Topline: The federal government built 33 new courthouses between 2000 and 2010, but poor planning and incorrect estimates led the buildings to collectively be 3.6 million square feet larger than Congress authorized — the equivalent of building nine extra courthouses.
The bonus construction cost $835 million, or $1.2 billion in today’s money.
That’s according to the “Wastebook” reporting published by the late U.S. Senator Dr. Tom Coburn. For years, these reports shined a white-hot spotlight on federal frauds and taxpayer abuses.
Coburn, the legendary U.S. Senator from Oklahoma, earned the nickname "Dr. No" by stopping thousands of pork-barrel projects using the Senate rules. Projects that he couldn't stop, Coburn included in his oversight reports.
Coburn's Wastebook 2010 included 100 examples of outrageous spending worth more than $11.5 billion, including the General Service Administration’s roomy courthouses.
Key facts: Some of the poor planning came because officials estimated the courthouses would be used by 461 judges. Only 342 judges were actually needed, but no one realized until the extra rooms had already been built.
There were also 126 rooms that could have been shared by two or more judges, but that was not factored into the design, according to the Government Accountability Office.
The extra space cost $51 million per year to rent and maintain. The GAO did not specify which courthouses were too large, so it’s unclear if the expense is still being paid today.
The waste did not stop there. As of 2010, there were almost 19,000 unused government properties and almost 47,000 underused properties, worth a total of $83 billion.
Search all federal, state and local government salaries and vendor spending with the AI search bot, Benjamin, at OpenTheBooks.com.
Background: The federal government has also been known to furnish its unneeded office space with luxury items.
OpenTheBooks previously reported that Washington spent $3.3 billion on furniture during the Covid-19 pandemic, when most federal employees were working from home.
The GSA alone spent $308 million on furniture even though 91% of its offices were unused. Other purchases included the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s $237,960 solar powered picnic tables and the State Department’s $120,000 Ethan Allen leather recliners.
Summary: It’s easy to get carried away when the federal government continues to authorize trillions and trillions of dollars of spending every year. What’s an extra $835 million here and there?
The #WasteOfTheDay is brought to you by the forensic auditors at OpenTheBooks.com
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