THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Saturday, May 11, 1996 TAG: 9605110020
SECTION: FRONT PAGE: A10 EDITION: FINAL
TYPE: Letter
LENGTH: Short : 45 lines
I was appalled to read about the gross mismanagement concerning the overhaul and modernization of the IRS tax system. This overhaul has already drained $4 billion of the federal budget and has been termed ``a mess.'' Furthermore, the IRS has requested an additional expenditure of $950 million over the next 1 1/2 years.
I find it reprehensible that government representatives have wasted billions of dollars on this fiasco. Apparently there is no shortage of money when they have a genuine desire to fund a government project that has been deemed ``worthy.''
For several years the professional government workers (engineers, architects, etc.) have been promised catch-up raises so that their salaries will reflect those made by nongovernment personnel. To date, professional government workers are more than 30 percent behind their private-industry counterparts. The $4 billion wasted on this current IRS project would have gone a long way toward achieving an equitable salary adjustment for these specialized government workers.
I do not know how our government will continue to attract the best-qualified people if salaries are not competitive with private industry. Apparently, there has already been trouble in this area. Truly intelligent personnel would not have approved and allocated billions of dollars to the IRS' ``poorly conceived plan.''
Do not misunderstand me. I am all for progress, including the necessary funding for useful new technology. However, the IRS debacle is just another example of government waste on a grandiose scale.
How much longer will it be before our congressional representatives realize that the future of our country is in acquiring the services of the most-competent professional people available? It appears these representatives prefer to put money into half-baked, ill-conceived schemes rather than adequately paying their most valuable resource - their employees.
JANET JOHNSON
Chesapeake, April 24, 1996 by CNB