Posted on 12/04/2014 8:02:11 AM PST by yoe
Dear Taxpayers,
Regardless of where one falls on the political spectrum, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) tends to generate strongly held opinions. The agency, funded at roughly $8 billion annually in recent years, is charged with protecting human health and the environment. For the most part, this is achieved by carrying out relevant statutes through the creation, implementation, and enforcement of environmental regulations. I wanted to take this opportunity to drop you a note on my latest project to identify and eliminate waste, fraud and abuse in the federal budget. Yesterday, I released the (link) a report highlighting more than a dozen examples of wasteful and egregious spending by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), including:
[snip]
$1,100,000 to pay the salaries of eight employees who were not working due to being placed on administrative leave
$3,500,000 to fund Planning for Economic and Fiscal Health workshops across the country
$1,500,000 annually to store out-of-date and unwanted publications at an Ohio warehouse
$700,000 to attempt to reduce methane emitted from pig flatulence in Thailand
$900,000 in salary, benefits and improper bonuses paid to an oft-absent employee who fraudulently claimed to be an agent of the Central Intelligence Agency
Sounds great and go for it, but...I have heard this "waste, fraud and abuse" mantra since I became politically conscience. The best way to cut "waste, fraud and abuse" is simply to cut the $8 billion to say, $4 billion. Make the bureaucrats do the math and make the hard choices while adhering to the law.
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