The Case for Biometrics in Reducing Fraud

One of the worst things New York City could do, financially speaking, is to eliminate the requirement for electronic fingerprinting for people receiving food stamps and other benefits from the U.S. government. In fact, the use of electronic fingerprinting and other forms of biometrics should be expanded throughout the country to prevent literally billions of taxpayer dollars from being wasted through improper payments and outright fraud committed by recipients collecting under multiple identities and other creative methods.

Billions of Dollars Wasted on Wartime Contracts

A report issued earlier this year by the independent bipartisan Commission on Wartime Contracting (CWC) has broad implications both inside and outside America’s borders regarding waste and fraud in the government contract award process.

The $450 Million Price Tag for Riker’s Island Project – Is it Criminal?

Construction costs for new housing in New York City remain the highest in the nation–and that includes inmate housing on Riker’s Island which is paid for with taxpayer dollars.

The estimated cost of a 1,500-bed detention center on Riker’s Island, as stated in the Request for Proposal, is $450 million. This translates into $300,000 per bed, substantially higher than other areas of the country. In South Carolina, for instance, a new 1,500 bed prison facility would cost approximately $73,000 per bed for a total cost $109.5 million if constructed this fiscal year, according to Sharon E. Scott, Manager for Architectural/Engineering Services at the Department of Corrections in South Carolina.

Taxpayers As Captive Shareholders of America

Every American taxpayer is a captive shareholder in the United States of America with nowhere to run, financially speaking, to escape decades of flawed policies, mismanagement of our taxpayer dollars and questionable ethics in many facets of society, including the government sector. If we were shareholders in a publicly-traded company and disapproved of management’s handling of the business, we would either sell our shares or become activists to bring about change for the better. It appears that the latter is the only option open to those of us who care deeply about America.

NYS Audits of MTA Reveal Wasteful and Costly Practices

MTA audits conducted by the State of New York Comptroller’s office in 2010 indicate that lack of management oversight, ill-conceived policies, sloppy record-keeping and rigid union demands at the MTA Bus Company and New York City Transit are at the core of the MTA’s budget woes.  Employee layoffs and service cuts should be a last resort in restoring profitability to the MTA.

Yucca Mountain Controversy Costing Taxpayers Billions

Lawsuits brought against the Department of Energy (DOE) by nuclear power companies seeking financial compensation for storage costs caused by government delays in accepting their highly radioactive spent fuel for disposal has already cost taxpayers $1.3 billion—and that’s only for the federal government’s current liability for settlements, final judgments and judgments under appeal.  The DOE estimates that potential liabilities for these delays will cost $11 billion through the year 2056.