Government Efficiency and Effectiveness: Opportunities to Reduce Fragmentation, Overlap, and Duplication and Achieve Billions in Financial Benefits
Abstract
I am pleased to be here today to discuss opportunities to reduce fragmentation, overlap, and duplication, and achieve cost savings and other financial benefits for the federal government. The federal government continues to face an unsustainable long-term fiscal path caused by an imbalance between federal revenue and spending, primarily driven by health care spending and interest on debt held by the public (net interest). Addressing this imbalance will require difficult policy decisions about long-term changes to both spending and revenue. Acting soon to mitigate this imbalance would help to minimize the disruption to individuals and the economy. Meanwhile, Congress and executive branch agencies have continued opportunities to contribute toward fiscal sustainability and act as stewards of federal resources. In eight annual reports issued from 2011 to 2018, we presented more than 800 actions for Congress or executive branch agencies to reduce, eliminate, or better manage fragmentation, overlap, or duplication; achieve cost savings; or enhance revenue. Congress and executive branch agencies have partially or fully addressed 621 (77percent) of the actions we identified from 2011 to 2018, resulting in about $262 billion in financial benefits. We estimate tens of billions more dollars could be saved by fully implementing our open actions
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- May 21, 2019
- Accession Number
- AD1153080
Entities
People
- Eugene Louis Dodaro
Organizations
- United States Government Accountability Office