For years I have heard all about the “welfare queens”, you know those people that defraud the government on assistance programs like food stamps, welfare payments, etc. Oh, the outrage at finding one of these offenders. Then more recently it has been the CEOs of banks that have been the target of the people’s rage. You know all those massive paychecks they got for killing a company or the massive benefit packages they got. LOts of outrage from the average person.
I just thought I would add to everyone’s rage with this tidbit.
For anyone who wants to know where underfunding and under-staffing of the Small Business Administration leads, check out this report from the U.S. Government Accountability Office.
The GAO writes of rampant abuse of the SBA’s HUB(Historically Underutilized Business)Zone program, which awarded $8 billion in federal contracts to some 4,200 certified small businesses in 2007. Specifically, the report details misrepresentation by 19 companies that falsely claimed HUB status to qualify for nearly $30 million in prime contracts and $187 million in federal contracts between 2006 and 2007.
According to the report:
“One Alabama firm listed its principal office as ‘Suite 19,’ but when GAO investigators performed a site visit, they found the office was in fact trailer 19 in a residential trailer park. The individual living in the trailer had no relationship to the HUBZone firm.”
The same company, which performs ground maintenance, received nearly $1 million in HUB contracts between 2006 and 2007, the GAO says.
Small businesses that participate in the HUBZone program must meet various criteria, including having a main office and at least 35% of their employees living in the zone. The report blames lack of SBA internal and fraud controls, including failure to make site visits to a majority of the companies applying for HUB status.
Another excellent program that has fallen into crap. I point this out because I would like to see “fair and balanced” report on ALL fraud not just some little old lady in Peoria that is trying to make a buck extra.
It’s only fair and balanced when it comes to those dirty, lazy, democrats and socialists. When it’s business, it becomes anti-capitalism to point out the flaws and propose something to fix the problem. Just like the other so-called “liberal media”, the “fair and balanced media” uses the tactic of leaving out key facts. In short, don’t trust either.
Morning…..I do not trust the media some times…the corporate nature of the news makes it unreliable.