7 ms·

Government agencies are not meant to be profitable

toomuchtodo 2y ago
Tell that to the people who keep getting elected. Takes time to repair poor decisions resulting from electorate whims. https://www.govexec.com/management/2024/04/senators-call-postal-board-abandon-dejoys-usps-reforms/396048/ https://www.govexec.com/management/2024/04/senators-call-pos... https://fortune.com/2024/04/10/usps-dejoy-price-hikes-customer-dissatisfaction/ https://fortune.com/2024/04/10/usps-dejoy-price-hikes-custom... | https://archive.is/b03We https://archive.is/b03We
- xeromal 2y ago
  Yup, it's hard to fault the postal service when the game is rigged against them from congress.
galaxyLogic 2y ago
Right. And they are meant (?) to be transparent. Only individual's information must be kept private.
AceJohnny2 2y ago
Uselessly tied up budget and so many strings attached is functionally identical to broke. I have a friend who works at USGS in California, the folks who track (among other things) volcanic and tectonic activity on the west side of the US (that includes Yellowstone). For their field trips, they have a daily stipend for food & lodging of ~$100 IIRC. If you know the cost of lodging, you can understand how that's a ridiculously small amount.
- abduhl 2y ago
  Per diem rates can be looked up at https://www.gsa.gov/travel/plan-a-trip/per-diem-rates https://www.gsa.gov/travel/plan-a-trip/per-diem-rates. The standard combined rate is $166: $107 for lodging and $59 for meals and incidentals. This is adjusted for high COL locations. Many hotels have a deal with the government where rates are subsidized. Government employees should pay no taxes on their stays. So yeah, they’re not staying at the Ritz on government business (and they shouldn’t be!) but it’s not like they’re living in a tent.
  - ghaff 2y ago
    That's still a small amount for many/most locations. It's certainly less than I'd pay myself out of pocket,
    - abduhl 2y ago
      Don’t take this the wrong way but I don’t think that the average HN poster’s view on lodging/expenses is the correct gauge for what’s an appropriate per diem for your average government worker on a business trip. And if the government worker wants to travel for work like a consultant or a FAANG employee then they can of course pay out of pocket.
      - ghaff 2y ago
        Maybe. Unless I'm being wined and dined by a client, my expenses have been pretty middle-brow business lodging and restaurants in general. I'm not sure I'd expect a government employee to be going the Motel 6 and McDonald's route just because they work for the government.
cqqxo4zV46cp 2y ago
OK. How do you propose to fix the current situation, then? Completely impractical “yeah, but”-isms basically turn HN into an online political rally. This isn’t thoughtful conversation.

Tell that to the people who keep getting elected. Takes time to repair poor decisions resulting from electorate whims. https://www.govexec.com/management/2024/04/senators-call-postal-board-abandon-dejoys-usps-reforms/396048/ https://www.govexec.com/management/2024/04/senators-call-pos... https://fortune.com/2024/04/10/usps-dejoy-price-hikes-customer-dissatisfaction/ https://fortune.com/2024/04/10/usps-dejoy-price-hikes-custom... | https://archive.is/b03We https://archive.is/b03We

xeromal 2y ago
Yup, it's hard to fault the postal service when the game is rigged against them from congress.

galaxyLogic 2y ago

Right. And they are meant (?) to be transparent. Only individual's information must be kept private.

AceJohnny2 2y ago

Uselessly tied up budget and so many strings attached is functionally identical to broke. I have a friend who works at USGS in California, the folks who track (among other things) volcanic and tectonic activity on the west side of the US (that includes Yellowstone). For their field trips, they have a daily stipend for food & lodging of ~$100 IIRC. If you know the cost of lodging, you can understand how that's a ridiculously small amount.

abduhl 2y ago
Per diem rates can be looked up at https://www.gsa.gov/travel/plan-a-trip/per-diem-rates https://www.gsa.gov/travel/plan-a-trip/per-diem-rates. The standard combined rate is $166: $107 for lodging and $59 for meals and incidentals. This is adjusted for high COL locations. Many hotels have a deal with the government where rates are subsidized. Government employees should pay no taxes on their stays. So yeah, they’re not staying at the Ritz on government business (and they shouldn’t be!) but it’s not like they’re living in a tent.
- ghaff 2y ago
  That's still a small amount for many/most locations. It's certainly less than I'd pay myself out of pocket,
  - abduhl 2y ago
    Don’t take this the wrong way but I don’t think that the average HN poster’s view on lodging/expenses is the correct gauge for what’s an appropriate per diem for your average government worker on a business trip. And if the government worker wants to travel for work like a consultant or a FAANG employee then they can of course pay out of pocket.
    - ghaff 2y ago
      Maybe. Unless I'm being wined and dined by a client, my expenses have been pretty middle-brow business lodging and restaurants in general. I'm not sure I'd expect a government employee to be going the Motel 6 and McDonald's route just because they work for the government.

cqqxo4zV46cp 2y ago

OK. How do you propose to fix the current situation, then? Completely impractical “yeah, but”-isms basically turn HN into an online political rally. This isn’t thoughtful conversation.