T-13 #7: Examples of Shamefully Wasted Tax Dollars

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Every wasted tax-dollar is one less dollar for real needs. Congress budgets big money for departments and programs, but the executive branch often oversees spending details -- deciding whether to outsource, with whom, and how to manage the contracts.

Several factors can lead to wasted tax dollars: 1) on the contractors part -- shoddy work, waste, or fraud; and 2) on the government's part -- failure to properly negotiate contracts or to oversee contractors' performance. Below are just thirteen of the hundreds of available examples.

1. Mega-contractor Booz Allen Hamilton reportedly charged us taxpayers twice as much for contract employees ($42 - $383 per hour) than government employees typically earn. Apparently, government staff negotiated the contracts to allow this. Might it be cheaper to hire staff?

2. Abbot Labs settled lawsuits for $382 million after it allegedly offered illegal kickbacks to federal undercover agents to buy the company’s products, then “advised them how to fraudulently bill the government for those items.”

3. C&D Distributors falsely billed us taxpayers $998,798 to ship two 19-cent washers (among other things).

4. PacifiCare Health Systems agreed to pay $87 million to settle allegations that it (and predecessor companies) had inflated insurance claims while contracted to provide government-employee benefits.

5.  Department of Energy: a nuclear waste treatment plant was supposed to cost $4.3 billion and be finished in 2011; due to cost overruns and other problems, it will cost about $12 billion and won't be finished until 2019.

6.  Hybrid Submarine: despite 13 years and $885 million committed, we still don't have one working sub. We can't sue the contractor (Northrup Grumman) for refunds, because Navy officials accepted the flawed product "as is."

7.  Retail pharmacies Wal-Mart (2004) Rite Aid (2004), Eckerd (2002), and Walgreen (1999) settled unrelated lawsuits for a combined $23.4 million after allegedly charging federal healthcare programs full price for partially filled prescriptions.

8.  Expensive middleman: Halliburton subsidiary KBR hired a subcontractor to provide meals for troops in Kuwait: Army auditors found that dealing directly with the subcontractor could save the taxpayers $31 million a year.

9.  U.S. Embassy in Iraq: $592 million committed, yet wiring was dangerously faulty, appliances didn't work, and staff trailers emitted toxic fumes.

10. General Electric (and 2 subcontractors) paid $11.5 million to settle a government suit alleging that GE had sold defective blades for the engines of U.S. military planes and helicopters.

11. Northrup Grumman settled for $80 million government fraud suits alleging: 1) that a subsidiary overcharged the government for research and design work, and 2) that Northrop knowingly sold the Navy unmanned aerial vehicles that had defective parts. 

12. Tenet Healthcare (America's second largest for-profit hospital chain) settled lawsuits for $900 million after allegedly falsely billing Medicare and other federal programs.

13. Hurricane Katrina: after two years and billions spent, New Orleans is still not ready to face a big hurricane. 

Related BN-Politics' Posts

  * Defense Dept. Rewarding Bad Contractor Performance?

  * How the Energy Dept. Incinerated Tax Dollars

  * How the Defense Dept. Flushes Dollars Down Latrine

  * Govt. Contractors: Driving up Healthcare Costs?

  * New Orleans Still Suffering after 2 Years and Billions of Tax Dollars

  * Gov. Contractors: Driving up War's Costs? 

  * Contractors Offering Bribes to Army Personnel?

  * Taxpayers Losing Money to Engorged Contractors

  * Audit Red-Flags Contractor in Iraq

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Comments

[Friday's Child]

I'm sorry but we use Pesos not dollars, however, I think wasting is just similar as yours. Great list.
Thanks for the visit.

[Comedy Plus]

And the list goes on and on. Very well done. Very well indeed. Have a great TT. :)

[Malcolm]

I seem to remember reading about #3 on your list. Wasteful indeed.

[The Gal Herself]

I love knowing this stuff, so thank you. But God, I hate how often it happens!

[Lori]

This info makes me sick...they might as well wipe their a** with it!!

[Sue]

I agree the list is probably endless! Happy TT and thanks for stopping by!

[pussreboots]

And lets not forget our wasted billions in Iraq.

[Thomma Lyn]

It's absolutely appalling, isn't it, the money that is wasted and all the smoke and mirrors and b.s.! A very enlightening list, as always.

Happy TT, and thanks for visiting mine. :)

[WhatWorksForMom]

Okay, I'm anxious to see your list each week because they are so thorough. Interesting!

[Susan Helene Gottfried]

This is scary stuff, you know. And I wish wish wish we could do more to stop it, especially because I was talking to my daughter's kindergarten teacher tonight and found a GOOD use for my tax dollars -- the district is underwriting the cost of the teacher's advanced education which is then being used to help educate my kids.

Why isn't there more of that? Why so many abuses?

*sigh*

[Journeywoman]

SIGH.

I only wish the list was exhaustive.

[Shannon]

After the billions spent on Katrina, New Orleans is still not ready for inhabitants in many areas either. :( Not fun.

[Starrlight]

#13 really really pisses me off. If you get a chance, watch When The Levees Broke.

[Marina]

Depressing. Ugh.

Never ends, does it?

Dare I wish you a Happy Thursday? ;)

[samulli]

Quite a depressing list this. And the most depressing thought is that it is the exact same in my country - probably in most countries. It's only on a bigger scale in america. Just like everything else.

[Xakara]

As bad as the list is, the fact you were able to compile it, is at least a comfort.

We can't fight it if we don't know about it.

I only wish #13 had a solution at hand...

Thanks for another informative Thurday.

~X

[Robin]

$600 MILLION for an embassy building?!? Even with all the necessary security features that's obscene!

[Tink]

We have a TV program that shows these kind of things to make us more aware. It's amazing how much money (Euro's in my case) are wasted...
Thanks for visiting my Maia pictures TT.

[Susan B.]

I hope you give us another history lesson next week, because the present is damned depressing.

[busy]

Disgusting indeed! Have a happy tax free TT!

[30plusteacher]

I wonder what would happen if we ALL simply refuse to pay our taxes....

Thanks for visiting my 13!

[tommiea]

That is a lot of wasted money.

Thanks for visiting my TT..

[Nancy]

It is obscene that our elected officials who are supposed to represent us, allow this to happen.

This must have taken some time to put together. THANKS!

[elementaryhistoryteacher]

Hi!

Thanks for visiting my post on the National Powwow. My students are learning about Native American regions right now and it seemed appropriate for times.

Enjoyed your list of waste. I see lots of waste in education as well, even though many think throwing money at the problem fixes things.

I'm for the flat tax, but I'm not really sure if it will solve the waste...

[Joely]

Just makes me *sick*. Thinking about Katrina, the MN bridge collapse, etc. Sigh. Happy TT.