Posted on 04/26/2013 10:39:35 AM PDT by dila813
Quick run down on budget management in the federal government:
1. Prior to the start of the year, you made a budget request 10% higher than last year's budget
2. At the beginning of the fiscal year you are given a budget target to spend for the year
3. During the year, if you are running short due to demand you put in requests for supplemental funds
4. As you approach the end of the year, if it appears you are going to still have money left. You have to spend it, you look for items that aren't perishable and have a long time for storage (great place to look are items you placed a large number of orders during the year, as in number of orders not number of items). This routinely happens in Republican Administrations, in Democrat Administrations it can be 2-3x what you would normally see. I believe this is because the Dems are poor planners and only have eyes for key projects.
Ok, Baseline budgeting
1. Prior year exceptional spending becomes part of the base line budget going forward (like billions of dollars in upgraded luggage and people scanners in airports)
2. .... etc... rinse and repeat leading to inflated budgets
Ok, Supply Chains:
... commodities like ammo are produced linearly throughout the year because the inventory is cheaper than having excess capacity to react to changes in demand
further, when orders come in, no one is going to turn down the order no matter how big, but since it was such a huge order it took away all this critical buffer inventory leading to shortages when the public demand picked up at the same time eliminating all their inventory in their distribution channels.
DING! DING! DING! This is the SINGLE worst thing about the federal government.
In business, you are praised if you save money for the company. In government you are encoraged to spend it all, OR ELSE.
There is no incentive to save.
If we had a one-year program where anyone in the fed govt could get 10% of ANY money they saved, I bet the budget would be cut in half in one year.
but that would become their budget from then on.
Back in my Purchasing Agent days we used to call that “Different Color Money” ... Fed $ for Hurricanes (and other Natural Disasters) was “Free Money” and all Money (no matter what color) was to be spent before Oct
TT
In government, it is like of like my Wife’s idea on sales, you only save when you spend....
It’s crazy, insane, its our government at work
So another guy or gal that had to manage the operating budget..
I am so glad I don’t do that anymore. It corrupted me ethically and hurt my personal life.
I didn’t realize it at the time, but looking back I know it is true.
Cheerio, I am telling you. I did this job, this rule wasn’t communicated to us.
If you are arguing that this was against the law, maybe it was. I am telling you what really goes on.
We were under clear directions to spend that money no matter what. If you didn’t and you messed up, your career would be hurt.
The IDIQ contract vehicle only sets out the T&Cs of the contract and the pricing schedule. EACH DELIVERY ORDER MUST INCLUDE THE APPROPRIATION CITATION WHICH WOULD IDENTIFY WHAT THE SOURCE OF FUNDS ARE. e.g. O&M funds cannot be used to purchase an item of supply or a service for a future year’s USE.
I hear ya - I also worked this issue but from the Contractor side.
I am looking at what you linked, but this was for contracting agents for the US Government and not those managing the operating budgets.
Purchasing Agents buy off contracts and directly from suppliers based on a requisition.
Operating budget managers create the requisitions.
As far as the Purchasing agent is concerned, the requisition is the justification needed for making the buy.
yeah, I have seen contract delivery schedules get moved up just to be able to spend the money in the current fiscal year, like a ship overhaul or truck maintenance.
And how many clueless viewers do you think would actually comprehend the video and know what they were looking at was not a setup? Do you know how much room 5000 rounds of 40S&W takes up? Can you tell if a purported 10,000 rounds of 5.56 is actually ammo in storage and not empty containers in storage? And how many rounds do the government army use for practice per year since they can’t hit an unarmed 19 year old with 200 rounds of rifle fire?
Here is why I think they are buying ammo: they are wary of riots and want to have the ability to kill protestors.
What video?
I we have government warehouses with a million sqft, we don’t even have to worry about the space because the warehouses are also part of this budgeting process. They are supposed to make more warehouse space available and if they run out they go and rent outside storage.
In other words, “not my budget” and “not my problem”
Prove it. I have never seen that the US government as a whole bought as my ammo under the Bush administration as the Obama administration is purchasing. I think you are a troll making up stories to lower public awareness of these huge purchases.
If they buy up all the ammo, they don’t have to take your guns — they’re useless.
Or new furniture. Commerce did that two years in a row.
“MYTH: DHS purchased an unprecedented 450 million rounds of .40 S&W 180gr hollow point bullets in 2012.
FACT: This is a standard five year contract that follows a historical purchasing pattern of DHS. Furthermore, it is not an “unprecedented” purchase by DHS. In fact, it is not even a purchase by DHS but by Immigrations and Customs Enforcement (ICE).
Starting in 2003, orders of 50 million and 225 million .40 S&W hollow point ammunition totaling 275 million rounds were purchased. After the expiration of the five year contracts in 2008, ICE purchased an additional 575 million rounds of .40 S&W hollow point ammunition with two separate orders (200 million and 375 million). Now, with the expiration of the 2008 contract, ICE has ordered a maximum of 450 million rounds over the next five years.”
http://www.breitbart.com/Big-Government/2013/04/04/The-Great-DHS-Ammunition-Stockpile-Myth
Or, if you don’t believe Breitbart, go to www.fbo.gov and look up the purchases yourself, it’s all a matter of public record, so there is no excuse for ignorance.
Now, who is the troll “making up stories”? Me, who presents facts, or the paranoid conspiracy mongers, who omit them?
There are several FReepers who will belong shortly to give you the ‘Harry Reid Lecture’ on ‘Imagined Tyranny’ shortly.
I do not agree w/ your accessment.
I can’t wait
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