' Waste

Donald Berwick says 20-30% of health care spending helps no one

(Newser) - Between 20% and 30% of all US health care spending is pure “waste,” according to departing Medicare and Medicaid chief Donald Berwick. “Much is done that does not help patients at all, and many physicians know it,” Berwick said in an interview with the New York ... More »

I Want 20% Less Spending on Swag: Obama

Tasks federal agencies with trimming the fat in four other areas, too

(Newser) - If you happen to be sipping from a promotional coffee cup bestowed on you by a federal agency, hang on to it: You might not be getting a new one anytime soon. As part of his "We Can't Wait" campaign, President Obama will today announce his latest effort:... More »

Alaska to Build $64M 'Runway to Nowhere'

Akutan strip will mostly be funded by federal taxpayers

(Newser) - Meet the Bridge to Nowhere’s little brother. Alaska is preparing to build a $64 million, 4,500-foot runway on tiny Akun Island, with the federal government footing the vast majority of the bill ($59 million to the state’s $5 million), according to an Alaska Dispatch report spotted by... More »

Feds Axing Half of .Gov Websites

Sites cut in campaign to cut waste

(Newser) - The federal government is planning to ax or consolidate nearly half of its 2,000 websites in an effort to cut waste and make it easier to find information online. The plan, part of a larger campaign to cut waste, will see close to a quarter of the .gov sites... More »

Congress: US Wasting Billions in War on Drugs

Pair of reports blast counter-narcotics spending in Latin America

(Newser) - The Obama administration has essentially no evidence that the billions spent combating the drug trade in Latin America have done anything to stem the flow of narcotics into the US, according to a pair of scathing new congressional reports. “We are wasting tax dollars and throwing money at a... More »

Christie Takes State Chopper to Son's Baseball Game...

...so he can take it back and meet with Iowa GOP

(Newser) - Chris Christie, known for his aversion to government waste, used a New Jersey State Police helicopter yesterday afternoon to attend son Andrew's high school baseball game. Christie and first lady Mary Pat Christie were met at the adjacent football field, reports the Star-Ledger, and driven the remaining 100 yards... More »

Feds Often Have 75 Programs Doing One Thing: Review

GAO recommends combining some

(Newser) - The government is positively brimming with overlapping programs and offices, potentially producing billions in waste, according to a new report from the nonpartisan Government Accountability Office. There are, for example, 82 federal programs for improving teacher quality, 80 for helping poor people with their transportation needs, 47 for job training... More »

'Tens of Billions' Wasted on War Contractors: Report

'Criminal behavior and blatant corruption' a bad combo with 'ill-conceived projects'

(Newser) - The US has misspent “tens of billions of dollars” on contractors in Iraq and Afghanistan—at minimum—according to a new report from a bipartisan commission set up to scrutinize the issue. The report bemoaned problems like “ill-conceived projects,” “poor planning and oversight by the US... More »

Prof Gets $700K in Stimulus Cash to Write Jokes

Take my tax dollars ... please!

(Newser) - Here’s a knee-slapper for you: A Northwestern University professor has snagged $712,883 worth of stimulus funds for his efforts to teach computers how to create jokes. Kristian Hammond and his grad students are working on a “machine-generated humor” project that aims to create “structured queries that... More »

Uncle Sam Buys $5 Meatballs

Audit criticizes DOJ for wasting taxpayer money on pricey lunches

(Newser) - The Justice Department shells out $5 per meatball and nearly as much for a can of soda when it invites folks for lunch, an audit says. And don't forget the cookies: Justice ran up a $13,000 tab on those at 10 recent conferences. The audit says no laws were... More »

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