Hennepin County Taxpayer Watchdog

Golden Hydrant goes to Feds for spending $145 Million on stupid TV commercials to market Census 2010

As I was paying bills the other night during the Olympics, I saw yet another of those annoying 2010 U.S. Census commercials and decided - as I was grumbling about government waste under my breath - that it was time to award another Golden Fire Hydrant.

The U.S. government is spending $340 million to market the 2010 Census. About $145 million of that is for the creation and airing of television commercials, which can be seen during the most expensive time slots in TV (including a $2.5 million 30-second spot during the Super Bowl).

The ads stink, by anyone’s definition. They use marginally famous actors in a painfully unsuccessful attempt to be humorous. They share practically no useful information (not even telling viewers to fill out their census forms) and are unlikely to convince anyone who is opposed to or disinterested in completing the form to do so.

The Hydrant usually goes to a Hennepin County expenditure and, in the past, I have avoided calling out federal programs (as I would be posting on wasteful spending four times a day). But the combination of paying my bills and seeing one of these annoying multi-million dollar commercials for the umpteenth time put me over the edge. Read more…

“Sorry kids, but we had to mortgage your future.  Here, have a bike helmet.”

Yesterday, the Hennepin County Board on a 6-1 vote, requested federal stimulus funds in the amount of $10,000,000 for a program called “Communities Putting Prevention to Work.” Although we have not been granted these funds yet, there was great optimism that we will receive them based upon the strength of our proposed program and the desire of the federal government to fund projects like this.

The funds would be used throughout suburban Hennepin County “to address obesity, physical activity and nutrition through sustainable, proven approaches such as policy, systems, organizational and environmental changes in communities.”

Included in the request: $2.7 million for “subsidized bicycles, helmets, walking shoes and transit passes.” Read more…