The Doge Discovered a Large Government Expenditure of Nearly 40 Billion Dollars.

The Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) in the United States committed to "simplifying" the federal government's credit card program, which cost taxpayers nearly 40 billion dollars just last year.

According to a message posted on X, the federal administration currently has around 4.6 million active credit cards, which processed about 90 million unique transactions for an approximate total of 40 billion dollars in the fiscal year 2024.

DOGE is working greatly with government agencies to simplify the program and reduce administrative costs. The agency promised to report progress in a week with a plan to reorganize the system.

It's important to note that, according to data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the federal government employed more than 3 million people in 2024, which means that there are more active credit cards in the system than federal employees.

This situation reflects the size and complexity of the credit card program, which has been managed by the General Services Administration (GSA) since 1998.

The GSA manages the "SmartPay" system, which allows government employees to make purchases on behalf of their agencies to support their missions. According to the GSA, the system allows for more efficient transaction processing and promotes accountability, by identifying potential fraud, waste, and abuse of funds.

Despite claims of efficiency, the program has been marked by a series of scandals involving the misuse of taxpayer-funded credit cards.

For years, there have been documented cases where federal employees have used these cards for inappropriate purchases, such as adult entertainment, LEGO toys, top-level dinners, and other unauthorized expenses.

Recently, an audit of the Department of Defense's (DOD) travel credit card program revealed that 12% of purchases made with government cards in 2023 may have violated the spending policies of the Pentagon.

The DOD inspector general's report also found 500 thousand dollars in transactions made at casinos, mobile app stores, bars, nightclubs, and major sporting events, like the Super Bowl. Additionally, 3.9 million transactions, totaling 1.2 billion dollars, were not reviewed by supervisors, raising serious concerns about spending oversight.

Since the administration of President Donald Trump, DOGE has worked with the goal of reducing at least one trillion dollars in federal government spending.

To date, the initiative, which is also linked to entrepreneur Elon Musk, claims to have saved taxpayers around 55 billion dollars since the president's inauguration.

This focus on simplifying the credit card program reflects a continuous effort by the government to improve efficiency in the use of public funds and address historical issues of waste and fraud within its systems.

DOGE's proposal aims not only to reduce administrative costs but also to increase transparency and control over public spending, while the implementation of new control and oversight measures is expected to help prevent future irregularities.