Pancakes, snow cones and robot dragons
by Amanda Griffin-Johnson Earlier this week, U.S. Sen. Tom Coburn, R-Okla., released Wastebook 2011, a report covering 100 examples of wasteful government spending. The examples range from millions of dollars to just a few thousand dollars, but all highlight how government uses taxpayer money to fund unnecessary projects, often not relating at all the to core purposes...
by Amanda Griffin-Johnson
Earlier this week, U.S. Sen. Tom Coburn, R-Okla., released Wastebook 2011, a report covering 100 examples of wasteful government spending. The examples range from millions of dollars to just a few thousand dollars, but all highlight how government uses taxpayer money to fund unnecessary projects, often not relating at all the to core purposes of government. Some of my favorite examples from the report include:
- Paying for Pancakes – (D.C) $765,828
- Taxpayer-Funded Snow Cones for Emergencies (and Promotions) – $6,279
- Federally–funded Dragon Robots – (MA) $130,987
- Video Game Preservation – (New York) $113,277
- The Super-Bridge to Nowhere – (AK) $15.3 Million
- Millions Of Federal Transportation Dollars Pay for Covered Bridge Preservation Program – (Department of Transportation) $8.3 Million
Illinois gets a few mentions in the report, including item 48, “Seminar in England Allows Teachers to Retrace Steps of Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales – $136,555,” which was run by Eastern Illinois University and Kent State University and item 49, “Weatherization Program Lets Taxpayer Funds Slip Through the Cracks – (Department of Energy) $231.3 Million,” as a review of Illinois’ use of weatherization funds found systematic fraud and wasteful spending.
The entire Wastebook 2011 report is available here.