Think back if you will to 1999 and the buzz was all about Y2K. Like many others, the government was somewhat concerned about their preparedness. So, many government agencies would report to the White House their updates.
Fastforward seventeen years to 2017, and those same agencies over the years have had to continue their reports on Y2K preparedness. Yes, you read that right. We’re spending time and money to report on our preparedness for something that happened/didn’t happen seventeen years ago.
So, let’s give credit where credit is due and congratulate the Trump administration on their efforts of eliminating wasteful regulations.
According to a Bloomberg report:
The Trump administration announced Thursday that it would eliminate dozens of paperwork requirements for federal agencies, including an obscure rule that requires them to continue providing updates on their preparedness for a bug that afflicted some computers at the turn of the century. As another example, the Pentagon will be freed from a requirement that it file a report every time a small business vendor is paid, a task that consumed some 1,200 man-hours every year.
“We’re looking for stuff everyone agrees is a complete waste of time,” Office of Management and Budget Director Mick Mulvaney told reporters at the White House. He likened the move to the government “cleaning out our closets.”
Seven of the more than 50 paperwork requirements the White House eliminated on Thursday dealt with the Y2K bug, according to a memo OMB released. Officials at the agency estimate the changes could save tens of thousands of man-hours across the federal government.
“Many agencies have forgotten how to deregulate,” he said. “It’s been so long since somebody asked them to look backwards.”