Government credit card abuses detailed

[dArKeR]

WASHINGTON - Surgical enhancements, a mounted deer head, designer briefcases and pricey wine are among goods improperly charged to U.S. government credit cards by employees, according to a report released on Wednesday.

The General Accounting Office, the investigative arm of Congress, said hundreds of millions of dollars could be saved each year if there were stricter controls on the use of government credit cards.

The government-wide purchase card program began in 1989 with the aim of streamlining federal buying and cutting down on processing costs. Card use was initially restricted to procurement personnel but later expanded.

From 1994 to 2003, the GAO said the use of government purchase cards increased from $1 billion to $16 billion. In most instances bills are paid directly by the government.

http://msnbc.msn.com/id/4853411/

[havocmom]

1. And it gives $$ to the bank that carries the cards

merchants have to pay a percentage to the credit card companies. Wonder who got cushie jobs for their retirement years for making fed employees carry cards.

And, many institutions base the rates they charge the customer on how many and how much credit cards they have in their names. Some federal employees forced to have the cards (in their names) also got interest rate increases on their other (their personal) credit. Such a nice little payoff to the banking industry.

[Moderator]

2. Duplicate

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=102x515341