"Beth Van Duyne" by Gage Skidmore is licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0. https://flic.kr/p/2nqh9Ug

Today, Congresswoman Beth Van Duyne (R-Texas) introduced a bill requiring the evaluation of federal agencies/programs for duplicative, wasteful, or outdated functions over the past 20 years. ATR urges lawmakers to support and cosponsor the Government Offices Realignment and Closure (GORAC) Act, which would help reduce wasteful uses of taxpayer dollars. 

Cosponsors of the legislation include Representatives Randy Weber (R-Texas), Buddy Carter (R-Ga.), Brad Finstad (R-Minn.), Tom Tiffany (R-Wisc.), Jay Obernolte (R-Calif.), and Connie Conway (R-Calif.).

Importantly, the evaluations would be conducted by a non-federal auditor, avoiding certain conflicts of interest that plague existing review processes. The bill provides specific guidelines for what kinds of recommendations they should include in a report: 

  • The consolidation of two or more federal agencies or programs if they have the same essential function or could be carried out through a single streamlined agency/program. 
  • The realignment or elimination of a federal agency/program that has wasted taxpayer funds through egregious spending, mismanagement of resources, or an inappropriate use of funds for personal benefit or the benefit of a special interest group. 
  • The elimination of a federal agency/program that, in the 20-year period, completed its intended purpose, became irrelevant, or failed to meet its objectives. 

If these recommendations are implemented, the funds saved will go towards supporting other domestic programs or paying down the national debt.  

“The Biden Administration has not controlled waste and fraud within the federal government,” said ATR President Grover Norquist. “Congresswoman Van Duyne introduced legislation that requires an independent auditor to do what Biden would not do – find, expose, and uproot fraud and waste. This legislation is needed now. Soon. Yesterday.”

Rep. Van Duyne’s bill includes exceptions from recommendations for military installations and entitlement programs/agencies that solely administer entitlement programs.  

Reducing wasteful spending is essential in gaining some control over surging inflation. 

Inflation reached 8.2 percent September, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). Core inflation, which excludes more volatile food and energy prices, reached a 40-year high at 6.6 percent. This suggests the problem of inflation will be lasting and painful. Inflation is costing American households an extra $635 a month, Even if prices stopped increasing altogether, the average American household will spend over $7,600 more this year due to inflation. 

This is largely because the federal government is flooding the economy with so much money that demand is growing too fast for production to keep up. In this way, one of the most effective ways to control inflation is to reduce government spending, especially when said spending serves no good purpose.   

If they are serious about reducing wasteful spending and helping gain control over rampant inflation, lawmakers should support this commonsense piece of legislation.