Senator questions $18B for job training, as study suggests rampant waste, abuse

**SarasotaRepub** · 05-18-2012, 09:36 AM

Waste??? Noooooooooooooooooooooooooooo!!!!!

By Doug McKelway
Published May 17, 2012
FoxNews.com

A study commissioned by Sen. Tom Coburn is casting doubt on whether taxpayers' $18 billion annual investment in federal jobs training programs is paying off.

"The vast majority of money we spend in job training doesn't go to job training, it goes to employ people in those job training federal programs," Coburn told Fox News.

The 2011 Government Accountability Office study he commissioned, which examined programs in fiscal year 2009, found an overlapping and duplicative maze of 47 federal jobs programs run by nine agencies. Some were rife with mismanagement, waste, fraud, abuse and corruption.

The GAO report found since 2004, only five of the 47 job training programs have bothered to find out if participants ever secured a job, leading the GAO to conclude, "Little is known about the effectiveness of most programs."

How can this be??? Lord Obama said 90% of the people is the programs were finding jobs within 3 years!!!!

**Odysseus** · 05-18-2012, 09:53 AM

Originally Posted by SarasotaRepub

Waste??? Noooooooooooooooooooooooooooo!!!!!

How can this be??? Lord Obama said 90% of the people is the programs were finding jobs within 3 years!!!!

They're doing better than the college graduating class of 2012? Maybe we should ditch college in favor of job training programs...

**noonwitch** · 05-18-2012, 12:46 PM

Originally Posted by Odysseus

They're doing better than the college graduating class of 2012? Maybe we should ditch college in favor of job training programs...

A few of the kids I work with are considering Job Corps over college right now. I just want to note that Job Corps is usually free to anyone who qualifies, but we offer free college for any kid unfortunate enough to spend his teenaged years in the foster care system (all of our kids qualify for Pell Grants because they don't have to claim their loser parents' incomes, then state programs cover the balance). The fact that I have kids who have good enough grades to go to college, but they prefer Job Corps (which has stricter rules than state universities) tells me they are interested in the job placement aspect of the Corps.

One of my kids is considering the military instead of going to college, but that's more because he is just one of those really good, obedient, service-oriented kids who also has never in his life traveled outside of metro Detroit.

**Odysseus** · 05-18-2012, 03:43 PM

Originally Posted by noonwitch

A few of the kids I work with are considering Job Corps over college right now. I just want to note that Job Corps is usually free to anyone who qualifies, but we offer free college for any kid unfortunate enough to spend his teenaged years in the foster care system (all of our kids qualify for Pell Grants because they don't have to claim their loser parents' incomes, then state programs cover the balance). The fact that I have kids who have good enough grades to go to college, but they prefer Job Corps (which has stricter rules than state universities) tells me they are interested in the job placement aspect of the Corps.

One of my kids is considering the military instead of going to college, but that's more because he is just one of those really good, obedient, service-oriented kids who also has never in his life traveled outside of metro Detroit.

Let me know if I can help the kid who is looking to join the military.