$2.7 Federal Oopsie

[patrickt]

A new Government Accountability Office (GAO) report reveals that federal agencies have reported about $2.7 trillion in "total improper payments" since the fiscal year 2003 and $236 billion in fiscal year 2023 alone but that “government-wide estimate potentially does not represent the full extent of improper payments.”

The reason the fiscal year 2023 total doesn't tell the full story of improper payments government-wide is because some agencies did not report the totals from select federal programs "susceptible to significant improper payments," the GAO explained in their report, released publicly on Tuesday.
https://justthenews.com/government/congress/gao-biden-admin-omitted-programs-susceptible-significant-improper-payments-236b

So, where is the accountability?

Among the improper payment totals that federal agencies reported to GAO for fiscal year 2023, about $175 billion, more than 74% were characterized as "overpayments," the watchdog found. The GAO defines improper payments as "those that should not have been made or were made in the incorrect amount."

I wonder if it has anything to do with it not being their money. It's our money so they really don't care.

"The government issued over $236 billion of improper payments in FY23, more than the entire annual budget of the US Army," Rep. Ashley Hinson,

Perhaps we need a businessman in charge of managing the government instead of a corrupt pervert who simply isn't very bright.

[dinosaur]

Improper Payments: Information on Agencies Fiscal Year 2023 Estimates | U.S. GAO

There comes a time when "the appearance of fraud" becomes "an indication of fraud". I think our government passed that point in time, quite a while ago.

This week, I incorrectly counted the number of strawberry plants in a tray at the nursery. I told the cashier I had eight plants, but I only had seven, so I overpaid $5. No big deal, my mistake, and I didn't go back in to correct my mistake. It's only $5 out of my pocket, my mistake, so I took it on the chin. A few weeks back, there was a sign on pine pellets at TSC, buy 4, get one free. So I took 5 up to the register, and they charged me for 5. I complained, and a manager told me the 5 for the price of 4 deal was for pine chips, not pine pellets. So I accepted that too, I was out $5. But as I was loading up the car, I got madder and madder, so I took my receipt, went back into the store, found the sign with the deal for pine pellets, and took the sign up to the cashier and asked for a manager. I would have let it slide, except for the manager trying to tell me it was for a different product. That crossed the line. The sign was pretty clear to me. The manager's denial was more than "the appearance of fraud".

I'm sure each of these transactions look more or less like mistakes when viewed as individual cases, but given the whole of them, and repeated GAO reviews year after year recognizing the problem, nothing gets done? This is more than "the appearance of fraud". Why doesn't AG Merrick Garland go after these agencies like an abused pit bull? Over $250B per year? Kinda sorta makes Ms James going after Mr Trump for no monetary fraud losses seem like a personal vendetta! Same for Mr Bragg and his personal vendetta!

Just another case of a private citizen being put thru the wringer over nothing, while the protected government class skates with no consequences. To paraphrase the great Everett Dirksen one more time ... a few billion here, a few billion there, and pretty soon we are talking about real money.

There is an old dinosaur expression that fits ... Clean up your own front porch before complaining about your neighbor's front porch.

[patrickt]

I think the Deep State and their accomplices intentionally design programs and systems to facilitate fraud. One year my accountant said he could file my income tax electronically because someone had already used my SS number. I asked why the government couldn't compare the SS number and name to see it they matched and he said he didn't know. I know. That would frustrate the criminals who vote Democrat.

[crayons]

Global banksters n' gubmint scalawags have been pilfererin money
for a long time...

party's almost over...it'll be a major crash...bankster designed...

'forced-cbdc's n' social-credit-scores for everyone is next on the chineese menu.

[covfefe saved us]

This country has not been detail oriented since at least the 80s. Killery lost $6B during her reign. No big deal. It is painless when its someone else's money. They don't even think they should have to present a budget! Bastards.

[Physics Hunter]

I still get two calls per week that my biz is eligible for 2020 Covid payroll subsidy payouts. I could easily claim that I was out of work for a year due to Covid, instead of the truth that it was my bad back and the end of my last contract.