Which government programs does the Government Accountability Office consider inefficient?

Thirty-seven government spending priorities are considered highly vulnerable to fraud, waste, abuse, and mismanagement, according to the latest list from the independent and nonpartisan Government Accountability Office (GAO).

The GAO provides unbiased, fact-based information to save taxpayers money and encourage government more efficiency. Since 1990, it has produced a list of federal programs at high risk for financial issues and in need of reform.

Which government programs are vulnerable to waste, fraud, abuse, or mismanagement? 

Of the 37 programs included on the list, 26 have been designated as high-risk for at least 10 years. Five programs have been on the list since its first iteration in 1990.

The 2023 list included three new areas of spending:

• the federal prison system
• the Department of Health and Human Services’ management of public health emergencies
• the unemployment insurance system

Two programs were found to have made progress toward sound management and were removed from the list: the 2020 decennial census and the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation insurance programs.

How does the GAO identify wasteful government programs?

The GAO evaluates a range of factors before classifying a federal program as a high risk. The program must pose a risk to the nation's public health or safety, service delivery, national security or defense, economic growth, or citizens’ rights. Programs that risk losing at least $1 billion may also be included.

To decide whether a program can come off the list, the GAO looks at five criteria for improvement:

• Whether the necessary leadership is committed to improvement
• Whether the agencies involved have the staffing and funding needed
• Whether an action plan exists
• Whether there is a program in place to monitor progress
• Whether the people and agencies involved are demonstrating progress

For each release, the GAO uses these criteria to determine if programs have improved or regressed. In 2023, sixteen programs improved, including the two that were deemed to have improved enough to be removed from the list.

Which government areas are considered the most wasteful?

The GAO called out five specific areas in particular need of attention:

• National cybersecurity
• Efforts to respond to drug abuse
• Federal oversight of food safety
• Government liability for environmental cleanup
• Managing fiscal risks associated with climate change

Who is responsible for reforming inefficient programs?

The list serves as a call for Congressional and agency action, with many government agencies partially or entirely responsible for some of the listed programs.

No agency is explicitly referenced as often as the Department of Defense (DoD). The list sorts programs into six categories, only one of which — Transforming DoD Program Management — names a particular agency.

Five of the 37 programs include DoD in their name; four of those have been on the list since at least 1995.

Is the government getting more or less efficient?

Along with listing the inefficient programs, the GAO list offers a glimpse into how Congress is addressing identified problem areas. This is just one way to measure government inefficiency, though it doesn't take into account overall risk levels or financial losses.

The 1990 list named 14 high-risk programs. Since then, 53 more programs have been added; 29 were later removed when the GAO determined that they’d made adequate progress.^[1]

The list reached its peak of 38 programs in 2022.

The GAO estimates that the government saved $100 billion between 2021 and 2023 from Congressional and agency action to address high-risk areas.

To get a full picture of government structure and finances, read more about how the US collects and spends its money, and get the data directly in your inbox by signing up for our newsletter.