Reason Foundation

Heritage Foundation's Ron Utt praises President Bush's plan to consolidate 18 regional economic development programs (such as the Community Development Block Grants program) under the Department of Commerce:

"Redundant and duplicative programs, especially between different cabinet departments, are a significant source of waste within the federal government. In the case of regional economic development programs, responsibilities–and money–are distributed among the offices and divisions of the Departments of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), Labor, Commerce, Agriculture, and Interior, as well as several smaller administrative agencies, including the Small Business Administration. President Bush's proposal to consolidate these programs under the Department of Commerce is long overdue and should receive the support of Congress. Consolidating responsibility for economic development in a single department will yield two immediate and important benefits to communities throughout the nation: more money for needy beneficiaries and less pork."

Full article is here. This is a great idea and one long overdue. And hopefully it's just the beginning of similar waste-reduction efforts.