Here’s a must read op-ed from Gretchen Hamel at Public Notice (a SHC client) in today’s USA Today on waste in Washington and potential solutions (warning – the first three paragraphs will make your head explode):

Stop fiscal year spending orgy: Column

3 ways to bring accountability to federal agencies.

Call it “Christmas in September.” Just as children eagerly count down the days until the holiday, government contractors are counting the days until the end of the federal fiscal year on Sept. 30.

While America debates a war in Syria and the federal debt limit, government agencies are putting the final touches on a year-end spending spree. That means big paydays for those who supply information technology, computer equipment and other pricey items. But those big paydays also mean squandered taxpayer dollars as agencies rush to buy what they might not need.

The operative phrase is “spend it or lose it.” Here’s how it works: In the final weeks of the fiscal year (which runs Oct. 1 to Sept. 30) Washington bureaucrats hastily make purchases and execute contracts to burn through excess funds.  [Read the rest here]

–  Team SHC