We Must Crack Down on Government Waste (Rep. Ed Royce)

Last Congress, I introduced a bill to establish the National Commission to Eliminate Waste in Government.  I have reintroduced it this Congress as H.R. 2252.

In 1982, President Reagan established the Grace Commission and charged it with making recommendations to eliminate government waste, inefficiency and mismanagement.  Studying 17 departments and 39 agencies, the commission identified and suggested remedies for waste and abuse in the federal government.  The commission submitted 2,478 recommendations which would have saved $424 billion over three years if fully implemented.

Although a number of these recommendations were eventually adopted, many were not.  With the universal agreement that we must maintain a responsible balanced budget, it is incumbent upon us to eliminate wasteful spending in our efforts to achieve this goal.

Under my bill, a new commission would be charged with the task of reviewing reports from the General Accounting Office, the Congressional Budget Office, inspector general reports and other organizations to identify spending which should be eliminated or efficiency increased.  The President and leaders from the House and Senate would appoint the members of the commission.  The commission would function at no cost to the taxpayers.

The recommendations of the commission would serve as a basis for spending reductions through budget reform, program eliminations, and managerial improvement through legislation and executive action.

It is time once again to look at ways eliminate waste in government in order to help us maintain a responsible budget.