Feingold finds ways to save money

In response to a request made by U.S. Senators Russ Feingold, Bernie Sanders (I-VT) and Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), the United States Air Force (USAF) is committing to reduce its purchases of unneeded spare parts, which could save taxpayers $50 million next year. The savings will come from a reduction in the amount of excess spare parts ordered by the Air Force, and if the Air Force was able to reduce the amount of spare parts ordered to the tune of 50 million dollars, then it seems reasonable to believe similar savings could be found in the other branches of the Armed Forces. Those savings could then be spent to fill budget shortfalls in other critical areas, including ensuring our troops in the field have all the equipment they need. To ensure reductions, Sens. Feingold, Whitehouse, and Sanders have sponsored legislation setting a goal for the reduction of orders of excess parts by the Armed Forces.

In speaking about the call to reduce purchases of excess spare parts, Sen. Feingold issued a statement:

“It is hard to explain to America taxpayers why they should be paying for warehouses full of parts the Air Force doesn’t need, but it is even harder to explain that to soldiers on the ground in Iraq and Afghanistan who have faced persistent problems getting the parts and gear that they do need,” Feingold said. “The goal set by the Air Force is a good start but it is clear that with the amount of money spent on excess parts, further cuts need to be made.

It’s important to note that while Sens. Feingold, Whitehouse, and Sanders have called for a reduction in excess spare parts orders, their efforts have been careful to give the Armed Services broad discretion so contracts for parts the Armed Forces need are not canceled. The Armed Services themselves identify the spare parts that are potential excess, and in the case of the Air Force’s own numbers, at the end of last year, it had $2.5 billion of unneeded parts in its inventory, and despite that figure it still increased spending on unnecessary spare parts by nearly 50 million dollars in the last quarter of 2008.

Now sure, I know some will argue that 50 million dollars in savings is only a drop in the bucket, considering the size of the federal budget and the amount of money our nation spends on national defense, but these small savings – if 50 million dollars can really be considered small – will start to add up as more and more ways to save are identified. Though I’m a liberal, I’ve never believed government should have a blank check, so it’s refreshing to see an elected official scrutinizing how the government spends money; after all, oversight is in important role for our elected officials.