The White House Blog: Fiscal Responsibility

Cracking Down on Wasteful, Duplicative Spending

For too long, the Federal Government allowed the American people’s hard-earned tax dollars to fund ineffective and duplicative projects, failing to leverage advances in technology to achieve savings. The result is that taxpayer dollars have been wasted. This should never be tolerated, but particularly with the tough fiscal situation, it’s unacceptable. It’s time that we live within our means, cut the waste too prevalent in Washington, and live up to our responsibility to the American people.

The President has made it a priority of his Administration to change the way Washington does business. As he has said many times, including in his State of the Union Address, reducing overlap and duplication within the federal government is critical to ensuring that our government operates more efficiently and effectively.

When it comes to information technology, there is no better way to identify duplication than to look at the very infrastructure that powers duplicative systems. Since 1998, the number of Federal data centers has risen from 432 to more than 2,000.  The proliferation of infrastructure has created an environment that enables redundant systems and applications to sprout like weeds – with hundreds of redundant applications, more than 24,000 websites and hundreds of HR and financial management systems across the government.

West Wing Week: "My Old Number, Twenty Three"

Welcome to the West Wing Week, your guide to everything that's happening at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue. This week, President Obama held townhalls in Northern Virginia, California, and Nevada, to speak directly to the American people about his vision for reducing our debt and bringing down our deficit based on the values of shared responsibility and shared prosperity.

Putting it Plainly

Every day, the Federal Government is engaged in communication with the American public. When Federal agencies are explaining how businesses can comply with legal requirements, or informing people about Federal services and benefits, they should write clearly and avoid jargon. But far too often, agencies use confusing, technical, and acronym-filled language.  Such language can cost consumers and small business owners precious time in their efforts to play by the rules.

The good news is that relatively small efforts to communicate more clearly can minimize that burden. Take this example: the Federal Communications Commission used to receive so many questions from the public about its requirements for ham radio operations that five full-time employees were needed to provide answers. After the requirements were written in plain language, questions dropped off so dramatically that all five of those employees could be reassigned to more pressing activity at the Commission.

In short, writing in plain language can make a huge difference. That is why President Obama signed the Plain Writing Act of 2010 into law last October. By improving government communications, the Act will not only save money but also facilitate two-way communication between agencies and the public and make it is far easier for people to understand what they are being asked to do.

Weekly Wrap Up: The Country We Believe In

Your quick look at the week that was on WhiteHouse.gov.

America's Fiscal Future: On Wednesday, President Obama spoke at the George Washington University about his plan to control spending while staying true to America's values of shared prosperity and shared responsibility. After his speech, economic advisor Brian Deese answered your questions in a live video chat. The President's focus on fiscal policy continued as he met with bipartisan leaders from the House and Senate, and with the co-chairs of his fiscal commission.