Edwards questions witnesses on government spending, efficiency during pandemic | Eastern North Carolina Now

Press Release:

    WASHINGTON     Congressman Chuck Edwards (NC-11) today questioned witnesses from the United States Secret Service, the Justice Department and the Government Accountability Office on improper government spending of federal COVID-19 relief money.

    Edwards was recently appointed to the House Committee on Oversight and Accountability's subcommittees on Cybersecurity, Information Technology, and Government Innovation; Economic Growth, Energy Policy, and Regulatory Affairs; and Government Operations and the Federal Workforce.

    Click here to watch Rep. Edwards' remarks on government efficiency during the pandemic.

    Excerpts from his questioning:

    On government efficiency during the pandemic:

    "I want to shift gears just a little bit - we've talked about fraud and waste - if we may, just for a couple of minutes, to government efficiency.

    "Through the pandemic, I have observed across all industries the loss of workforce. We could get into the reasons for that, that's a whole series of hearings I'm sure.

    "But every industry that I've talked to seems to have been forced to reinvent itself through the pandemic and now that pandemic is coming to a close.

    "And by 'reinvent itself' I'm talking about doing more or doing the same job with fewer people.

    "And serving as an appropriations chair for the state of North Carolina immediately before I got here - it occurs to me because every state agency that was coming to me asking me for an appropriation for the following year was asking for more, not less, and I'm just curious what you might be seeing or are you in a position to comment on, 'Has government been able in any way to reinvent itself?'

    "This Congress is on the cusp of having to make some really critical decisions to raise the debt limit, to change our spending trajectory, and I'd like to know that government is working as hard to reinvent itself and do more with less just like every other industry out there is doing. Do you have any evidence or commentary on that observation?"

   

    Follow-up:

    "I know from chairing oversight of unemployment in North Carolina, the federal government had this process where they came back and asked for unemployment funds that had already been appropriated through a process called sequestration.

    "Are you familiar with that, and if so can you tell me - nationwide, how many dollars were sequestered and of that how many were actually recollected from the states?"


   Contact:
   Email: press@chuckedwardsforcongress.co