Weekly Opinion Editorial
WASTE!
by Steve Fair
Wasteful
government spending has been an issue since America’s founding. As the country has grown, so has the budgets
at federal, state and local levels. Most
states have ‘balanced budget’ provisions, which requires that government not
spend more than they take in. That is
not the case at the federal level. In
2023, the federal government budget was $6.1 trillion ($47,000 per household). The deficit was an astonishing $1.7
trillion. With consumers paying more for
less, taxpayers are struggling while government is not impacted.
The
late Senator Tom Coburn famously published his annual ‘Wastebook,’ which
highlighted wasteful spending, unusual research projects funded by grants, and
tax breaks given to corporations. Senators
James Lankford and Rand Paul have continued the tradition and in 2024 they
identified $10.5 trillion in wasteful spending.
President Trump has created the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), headed by Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy. It’s objective is to cut the federal government
down to size. They will identify areas
of waste and encourage Congress to cut funding.
Oklahoma Speaker of the House designate Kyle Hilbert, (R-Bristow) coat tariled
DOGE by announcing the creation of a web portal where Sooner taxpayers can report
government waste, fraud, abuse and inefficiency. Limited
to 3,500 words, a taxpayer can vent about nine state agencies and their inaptitude. To rail, go to https://former.okhouse.gov/doge/
Three observations:
First, government- at all levels- is wasteful. Unlike a business or a consumer, it’s rare to
find an elected official or bureaucrat taking equity in spending. Because they are spending the taxpayer’s
money and not their own, they most often take the path of least resistance. When compensation or job performance evaluation
isn’t dependent on how tax dollars are managed, why take ownership? Until taxpayers start holding those responsible
with government oversight accountable, little will change.
Second, identifying waste is easy than eliminating it. The creation of a private group to examine
and scrutinize federal government efficiency and spending has been done twice before,
both with limited results.
In 1905, President Teddy Roosevelt created the Committee on Department
Methods (CDM) to explore ways to improve government efficiency. Headed by Charles Keep, an assistant
secretary of the Treasury, the commission exposed massive bureaucracy and
inefficiency in government procurement. Unlike
DOGE, CDM’s primary work was administrative process improvement. Few of the Keep Commission’s recommendations
were implemented.
In 1982, President Reagan appointed industrialist Peter Grace to head up
the Grace Commission, a group of 160 CEOs(all volunteers) to identify government
waste. The Commission was also charged
with finding opportunities for increased efficiency and improving managerial
and administrative controls. After 18
months, the Grace Commission’s report pointed out $424 billion of bloat. Some of their most egregious and shocking
findings were: the Department of Defense (DOD) was spending $436 for a claw
hammer and $511 for a single 60-watt lightbulb.
Only about one fourth of the
Grace Commission’s recommendations were heeded by Congress. Will DOGE do better? Remains to be seen.
Third, Oklahoma has a state auditor. Unlike the federal government, Oklahoma has a
constitutionally created office, elected by voters. The state auditor should be unleased
(authorized and funded) to do comprehensive performance audits on every agency
that receives a dime of state tax dollars.
If Oklahoma state legislators are really serious about finding waste,
that’s the way to find it. Asking
constituents to report their bad experiences at an state agency in a portal scores
points at the ballot box, but it is not a precise method to identify government
waste.
Wasteful spending is subjective. What one person considers essential and needful, another finds extravagant and unnecessary. But when it comes to government, virtually all Americans recognize tax dollars are being frittered away. Finding it is one thing- eliminating it another!
