One of the worst things about federal bureaucracies is that they have no incentive to spend money efficiently. If they don't use their entire budget one year, they risk losing that money the next.
That's why, according to a new report, analysts are expecting federal agencies to spend at historically high levels over the last seven weeks of fiscal year 2018.
Nextgov reports:
A government spending spree of potentially historic proportions will play out over the final seven weeks of fiscal 2018, as federal agencies look to spend $140 billion more than they thought they’d get before Congress passed and President Trump signed the omnibus spending bill.
Without a budget agreement in place, agencies spent cautiously through the first two quarters of fiscal 2018 before the omnibus—signed six months late in March—obligated an additional $80 billion for defense and $63 billion for civilian agencies.
Federal agencies, now flush with cash, must obligate that money before the fiscal year ends on Sept. 30 or lose it to the Treasury Department. Analysts believe the federal market will see a monumental effort among procurement officials to spend as much on contracts as possible.
“If agencies are going to spend the extra money in fiscal 2018, it’s going to have to be at a much higher percentage in the fourth quarter than it has been historically,” David Berteau, president of the Professional Services Council, told Nextgov.
We can't expect a system like this to shrink the deficit and reduce the debt. They'll keep spending taxpayer dollars as long as Congress keeps approving these kinds of budgets, and Congress will keep approving these budgets until the people and the states step in and stop them.
That's why millions have joined the Article V Convention of States movement. A Convention of States can propose real, permanent solutions to fiscal irresponsibility via the constitutional amendment process laid out in Article V.
These amendments can force Congress to balance the budget, limit spending, and cap taxation. With restrictions like this in place, Congress will finally have an incentive to oversee how federal agencies spend the taxpayer dollars of hardworking Americans.
