Washington, D.C. – U.S. Representative Scott Perry (PA-4) has introduced bipartisan legislation to reduce wasteful spending at the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). The Department of Homeland Security Stop Asset and Vehicle Excess Act, or the DHS SAVE Act, requires the Under Secretary of Management for DHS to improve management of its vehicle fleet.
In October 2015, the DHS Inspector General (IG) released a scathing report of the Federal Protective Service (FPS) management of its vehicle fleet, a report that reads like a laundry list of poor management decisions. The Inspector General found that FPS had more vehicles than officers, and officers were authorized to drive to and from work with government-owned vehicles. Additionally, the report stated that FPS was “not in compliance with Federal and departmental requirements.” According to the IG, FPS wasted more than $2.5 million in FY14 on its vehicle fleet due to numerous management failures.
In December 2015, Representative Perry, in his capacity as Chairman of the Oversight and Management Efficiency Subcommittee of the House Homeland Security Committee, convened a hearing to further examine findings of the IG’s report.
“The American taxpayer deserves much better than what was outlined in the IG’s report. The management failures demonstrate a culture of waste by DHS regarding taxpayer money, which is reprehensible and unacceptable. My bill takes a step in the right direction to change this culture,” Rep. Perry said.
“With the second largest civilian vehicle fleet in the Federal government, DHS must have stricter controls in place at the headquarters level in order to rein in rogue components. Every dollar wasted on mismanagement is one less that goes to actually protecting the public,” Rep. Perry said.
Specifically, the DHS SAVE Act:
• Improves management of DHS’ vehicle fleets by authorizing the Under Secretary for Management to oversee vehicle fleets;
• Requires the components to evaluate its fleets on an ongoing basis;
• Includes penalties for mismanagement of fleets; and
• Requires DHS to identify alternative methods for management of its fleets.
SOURCE: U.S. Rep. Scott Perry (PA-04) press release
