Sometimes government can work more efficiently than expected.
From CNN.com:
Commerce Secretary Gary Locke announced Tuesday that the Census Bureau, which compiles the U.S. population survey every 10 years, is returning $1.6 billion of its almost $7 billion operational budget.
According to a statement from Locke, the savings included:
• $800 million from an emergency fund that never was needed;
• $650 million in the door-to-door questioning phase of the census survey because 72 percent of households returned mailed questionnaires; and,
• $150 million because of lower-than-planned costs in some areas including Alaska and tribal lands.
"With proficient management, the cooperation of the American public and a little bit of luck, the census stayed on track with significant cost savings to taxpayers," Locke said in the statement.
He praised Census Bureau Director Robert Groves for improved management practices, including buying additional advertising in communities where responses lagged to improve the overall response rate.
We're quick to call out government waste, I thought it would be good to acknowledge government savings. Don't expect to see this type of story on any right wing blogs. Republicans: This is what we call fiscal responsibility.
This is further proof that appointing qualified candidates to manage government agencies MATTERS.
Next Census, I'm gonna get with Shortstuff so we can develop the appropriate "greeting committee" for the dorks. We might even score a few Jehovahs in the process too!!!
Bubba, actually our problems started when we contacted the Census regarding the fact that we had not received a form early in the year. We got it through the mail, filled it in and sent it back, and then a few months later the visits started with the live teams of gorks invading at all times of the day and even interrupting the recording studio in the midst of a session at one point. We have been extremely courteous considering the constant visits (which I doubt are over yet), and I suspect that we have been singled out as a "training center for Census idiots"!!!
Yes, Bubba!!! Purgatory it is!!!
Loma, have you not sent in your census form or are you stuck in some type of census snafu purgatory/Ground Hog's Day?
I'd like to see the stats for rural Texas, because we saw our sixth visit from the Census workers today!
government efficiency is an attitude!
Of course. The problem is not government. The problem is incompetency in government....the very thing the GOP worked at for 30 years and succeeded beyond their wildest dreams with GWB. Total incompetency.