As a longtime federal employee I couldn’t believe the DOGE did not jump on this. Is it possible they don’t know about it? I saw equipment, furniture, software etc that had been ordered but then sat in storage until it was no longer of use.
I'll never forget when I was a medical student doing a rotation at the VA in Denver way back in 1987. A maintenance man came into the ophthalmology clinic and tore all of the perfectly good towel dispensers off the walls, leaving tears in the drywall, and then he replaced them with new ones. I asked the resident why he did that, and he responded, "It's almost the end of the fiscal year."
How do you expect SecDef to end this? It's a result of the Congressional Budgeting Process. Don't spend the money and not only do you lose it, you lose it next year, and the year after that too. Want to change this? You need to change appropriations law.
As an Army civilian, I can attest to the fact that Government workers have a spend it or lose it mentality. However, the gross numbers do not tell a story of spending sprees in September as much as they show that there is a push to complete contract actions within a given fiscal year. Awarded contracts are often the result of months or years of effort to bring a contract to the point of actually obligating the funds. Respectfully, Mr. Hart, you do not understand the values that you are using as metrics.
In the early 70s when I was an undergrad, I had a summer internship with the Navy's "VAST" (Versatile Avionics Shop Test) project, a $300 million thing. The biggest concern* of the project office was how to spend (i.e., waste) the rest of their allocation for the year, like a hundred million bucks.
* Well, I have to admit another concern was that one of the VAST installations (millions of bucks) on an aircraft carrier had caught fire and had been destroyed--some guy aboard the ship had accidentally welded a 400 volt power line to a bulkhead, setting fire to an actual paint locker, and what bits of the VAST the fire didn't destroy was finished off by the salt water they used to put the fire out.
Another retired military officer here. Hegseth could do much worse than acting on Open the Books' recommendations. The "use it or lose it" philosophy for resource management pervades the DoD. Ask any combat arms officer about the "mad minutes" at the end of the fiscal year to expend as much ammunition as possible so that next year's ammo forecast isn't reduced. I'd wager also that this philosophy, (because of annual budgeting) exists throughout the USG.
Unfortunately, I as Fire Chief for our Fire Department did "use it or lose it" mentality! Situation was that all the members were volunteers! So, I'm after everything I could get for our firefighters!
I was the supply CPO in one Navy Squadron. I got told one year use it or lose it. I got permission to purchase brand new work jackets for every member of the squadron. We had some pretty ratty looking old ones that got issued.
this is an incredibly bad practice. the waste is of magnificent proportions. worked at the VA hospital for years and the amount of useless wasted $$$$$$$ is unbelievable.
I was in the Army Band 1970 - 1973. Nothing has changed in all these years! When I was being discharged I was given all of my Regal Tip 5A drum sticks and Remo drum heads. My supply Sargent told me that if he didn’t use up the stock his budget would be cut for the next year. I didn’t have to buy sticks or drum heads for the next ten years. And I was playing three to six nights a week in clubs and concerts while in college.
Lackland AFB 1983: I didn't mind the Lobster Tail when it was served in the O-club though the French champagne WAS a bit over the top. but Lobster Tail served to Basic Trainees?!!! We had just about 15 minutes to get in and out again on our trips to the chow hall - with our TIs leaning over our heads yelling EAT IT ALL!
After our first day we chose the softest food available - anything we could spoon in - using our mandatory 2 glasses of ('saltpeter') water to wash it all down. The LAST thing we wanted was anything that took time to cut, open or prepare in the least little way! Lobster with its shell would've qualified on THAT point! Even ribeye steaks were out of the question due to the fact we were only issued butter knives!
We DID have more time in Tech School and spent it enjoying the air conditioning when, come October, the AC was shut off in our barracks because SOME A-hole spent the base budget splurging on food no on had time to eat in the Basic Training barracks and (get this!) FREE (Lone Star) BEER in the Airmen's Club for the newly minted BMTS grads. Ever seen what happens when a skinny kid, whose had no beer the past few months, gets plastered? Vomit the length of the barracks bay hallways and dehydrated pickles lining the base clinic entrance.
BTW: I got disciplined by my BMTS Senior TI for merely suggesting the base CEs replace the old cracked plastic showerheads with newer metal 'water saver' ones. I pointed out the savings in water (even more in short supply today) and the fuel to heat that water. The STI lectured me the "use-it-or-lose-it" policy stating "I appreciate your trying but You may not fit-in this man's Air Force".
In the Tech School I was 'drafted' by the school commander to teach due to my previous career training/experience as an electronic technician. I taught some of my fellow trainees and even a few of the instructors in electronic technologies they hadn't received in the USAF schools.
At one point they asked me to evaluate some electronic test instruments they were looking to requisition (we were still using the old 'bakelite' VOMs and 500 series Tektronix O-scopes (aka: sea-anchors). That's when I learned just how badly the DoD was being ripped-off on contracts.
One 'Fluke' DVM I had bought in my previous civilian sector job cost my company $330 - including the AC line cord with another $60 for the optional battery pack. The Ssgt showed me the purchase order listing $1000 for the meter with $50 for the line cord and $100 for the battery pack! One of my instructors drove over to Kelly Field for a 'military surplus' auction and gave us a run down on the sales. One pallet load of 10 (5000 series) Tektronix O-scopes sold for $1000 or $100 each. We had just bought the same scope at my job before I enlisted and we paid $5000 for it. Here Kelly was practically GIVING away $50,000 in 'surplus' hardware another base could've used and likely DID buy for $150,000! Hell, WE could've used them and I KNOW there must've been at least one public high school Vo-Tech unit, teaching electronics, within 100 miles of San Antone that would've welcomed them.
Our resident 'jar-head' announced "You wanna talk about WASTE?" He related how back in So-Cal the Motor Pools stored new tires out in the open - exposed to the blazing California sun. But when they needed a new tire for a deuce and a half they had to sift through the stacks of tires to find one which wasn't 'dry-rotted'. Whatever became of 'Cosmoline'?
I even suggested to our Tech School commander to set-up a fake shell company in a vacant building downtown and order whatever tech hardware needed under the company's name. Order the equipment on COD and when it's delivered - send out a USAF truck to bring it to the base - cutting out the grotesque DoD markup.
. HE explained that these contracts require the supplier maintain a 20 year supply of replacement parts to service whatever hardware was purchased. I countered "that may work fine for motor vehicles. but Fluke will come out with a new, better and cheaper instrument in a year or two - making this one obsolete sir. You could buy 3 for the price the contract is charging for one!"
He explained "We're not 'Mchale's NAVY' and you're not seaman Gruber. That would likely be felony fraud" I countered "no more than how THEY'RE robbing the USAF blind sir".
At the end of every calendar quarter while I was a pilot in the Air Force, our unit flew hour after hour “boring holes in the sky” to fulfill the allotted flight hours. Our commanders had no choice but to comply, since failing to fly every last minute was a black mark on their efficiency reports.
I remember my Instructor Pilot Dad in the early 70's laughing at their orders to fly the Hueys at Fort Rucker just to burn all the fuel at year end .. you know, so next year's allotment wouldn't be cut.
As a longtime federal employee I couldn’t believe the DOGE did not jump on this. Is it possible they don’t know about it? I saw equipment, furniture, software etc that had been ordered but then sat in storage until it was no longer of use.
Don't know how DOGE missed this.
I'll never forget when I was a medical student doing a rotation at the VA in Denver way back in 1987. A maintenance man came into the ophthalmology clinic and tore all of the perfectly good towel dispensers off the walls, leaving tears in the drywall, and then he replaced them with new ones. I asked the resident why he did that, and he responded, "It's almost the end of the fiscal year."
How do you expect SecDef to end this? It's a result of the Congressional Budgeting Process. Don't spend the money and not only do you lose it, you lose it next year, and the year after that too. Want to change this? You need to change appropriations law.
As an Army civilian, I can attest to the fact that Government workers have a spend it or lose it mentality. However, the gross numbers do not tell a story of spending sprees in September as much as they show that there is a push to complete contract actions within a given fiscal year. Awarded contracts are often the result of months or years of effort to bring a contract to the point of actually obligating the funds. Respectfully, Mr. Hart, you do not understand the values that you are using as metrics.
In the early 70s when I was an undergrad, I had a summer internship with the Navy's "VAST" (Versatile Avionics Shop Test) project, a $300 million thing. The biggest concern* of the project office was how to spend (i.e., waste) the rest of their allocation for the year, like a hundred million bucks.
* Well, I have to admit another concern was that one of the VAST installations (millions of bucks) on an aircraft carrier had caught fire and had been destroyed--some guy aboard the ship had accidentally welded a 400 volt power line to a bulkhead, setting fire to an actual paint locker, and what bits of the VAST the fire didn't destroy was finished off by the salt water they used to put the fire out.
Use it or lose it is what happens when your funds expire on September 30. It is the nature of Congressional appropriations.
Another retired military officer here. Hegseth could do much worse than acting on Open the Books' recommendations. The "use it or lose it" philosophy for resource management pervades the DoD. Ask any combat arms officer about the "mad minutes" at the end of the fiscal year to expend as much ammunition as possible so that next year's ammo forecast isn't reduced. I'd wager also that this philosophy, (because of annual budgeting) exists throughout the USG.
Unfortunately, I as Fire Chief for our Fire Department did "use it or lose it" mentality! Situation was that all the members were volunteers! So, I'm after everything I could get for our firefighters!
I was the supply CPO in one Navy Squadron. I got told one year use it or lose it. I got permission to purchase brand new work jackets for every member of the squadron. We had some pretty ratty looking old ones that got issued.
I think this is an excellent idea. Do it‼️
this is an incredibly bad practice. the waste is of magnificent proportions. worked at the VA hospital for years and the amount of useless wasted $$$$$$$ is unbelievable.
I agree with the waste! See so much of it! Renovating buildings with cosmetic materials all the time. Can't keep any Doctors!
I was in the Army Band 1970 - 1973. Nothing has changed in all these years! When I was being discharged I was given all of my Regal Tip 5A drum sticks and Remo drum heads. My supply Sargent told me that if he didn’t use up the stock his budget would be cut for the next year. I didn’t have to buy sticks or drum heads for the next ten years. And I was playing three to six nights a week in clubs and concerts while in college.
Lackland AFB 1983: I didn't mind the Lobster Tail when it was served in the O-club though the French champagne WAS a bit over the top. but Lobster Tail served to Basic Trainees?!!! We had just about 15 minutes to get in and out again on our trips to the chow hall - with our TIs leaning over our heads yelling EAT IT ALL!
After our first day we chose the softest food available - anything we could spoon in - using our mandatory 2 glasses of ('saltpeter') water to wash it all down. The LAST thing we wanted was anything that took time to cut, open or prepare in the least little way! Lobster with its shell would've qualified on THAT point! Even ribeye steaks were out of the question due to the fact we were only issued butter knives!
We DID have more time in Tech School and spent it enjoying the air conditioning when, come October, the AC was shut off in our barracks because SOME A-hole spent the base budget splurging on food no on had time to eat in the Basic Training barracks and (get this!) FREE (Lone Star) BEER in the Airmen's Club for the newly minted BMTS grads. Ever seen what happens when a skinny kid, whose had no beer the past few months, gets plastered? Vomit the length of the barracks bay hallways and dehydrated pickles lining the base clinic entrance.
BTW: I got disciplined by my BMTS Senior TI for merely suggesting the base CEs replace the old cracked plastic showerheads with newer metal 'water saver' ones. I pointed out the savings in water (even more in short supply today) and the fuel to heat that water. The STI lectured me the "use-it-or-lose-it" policy stating "I appreciate your trying but You may not fit-in this man's Air Force".
In the Tech School I was 'drafted' by the school commander to teach due to my previous career training/experience as an electronic technician. I taught some of my fellow trainees and even a few of the instructors in electronic technologies they hadn't received in the USAF schools.
At one point they asked me to evaluate some electronic test instruments they were looking to requisition (we were still using the old 'bakelite' VOMs and 500 series Tektronix O-scopes (aka: sea-anchors). That's when I learned just how badly the DoD was being ripped-off on contracts.
One 'Fluke' DVM I had bought in my previous civilian sector job cost my company $330 - including the AC line cord with another $60 for the optional battery pack. The Ssgt showed me the purchase order listing $1000 for the meter with $50 for the line cord and $100 for the battery pack! One of my instructors drove over to Kelly Field for a 'military surplus' auction and gave us a run down on the sales. One pallet load of 10 (5000 series) Tektronix O-scopes sold for $1000 or $100 each. We had just bought the same scope at my job before I enlisted and we paid $5000 for it. Here Kelly was practically GIVING away $50,000 in 'surplus' hardware another base could've used and likely DID buy for $150,000! Hell, WE could've used them and I KNOW there must've been at least one public high school Vo-Tech unit, teaching electronics, within 100 miles of San Antone that would've welcomed them.
Our resident 'jar-head' announced "You wanna talk about WASTE?" He related how back in So-Cal the Motor Pools stored new tires out in the open - exposed to the blazing California sun. But when they needed a new tire for a deuce and a half they had to sift through the stacks of tires to find one which wasn't 'dry-rotted'. Whatever became of 'Cosmoline'?
I even suggested to our Tech School commander to set-up a fake shell company in a vacant building downtown and order whatever tech hardware needed under the company's name. Order the equipment on COD and when it's delivered - send out a USAF truck to bring it to the base - cutting out the grotesque DoD markup.
. HE explained that these contracts require the supplier maintain a 20 year supply of replacement parts to service whatever hardware was purchased. I countered "that may work fine for motor vehicles. but Fluke will come out with a new, better and cheaper instrument in a year or two - making this one obsolete sir. You could buy 3 for the price the contract is charging for one!"
He explained "We're not 'Mchale's NAVY' and you're not seaman Gruber. That would likely be felony fraud" I countered "no more than how THEY'RE robbing the USAF blind sir".
I worked in two different branches of the Federal government, for 28 years.
]This "belief" by logistics personnel and management, was a cheeful shout, for
staff to turn in [their long lists of wants and needs, before the next budget was
submitted to Federal DOD.
I think back now, and think," what terrible tribute to themselves, and a huge slap to
the face of every American taxpayer."
I've seen private companies and civilian companies, where the managers and CEO's
of departments receive a small percentage back from their company for coming under
the budget for the previous year. One would think that any manager would strive
to have, (that rewarding), given to them at the end of the fiscal period.
I never heard of any DOD manager or CEO ofthe federal government trying to come
in under budget, and having received a credit as (a thank you), for trying to cut the
federal budget. [In fact], they are encouraged to write in an additional 10% increase
to their budgets from the previous year.
I think the old cliche that everyone has memorized, is, "A penny saved, is a penny
earned!" I get a warm fuzzy in my stomach, when I think, "Wow, A Trillion Dollars
saved, is a Trillion Dollars saved for my great grand children.
Thank you, Mr. Hegseth, for "at least trying" to make a point to those with
check books in Washington, (and especially) California.
At the end of every calendar quarter while I was a pilot in the Air Force, our unit flew hour after hour “boring holes in the sky” to fulfill the allotted flight hours. Our commanders had no choice but to comply, since failing to fly every last minute was a black mark on their efficiency reports.
I remember my Instructor Pilot Dad in the early 70's laughing at their orders to fly the Hueys at Fort Rucker just to burn all the fuel at year end .. you know, so next year's allotment wouldn't be cut.