Budget Proposals
One of the biggest problems I have with political budget proposals--of any party or politician--is their treatment of real money and funny money on an equal field. To some extent, this is necessary to compute the "total cost" but it is also not exactly accurate.
A current proposal is to spend $1.72 billion over five years “to fight health-care fraud and reduce improper payments.” The budget then states this will save $2.67 billion and thus taxpayers will be better off to the tune of $0.95 billion.
Except they wont.
We all know that the money will be used unwisely, that issues such as health-care fraud are many-headed hydras, and the govt. throwing a huge amount of money at an issue is not likely to resolve it. In the end the taxpayer will have added one more line of spending to their list of supported programs and will see almost nothing for it. The money spent is real, but the money gained is an intangible, an imperceptible benefit. Who is to say how much was saved.
I wouldn't really have a problem with a private company doing the same kind of thing when they run projections, because they have an incentive to succeed. Govts. dont. There is no competition, no other goverments working to take their market share.
Perhaps there should be.
A current proposal is to spend $1.72 billion over five years “to fight health-care fraud and reduce improper payments.” The budget then states this will save $2.67 billion and thus taxpayers will be better off to the tune of $0.95 billion.
Except they wont.
We all know that the money will be used unwisely, that issues such as health-care fraud are many-headed hydras, and the govt. throwing a huge amount of money at an issue is not likely to resolve it. In the end the taxpayer will have added one more line of spending to their list of supported programs and will see almost nothing for it. The money spent is real, but the money gained is an intangible, an imperceptible benefit. Who is to say how much was saved.
I wouldn't really have a problem with a private company doing the same kind of thing when they run projections, because they have an incentive to succeed. Govts. dont. There is no competition, no other goverments working to take their market share.
Perhaps there should be.
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