Consolidating Government

Duplication within federal government agencies and programs is a long-standing issue. Redundancies within agencies waste taxpayer dollars and creates an unnecessarily burdensome bureaucracy. In an effort to reduce duplication and overlap in the federal government, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) is now responsible for filing an annual report outlining duplicative goals, programs, and responsibilities. In its initial report on this subject released on March 1, 2011, the GAO identified 81 areas of duplication, along with recommendations for addressing the overlaps. The subsequent 2012 report, released on February 28, 2012, highlights an additional 51 duplicative areas. Overall, the GAO estimates that addressing the redundancy identified in their first two reports could save tens of billions of dollars annually.

The Obama Administration, cognizant of the mounting pressure to curtail wasteful government spending, added to its legislative agenda a measure that would empower the president to reorganize executive branch agencies. In light of recent revelations of government waste, including the failure of federal loan beneficiary Solyndra and spending abuses at the General Services Administration, any step towards executive branch efficiency is welcome. The president outlined his proposal in the 2012 State of the Union address. This was taken up in the Senate as the Reforming and Consolidating Government Act of 2012 (RCGA), sponsored by Joe Lieberman (I-Conn.) and co-sponsored by Mark Warner (D-Va.)

The Obama Administration, through the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), cites the desired consolidation of six business-oriented agencies into a single department. The testimony of OMB’s Controller on the RCGA states that the Small Business Administration, the Office of the U.S. Trade

Representative, the Export-Import Bank, the Overseas Private Investment Corporation, the

U.S. Trade and Development Agency, the Department of Commerce’s core business and trade functions, and other offices with related programs would be consolidated into a single department. OMB estimates that this will save taxpayers $3 billion over the next ten years. The RCGA would allow the president to propose this restructuring to Congress, which then votes on the proposal on an up or down basis.

The authority bestowed on the president by the RCGA is appropriately limiting. It would allow the president to abolish, consolidate, transfer, and rename executive branch departments, in addition to being able to create new ones. The power to create new agencies may justifiably ring some alarm bells, however limitations within the RCGA make it clear that a “new” agency can only be a cohesion of pre-existing offices that either reduces the total number of agencies, or produces cost savings. Any restructuring proposal must also be determined to be “efficiency-enhancing,” as determined by the GAO. It must also pass an up or down vote by both houses of Congress. Other limitations prevent proposals that would affect independent agencies, or that conflict with current laws. There is also a two year authorization of the RCGA, limiting the scope of the authority and giving Congress opportunity to reconsider.

As wasteful federal spending becomes increasingly exposed in the news, it is becoming more and more obvious that agencies need to be reined in. Taxpayer dollars can be more efficiently spent with leaner and better structured agencies. Overlap of responsibilities and redundant programming is rampant. Without the authority to offer restructuring proposals that the presidency possessed until 1984, cost-saving changes to the agencies are mired in Congress. The RCGA is a responsible and limited authority to eliminate inefficient, duplicative federal spending in the executive branch.

– Jonathan Buono