Golden Fleece Award

WASHINGTON D.C. — Congressman French Hill (AR-02) named the ship procurement process at the United States Navy as the latest recipient of the Golden Fleece Award for its failure to facilitate a process that provides complete and quality ships leaving taxpayers to pick up the cost of the deficiencies. 

“The continued delivery of Navy warships with flaws costs Arkansas taxpayers more money and, most importantly, hurts the Navy's readiness," said Congressman Hill. "As the world's most powerful naval force, the United States must hold ourselves to the highest standards. Improving the shipbuilding practices of the U.S. Navy will not only make us more accountable to taxpayers, it will help strengthen the critical role our navy plays in protecting America's interests, both at home and abroad."

In a letter to the Secretary of the Department of the Navy, Richard V. Spencer, Congressman Hill wrote:


Dear Secretary Spencer:

I write today to inform you that your agency is this month's recipient of my Golden Fleece Award. I am awarding this to the United States Navy for its ship procurement policy, which has resulted in incomplete and defective ships routinely being delivered to the Navy.

According to a 2017 report by the Government Accountability Office (GAO) that reviewed eight ships valued at a total of $6.3 billion, the GAO found that "they were provided to the fleet with varying degrees of incomplete work and quality problems," and that 90% of the deficiencies on these eight ships were not fixed prior to final delivery to the Navy. Further, the incentive structures within the shipbuilder's contracts have resulted in U.S taxpayers being financially responsible for 96% of shipbuilder's deficiencies.

Over the last 30 years, the Navy has spent an average of $16 billion annually on new warships, and the Navy has requested $24 billion for new warships in its FY2020 budget. The delivery of warships with flaws costs the taxpayers money and, most importantly, hurts the Navy's readiness. Our federal agencies must be good stewards of our federal taxpayer dollars, and I am committed to ensuring effective practices at our Nation's federal agencies. Should you require any additional authority from Congress to address these concerns, I urge you to notify us as soon as possible. I thank you for your consideration, and I look forward to working with you to address this important issue.

Sincerely,
French Hill
Member of Congress



About the Golden Fleece Award

Every year, Congress appropriates trillions of dollars to fund the federal government, and every year the federal government wastes portions of these funds in unconscionable ways. In an attempt to increase accountability for every single government program, Congressman Hill decided to bring back the Golden Fleece Award.

Originally introduced by Democratic U.S. Senator from Wisconsin William Proxmire in March 1975, the Golden Fleece Award was a monthly bulletin on the most frivolous and wasteful uses of hardworking taxpayers’ dollars. The Golden Fleece Award became a staple in the U.S. Senate during this time, and Senator Robert Byrd once stated that the awards were “as much a part of the Senate as quorum calls and filibusters.”

In reviving this idea, the Golden Fleece Award will again have the opportunity to serve as an important reminder to taxpayers about the need for necessary, commonsense reforms to our federal spending.