[Congressional Record Volume 149, Number 147 (Monday, October 20, 2003)]
[House]
[Page H9710]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                       WASHINGTON WASTE WATCHERS

  The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Sherwood). Under a previous order of the 
House, the gentlewoman from Florida (Ms. Ginny Brown-Waite) is 
recognized for 5 minutes.
  Ms. GINNY BROWN-WAITE of Florida. Mr. Speaker, I rise to join my 
colleagues, and in particular the gentleman from Florida (Mr. Mario 
Diaz-Balart), as a vigilante for the American taxpayer. In the 10 short 
months that I have been a Member of Congress, I have been appalled by 
the waste, fraud, and abuse that I have found to exist within the 
Federal Government.
  As a member of the Washington Waste Watchers and of this body, I 
believe it is my duty to bring to the public's attention instances of 
fraud, waste, and abuse. It not only steals from taxpayers but also 
from the beneficiaries who truly need the benefits.
  I have been given the honor of serving on the House Committee on 
Veterans' Affairs. In this position, I exercise oversight 
responsibilities over the second largest agency in the Federal 
Government. The VA is a laudable institution with lofty goals and 
worthy intentions. However, as evidenced by long wait times suffered by 
many veterans, not only in my district but in other districts as well, 
it has not always flourished under the best management practices. Again 
this year, the GAO placed the VA on its high-risk list for fraud, 
waste, and abuse. Here are but a few examples of fraud and waste that I 
will discuss that happened in the VA where we stood to lose over $130 
million to unscrupulous felons.
  They have been vulnerable to this because of poor management 
practices and loose accounting standards. Three VA employees, two in my 
home State of Florida and one in New York, embezzled nearly $1.3 
million by exploiting internal weaknesses in the VA benefit program. 
With this money one employee purchased a Mazda Miata, a Mitsubishi 3000 
GT, and two engagement rings.
  After a review was conducted as a result of this crime, auditors 
uncovered 136 other cases of potential fraud or mishandling of 
veterans' benefit checks from offices in St. Pete, Florida, and St. 
Louis, Missouri, alone.
  We need to seek out this fraud, not just believe that the solution is 
to raise taxes and turn our backs on fraud, waste, and abuse.
  The VA has also identified approximately 7,000 possible cases of 
individuals who may be receiving benefits intended for deceased 
veterans. The VA estimates that they netted nearly $21 million over 5 
years by identifying these cases. Can you imagine that they are 
continuing to pay for veterans who have passed away?
  For more than 7 years, nearly 400 veterans actually received VA 
educational benefits even though they did not attend class. The 
veterans had a great scheme going with the instructor who falsified 
their attendance. Nineteen defendants have been convicted in this 
scheme, and the government has recouped over $4.5 million.
  Lastly, the Department's Inspector General estimated that roughly 
13,700 veterans have been paid about a million dollars nationwide and 
that the Department has no systematic method to identify these people 
who are prisoners. Prisoners should not be paid veterans benefits.
  Here are a few recent examples of waste within the VA: the Veterans 
Administration keeps an excess inventory of medical supplies totalling 
$64 million, or 62 percent of its $132 million inventory. An example is 
at four pharmaceutical facilities surveyed, the Inspector General found 
48 percent of the inventory was actually in excess.
  The VA medical supply procurement practices are also questionable 
because very often they pay more for medical supplies than the market 
price, and here is an example of that. During a 6-month period, seven 
out of 10 VA medical centers that purchased standard powder-free 
surgical gloves failed to use the established FFS contractor and 
overpaid an open-market vendor by 28 percent. This error in disposable 
gloves alone cost the taxpayers $34,000.
  As evidenced by these instances of fraud and abuse which are only the 
tip of the iceberg within the VA and other Federal agencies, it is 
imperative that the culture in Washington change.
  Instead of the knee jerk reaction to raise taxes to fund programs or 
to create mandatory spending entitlements (the answer favored by 
Democrats) we must look into the wasteful spending practices the result 
from unchecked bureaucracy!
  It is my deepest hope that by highlighting these abuses and bringing 
them to the attention of the American taxpayer, the VA will continue to 
take corrective action under the leadership of Sec. Principi and 
respect that the money that they are spending is the people's money. 
Not their own.
  Waste, fraud, and abuse throughout the federal government is decades 
old, and Republicans--led by Budget Chairman Nussle and Speaker 
Hastert--are working to eliminate the culture of waste that has existed 
in the federal government.
  As a Republican, I will work to reduce wasteful spending in the 
government and protect your tax dollars.

                          ____________________