This Week in Waste – May 23, 2025

Welcome to This Week in Waste, a series by Citizens Against Government Waste (CAGW) that highlights how taxpayer dollars are being wasted in the federal, state, and local levels of government and effort to fight back against this spendthrift behavior.

The F-35 Alternate Engine Should Not Be Revived

There should be no third bite at the taxpayers’ money for the twice-killed alternate engine for the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter.  After funding was eliminated in 2011 and a second attempt was defeated in 2023 in favor of upgrading the current engine, there is a potential for a third try after President Trump suggested that it might be a good idea.   CAGW made it clear that reviving the program would contradict his efforts to reduce government waste and should not get off the ground.  Read more here.

Big Beautiful Bill Makes it the Over the Finish Line in the House of Representatives

The Council for Citizens Against Government Waste (CCAGW) weighed in on H.R. 1, the One Big Beautiful Bill Act ahead of the House Rules’ Committee’s markup and the House’s final floor vote early Thursday morning.  The bill extends the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act permanently and saves taxpayers $1.5 trillion by eliminating waste, fraud, abuse, and mismanagement.  Read more here.

Texas Changes its Tune on Regulating Artificial Intelligence

Texas, once poised to lead America’s artificial intelligence (AI) revolution due to its favorable business climate and significant investments from companies like Meta, Nvidia, and Tesla, risks  losing this advantage if the misnamed Texas Responsible AI Governance Act (TRAIGA) is enacted and signed into law.  The bill would restrict new technologies and be modeled after Europe’s rules that include burdensome audits and vague compliance mandates.  Subsequent House amendments have moderated some of the bill’s onerous requirements, however, and the bill now faces uncertainty as it stalls in the Texas Senate.

Treasury to Halt Production of the Penny

Following up on President Trump’s February 10, 2025 announcement, the U.S. Treasury is making plans to halt the minting of pennies.  The cost to produce a single penny is $3.07 to produce, and taxpayers will see savings by eliminating the minting of the penny.  Read more here.

Remembering Those Who Served This Memorial Day

Ensuring that the servicemembers of today and tomorrow have the tools they need to provide for the national defense is one way to honor those who served on Memorial Day.  Read more here.