McCaskill: New role will help protect tax dollars from waste

In her latest newsletter, Sen. Claire McCaskill writes about the good things she will be able to do as chairman of the Senate Subcommittee on Financial and Contracting Oversight. As the new Congress gets underway, I'm excited to tell you about two new leadership roles I'm taking on that will allow me to better protect taxpayer dollars from waste, and look out for Missouri's families and businesses. I came to the Senate as a former prosecutor and auditor, and with an eye for rooting out waste, fraud and abuse. It was that watchful eye I used when I began chairing the Subcommittee on Contracting Oversight back in 2009.  Now I'll have the opportunity to take my work government-wide as the new chairman of the Subcommittee on Financial and Contracting Oversight. This new subcommittee will allow me the opportunity to dramatically expand my oversight role by taking a closer look at spending at every federal agency and department. It will also provide me with more investigative resources, which I'll use to hold hearings that get to the root of government mismanagement and taxpayer abuses. During my time as chairman of the former Subcommittee on Contracting Oversight, I chaired more than 20 hearings and launched more than 40 investigations at 22 federal departments and agencies - resulting in nearly 30 instances of misconduct referred to federal investigators. I'll take that same dedication with me to my new subcommittees. In addition to my expanded oversight role, I'll also have a greater role in directly looking out for Missouri consumers as I take on my second new leadership position. I'll begin chairing a Senate subcommittee devoted to protecting consumers from predatory practices and harmful products. Part of the Senate Commerce Committee, on which I have served since joining the Senate, the Subcommittee on Consumer Protection, Product Safety, and Insurance, has broad authority. As Chairman, I'll be making sure businesses are not unlawfully taking advantage of consumers, that commonsense rules are in place to protect Missourians from predatory practices and that those businesses violating consumers' privacy or rights are held to account. Chairing these two subcommittees provides me the opportunity to continue pursuing real change to the manner in which the federal government does business while expanding my work to protect Missourians from predatory practices. I look forward to sharing news of my work with you.