Some federal judges and court workers occupy courthouses that are bigger than necessary, according to a preliminary report by government auditors.
The Government Accountability Office revealed last week that 27 of the 33 federal courthouses built by the General Services Administration since 2000 contain about 3.6 million square feet of extra space -- or 28 percent of the total federal court space built in the last decade. The excess space has soaked up $835 million in construction costs and $51 million in annual rent and operations costs, the GAO said.
The report came at the request of a House subcommittee that oversees federal court construction. It cited three reasons for the excess space: Courthouses are being built larger than the space authorized by Congress, federal courts are overestimating their space needs, and judges aren't sharing courtrooms. The plus-size courthouses include the newer annex to the E. Barrett Prettyman U.S. Courthouse in downtown Washington and the Sandra Day O'Connor U.S. Courthouse in Phoenix.
"The findings of government waste, mismanagement, and disregard for the congressional authorization process are appalling," Rep. Mario Diaz-Balart (R-Fla.) said last week at a hearing focused on the findings.
GAO says millions of dollars are wasted on federal courthouses that are too big
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