10 Surprising Government Programs That Are Costing You $10.2 Billion

From blog.heritage.org (Jan. 7):

The following is a list of the 10 programs where [Romina] Boccia [a Heritage budget expert] believes Congress can save taxpayers money. Click here to read the full report.

1. Cut Pet-Shampoo and Similar Projects, Save $3.1 billion: The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) program funds “wasteful parochial projects, which include funding a pet-shampoo company and issuing risky business loans.”

2. Stop Bankrolling the Common Core, Save $2 billion: The Department of Education competitive grant programs under the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) funds more than 60 projects, including an initiative that promotes Common Core national standards. Boccia says this is “an area regarded by tradition and law as a state and local matter.”

3. Cut a Program That Hurts Youth, Save $1.6 billion: Job Corps is a residential job-training program to serve disadvantaged youth, but according to Boccia’s research, it “has an abysmal record.” Job Corps participants were less likely to earn a high school diploma than non-participants in a control group. Participants in the program also worked fewer weeks and worked fewer hours per week than similar teens and tweens.

4. Cut Unnecessary Red Tape, Save $1.5 billion: The U.S. Department of Agriculture Food for Peace Title II grants require food to be purchased in the United States and then shipped across oceans in U.S.-flagged vessels, adding unnecessary logistical challenges to already-higher costs.

5. Cut Pork-Barrel Projects, Save $800 million: The Department of Transportation’s Transportation Alternatives Program funds community preservation projects like bicycle paths, sidewalks, and nature paths. Boccia argues “such projects are purely local matters.”

6. Cut Private Landowner Beautification, Save $730 million: The Natural Resources Conservation Service runs this program to help private landowners maintain private land and teach them how to best use their land. Boccia says taxpayers should not be forced to subsidize advice on how to improve visual appearance.

7.  Cut Government Handouts, Save $200 million: The Department of Transportation Essential Air Service subsidizes the flights of rural passengers who opt for air travel when cheaper or unsubsidized travel alternatives. According to Boccia, any subsidies for these flights should come from the local or state level, which are benefitting from the service.

8. Cut Corporate Welfare, Save $120 million: The Department of Energy’s Advanced Manufacturing Program subsidizes activities leading to greater energy efficiency in American manufacturing processes – something Boccia believes companies should decide on their own to participate in.

9. Cut Crony Capitalism, Save $100 million: The Rural Business Program Account deals with business and industry-guaranteed loans and rural business enterprise grants. This allows the federal government to play venture capitalist with taxpayer money, Boccia says.

10. Cut Funding for Overseas Abortions, Save $35 million: The United Nations Population Fund, funded in millions of taxpayer dollars, faces continued allegations that it has been complicit in China’s coercive one-child policy, which is often enforced through forced abortions and forced sterilizations. [read more]

Sounds like a good idea to me, but will the Republicans have the guts to propose these cuts? After all if they propose cuts in 2), 6), 7), possibly 3) and 10) the Dems will demonize them and say they mean and don’t care. Then again the Left will always say that no matter what the Republicans do or don’t do.