Baltimore County Admits It Hasn't Been Recycling Glass for 7 Years. It Still Encourages Residents to Recycle Glass.
When ritual is more important than reuse
Government Waste
The Wall Isn't Working
Parts of Trump's expensive vanity project on the southern border have been blown over by stiff winds. Other sections will have massive holes in them, by design.
D.C.'s Cash-strapped Public Transit Agency Didn't Know It Had Hundreds of $400 Gold Pins Sitting in Storage
A recent Inspector General's report found the agency had serious problems tracking and managing its inventory.
Fed Scientists Filmed Themselves Giving Monkeys Brain Damage. A Watchdog Group Wants the Footage.
Researchers at the National Institutes of Health reportedly damaged monkeys' brains with acid before showing them pictures of fruit.
Rand Paul: Feds Wasted Millions Subsidizing Serbian Cheese Production
But at least they had enough tax dollars left over to buy a Bob Dylan-made sculpture for the U.S. embassy in Mozambique, and to get zebrafish addicted to nicotine in London.
Pentagon's Second Audit Identifies 1,300 New Problems
Despite the failure, Pentagon officials are spinning the audit as a step in the right direction.
Rand Paul Says Feds Blew Millions Supporting Tunisian Political Parties, Subsidizing Pakistani Films, and More
No single spending item is going to solve America's $22 trillion national debt, but every little bit of wasteful spending makes the tough problems more difficult to solve.
California Might Resurrect Redevelopment Agencies That Were Wasteful Exercises in Corporate Welfare
Milton Friedman famously observed that "nothing is so permanent as a temporary government program." The rare demise of a government program, it seems, is temporary too.
Subway Planners Forgot To Include Wheelchair-Friendly Platforms in $21.7 Million Accessibility Project, Audit Finds
A damning new audit of New York's Metropolitan Transportation Authority finds that subway improvement projects are plagued by delays and cost overruns.
D.C. Metro Spent $500,000 Maintaining a Self-Cleaning Toilet That Hasn't Flushed Since 2017
A new report from Metro's Office of the Inspector General details the agency's waste when dealing with riders' waste.
Thomas Massie Catches Bipartisan Flak for Suggesting Congress Actually Vote on $19 Billion in Disaster Funding
Demanding that members of Congress be in town to vote on spending huge sums of money seems reasonable.
Unsuck DC Metro Called Out Public Transportation's Failings, So Local Media Doxed Him
"When you bow to these woke scolds, they accept it as weakness."
Happy Tax Day! Here Are 6 Infuriating Ways the Government Spends Your Money
Surprised? Yeah, neither are we.
Congress Bickers Over Spending $13 or $14 Billion on Disaster Relief. They Should Spend Closer to $0.
The squabbling over federal disaster assistance reveals the bipartisan nature of wasteful spending.
Government Agrees to Stop Feeding Research Kittens Parasite-Infected Meat, Other Kittens
The Agricultural Research Service announced that it would no longer be using cats for research purposes.
Is Recycling on the Ropes?
Recycling waste streams is supposed to be economical, but many jurisdictions are discovering that's not always so.
Pentagon Spent $4.6 Million on Lobster Tail and Crab in One Month
Chalk it up to use-it-or-lose-it spending.
County Clerk Dons Mickey Costume, Slams $26K Government-Funded 'Culture Club' Trip to Disney
He brought out some fake bills to drive his point home.
CBP Paid a Contractor $13.6 Million to Hire 2 Agents
$13.6 million might be a drop in the bucket. But this is still incredibly wasteful.
The Air Force Spent Over $300,000 on 391 Special Coffee Mugs
As it turns out, the 3D-printed solution costs 50 cents
Mike Pence's National Anthem Stunt Cost More Than $300,000
That's quite a lot of money to prove your loyalty to a song. And why are we paying to send politicians to football games anyway?
Rep. Justin Amash Slams 'Pathetic' Spending Bill, Reminds Trump of His Pledge
Trump will "now be put to the test," Amash says.
FEMA Director Brock Long Racked Up $151,000 in Unauthorized Travel
One of his unauthorized trips included a tour of a pineapple plantation with his family.
Report: Federal Low Income Housing Program Lacks Basic Anti-Fraud Safeguards
The Low-Income Housing Tax Credit program is on the receiving end of yet another negative government watchdog report.
A $280 Million U.S. Aid Program Was Supposed To Help 75,000 Afghan Women. It Helped 60.
The "largest women's empowerment program" was supposed to benefit 75,000 women.
FEMA's Administrator Is Under Investigation for His Travel Habits
FEMA confirmed the investigation just one day after admitting to leaving nearly a million water bottles for storm victims on an airstrip.
FEMA Is Almost Certainly Not Ready for Hurricane Florence
If FEMA's prior record when it comes to disaster response is any indication, the agency is not going to handle this well.
The $1.7 Billion Federal Job Training Program Is a Massive Failure
The program's goals might be admirable, but the reality is a whole different story.
Trump Suggests Buying More Jet Fighters With Money Saved By Postponing Military Parade
Trump says it's D.C. politicians' fault his military parade got postponed. But at least now we can afford more jet fighters!
Trump's Ridiculous Military Parade Is Already Three Times Over Budget
Which is actually not too bad by Pentagon standards.
Report: DMV Worker Sleeps 3 Hours a Day at Work for 3+ Years, Keeps Job
Her supervisors have been aware of the problem for a while.
Taxpayers Spent Nearly $250,000 on the Trump Sons' Business Trips
The costs incurred by the Secret Service to protect President Trump's two oldest sons is astounding.
The Bill Is Finally in for Tom Price's Private Plane Trips
Federal officials are supposed to travel in a cost-efficient way. The former secretary of health and human services rarely did.
Senators Demand an Explanation After the F-35 Savings Estimate Is Off By $600 Million
The Senate asks the Pentagon's F-35 program to explain its sizable discrepancy in savings estimates.
Ben Carson Spent $31K on a Dining Table, and 5 Other Times Trump Cabinet Members Wasted Your Money
Hey, big spenders, spend a little...less of our money on yourselves?
One Pentagon Agency Lost Track of $800 Million—But Now We're Spending Even More on Defense
Because national defense is our government's top priority, Pentagon spending demands close scrutiny
The Corrupt Politics of Low-Income Housing
State officials gleefully line their own pockets at taxpayers' expense.
Republicans Have Made Two Arguments for Bringing Back Earmarks. They're Both Wrong.
Republicans took control of Congress in 2010, in part, by promising to kill earmarks. They might lose Congress in 2018 by bringing them back to life.
Congressional New Year's Resolutions
Read bills before voting, and other ways Congress can be less terrible in 2018.
University of California President Janet Napolitano Offers Weak Apology for Major Misconduct
The former Homeland Security secretary interfered with a state audit of the university's finances.
Environmental Protection Agency
EPA Blew $690,000 on Parking Spaces No One Was Using
And another $840,000 subsidizing parking spaces, despite federal rules meant to limit commuting by car as a way to protect the environment.
States Fight Back Against USDA Rules That Cause School Food Waste
Bad mandates result in uneaten foods. Schools figure out how to respond.
Government Should Get Out of the Way of Disaster Response
Here, as usual, the private sector outperforms the public sector.
