I was searching house.gov for reports on IOC and corruption, and found this article. The GAO needs to be taken seriously.
"Billions of Dollars Lost in Government Waste"
WASHINGTON - Rep. Steve Horn, R-CA, chairman of a key congressional oversight subcommittee in the House of Representatives, released today a list of 15 specific examples of waste, fraud and abuse in the federal government. These examples were provided by the General Accounting Office and agency Inspector General Offices to the House Government Reform Committee’s Subcommittee on Government Management, Information, and Technology, which Horn chairs. Mr. Horn issued the following statement:
"Last week, President Clinton vetoed a bill that called for a 1 percent cut in discretionary spending throughout the federal government, saying the loss would place too great a burden on American families. The one-penny-on-the-dollar budget cut would not have affected entitlement programs, such as Social Security, Medicare or welfare programs. Meanwhile, ongoing financial waste in the government far exceeds that proposed 1 percent cut. This list is merely a sampling of the problems found within the departments and agencies of the executive branch, all of which report to the President.
"These examples illustrate that every department and agency can find savings if they are willing to tighten their belts. The president’s concern about American families is best served by insisting that the departments and agencies under his command run their financial affairs in a responsible, business-like manner.
"Today, we celebrate the fall of the Berlin Wall. It would be nice if 10 years from today we could also celebrate the end of bad management throughout the federal government."
Agriculture - In FY 1997, the department erroneously issued about $1 billion in food stamp overpayments, amounting to approximately 5 percent of the entire food stamp program. (GAO Report)
Defense - The department spent nearly $40 billion on programs for 15 overseas telecommunications systems that cannot be fully used because the department failed to obtain proper certifications and approvals from the host-nations, according to a 1999 inspector general audit. (DOD OIG Report)
· In September 1997, the Defense Department’s inventory contained $11 billion worth of unneeded equipment. (GAO Report)
· Over the last three years, the Department of the Navy wrote off $3 billion of inventory lost in transit. (GAO Report)
· During a five-year period, defense contractors voluntarily returned $4.6 billion in overpayments the department failed to detect. (GAO Report)
· The Defense Department spent an estimated $54 million on newly developed indoor firing ranges that are not being used. (DOD OIG Report)
Education - In FY 1997, the Federal Government spent more than $3.3 billion in loan guarantees for defaulted student loans, according to a GAO audit. In addition, the department had over-paid 102,000 students Pell grants totaling $109 million. The audit also found that 1,200 students falsely claimed veteran status to increase their eligibility to the program, costing taxpayers $1.9 million. (GAO Report)
Energy - Between 1980 and 1996, the Department of Energy spent more than $10 billion for 31 systems acquisition projects that were terminated before completion. (GAO Report)
Health and Human Services - The Health Care Financing Administration erroneously spent $12.6 billion in overpayments to health care providers in its Medicare fee-for-service program during FY 1998 (the most recent available). HCFA has not yet assessed the potential problem in its $33 billion Medicare Managed Care program or $98 billion Medicaid program.
Housing and Urban Development - The department estimated that it spent $857 million in 1998 in erroneous rent subsidy payments in FY 1998, about 5 percent of the entire program budget. (HUD OIG Report)
· A General Accounting Office report suggests HUD's FY 1999 budget request for $4.8 billion to renew and amend Section 8 tenant-based assisted housing contracts could have been reduced by $489 million.
Interior - The Bureau of Land Management spent an estimated $411 million on its Automated Land and Mineral Record System over a 15 year period, only to discover that the major software component, the Initial Operating Capability (IOC), failed to meet the bureau's business needs. The bureau decided not to deploy IOC and is now analyzing whether it can salvage any of the $67 million it spent on system software. (GAO Report)
Justice - The U.S. Marshals Service was unable to locate 2,776 pieces of property worth nearly $3.5 million, according to a 1997 inspector general audit. In addition, the agency’s inventory contained nearly 5,070 items, valued at more than $4 million, that were unused. (DOJ OIG Report)
Labor - From 1995 to 1997, the department spent $1 billion on its Job Corps program, only to later discover that 76 percent of its graduates had been laid off, fired or quit their first jobs within 100 days of being hired. (DOL OIG Report)
Transportation - The Federal Aviation Administration spent $4 billion on an air traffic modernization program that didn't work, and was shut down before completion. The GAO remains concerned about the agency’s poor accounting, and lack of control over assets and costs as the agency proceeds with its new $42 billion Air Traffic Modernization program.
Treasury - The IRS estimates it can collect only 11 percent of $222 billion in delinquent taxes owed the Government.
Veterans Affairs - An estimated $26.2 million a year in overpayments could be prevented if the Veterans Benefit Administration's (VBA) policy and procedures were revised and cases were properly processed, according to the department's inspector general. In 1995, the VBA waived $11.6 million in beneficiary debts owed to the VA, even though there was no evidence of records to support the actions. (GAO Report)
Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation - Currently, the States of California and Florida are holding as unclaimed property about $3.3 million that belongs to the FDIC or its receiverships. Similar problems were identified in 23 of the 24 States audited, for which no value was determined. (OIG Report)
Office of Personnel Management - In the last three years, the agency's inspector general issued 128 reports, questioning $280.3 million in inappropriate charges to the Federal Employees Health Benefits Program. (OPM OIG Report)
Small Business Administration - The agency requested and received a FY 1997 appropriation that included $50 million more than it needed for its $7.8 billion loan guarantees for the general business loan program. (GAO Report)
Social Security Administration - During FY 1998, the department erroneously spent $3.3 billion in Supplemental Security Income overpayments. (GAO Report) |
