Government Agency Spent Over $400,000 on Incentive and Promotional Products, Investigation Shows

The U.S. General Services Administration (GSA) spent nearly half a million on awards and gifts for its employees over four years, including more than $20,000 on promotional products for a single conference, a new report revealed.

As part of an investigation into the department's overspending, the United States Inspector General discovered that the GSA, which "leverages the buying power of the federal government to acquire best value for taxpayers and our federal customers" according to its website, spent $822,000 on a training conference for 300 employees in October 2010. The GSA's Western Regions Conference flew employees from its Public Buildings Services sector out to the M Resort Spa Casino in Las Vegas, violating several internal and governmental regulations in the process.