This Week in Waste - March 15, 2025       

Welcome to This Week in Waste, a series by Citizens Against Government Waste that highlights how taxpayer dollars are being wasted on the local, state, and federal levels.

Congress Again Fails to Pass Annual Appropriations Bills           

In the past 50 years, members of Congress have passed the required appropriations bills on time in only four years, resorting instead to a continuing resolution (CR) to keep the government open.  CRs keep current funding in place, which makes it difficult to both cut government funding and hampers federal agencies’ ability to effectively carry out their mission.  Congress should recommit to effectively carrying out its most basic constitutional responsibilities and should make passing all appropriations bills on time a top priority.

President Trump Overturns Biden’s Undermining of Intellectual Property

The U.S. Trade Representative releases a report reversing President Biden’s stance on intellectual property rights in trade agreements and negotiations.  Read more here.

DOGE and DOD Agree with CAGW on Making Software Purchases More Efficient

As CAGW has often noted, federal agencies have been unable to properly determine their needs for software licenses and often are creating their own software programs rather than buying them off-the-shelf.  Improved software asset management can help improve this situation.  Read more here.

President Ronald Reagan’s Speech at the Grace Commission’s 10th Anniversary Celebration, December 7, 1994

This week, CAGW shared the contents of President Ronald Reagan’s speech at the 10th Anniversary of the Grace Commission, which was the last comprehensive analysis and review of the federal government.  President Reagan noted that $240 billion had been saved so far, which is 59 percent of the $424.4 billion that the commission estimated would be saved over three years once all recommendations were fully implemented.  Read President Reagan’s full remarks here.

Missouri Wastes $100 Million on a Broken Accounting System

Like other states that have provided more transparency for taxpayers, Missouri signed a $100 million contract in 2022 for a new system to make it easier to track appropriations bills.  But the investment has failed to provide the intended results, forcing the House Budget Committee to cancel a February 11, 2025, a markup of the Governor’s proposed budget.  The committee will have to wait until after the legislature’s spring break to finish their work before the House can vote on and send the budget to the state Senate.  House Budget Committee Chairman Dirk Deaton (R-Seneca) said, “It seems to work at this point, but not necessarily as good as the old system we had.  A step backwards seems less than acceptable.”

Check back next week for more examples of how the government is squandering the taxpayer’s money.