This Week in Waste – May 30, 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 efforts to fight back against this spendthrift behavior.

Congress to Vote on Codifying DOGE Cuts

Congress is expected to take up a recissions package for fiscal year 2025, that would make some of the Department of Government Efficiency’s (DOGE) cuts permanent.  House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) said, “the House is eager and ready to act on DOGE’s findings so we can deliver even more cuts to big government that President Trump wants and the American people demand.”  The proposed recissions package would cut $9.4 billion in discretionary government spending.

House Reconciliation Package Restores Spectrum Auction Authority

H.R. 1, the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, included the renewal of spectrum auction authority through Fiscal Year 2034, which is expected to generate $88 billion in revenue for the government.  But that amount would be reduced if incumbent holders of spectrum are forced to relocate.  Read more here.

SNAP Wasted Billions of Taxpayer Dollars

According to a May 13, 2025, Mercatus Center report, the Supplemental Nutritional Assistance Plan (SNAP) wastes more than $10 billion annually.  Improper payments in the SNAP program have risen from an estimated 2 percent in 2012 to more than 10 percent in 2023.  The SNAP program has long been rife with waste, fraud, and abuse and reforming the program to eliminate this wasteful spending should be a top priority for Congress.

Fighting the Good Fight on World Vape Day

Vaping and other tobacco harm reduction products have proven to be an effective way to help smokers ditch their habit.  Despite this progress, some lawmakers are still making access to these products difficult.  Read more here.