Even the Feds Give Up Under The Weight of Regulation
Many on the Left often deride the notion that government regulation really affects business behavior and reduces business activity. But it turns out that even the Feds themselves throw up their hands and give up in the face of trying to deal with their own regulations
Government estimates suggest there may be 77,000 empty or underutilized buildings across the country. Taxpayers own them, and even vacant, they’re expensive. The Office of Management and Budget believes these buildings could be costing taxpayers $1.7 billion a year.
…But doing something with these buildings is a complicated job. It turns out that the federal government does not know what it owns.
…even when an agency knows it has a building it would like to sell, bureaucratic hurdles limit it from doing so. No federal agency can sell anything unless it’s uncontaminated, asbestos-free and environmentally safe. Those are expensive fixes.
Then the agency has to make sure another one doesn’t want it. Then state and local governments get a crack at it, then nonprofits — and finally, a 25-year-old law requires the government to see if it could be used as a homeless shelter.
Many agencies just lock the doors and say forget it.
Matthew Slyfield:
Bwahahahahahahahahahhahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha
March 13, 2014, 10:25 ammesaeconoguy:
The end is near.
March 13, 2014, 5:16 pmskhpcola:
Oh, FFS. And yet...and yet, D-bags and RINOs believe that it is axiomatic that we require even more government. The insanity of bullshit like this is celebrated by retards and psychopaths. People that vote for D-bags, in other words. And RINOs like McVain and Linzey Grahamnesty.
And this:
there may be 77,000 empty or underutilized buildings [...] that could be costing taxpayers $1.7 billion a year.
That's about $22/k per year per building. I bet that bullshit datum is off by at least an order of magnitude. And all of the conditionals that impede the efficient disposition of surplus government property are suspect. Who promulgated that idiocy?
March 13, 2014, 6:31 pmAndrew_M_Garland:
Seems like an opportunity: "We Sell Buildings": Get CASH for your old govt buildings. Federal and State agencies invited to let us handle the paperwork and loopholes. Outrageous fees commensurate with the difficulty of the task. Deal with experts, not with your mediocre staff. Specialists in expanding travel and conference budgets. Swaps are possible. Don't wait another 8 years.
March 13, 2014, 8:11 pmRick C:
"I bet that bullshit datum is off by at least an order of magnitude." Only if you assume the federal government is reasonable, and doesn't do something like leave electricity, water, and HVAC running in empty buildings.
Sure, we'd all like to believe they wouldn't do that, but do you have confidence it's not happening? I sure don't.
March 14, 2014, 1:08 pm