10 More Ways the Government Wastes Your Money
4. USPS pays $77 million to ship soda to Alaska
The Postal Service is responsible for shipping consumer items to remote villages in Alaska under a program called “Alaska Bypass” which started in 1972. Over three decades, moving this freight has cost the agency $2.5 billion, including $77 million per year in recent years.
In another example of a government program gone wrong, the initial purpose was to improve service and remove bottlenecks, but it has evolved into a subsidized freight service that ships Coke, Mountain Dew, Gatorade, frozen honey wings, and Clorox wipes.
The Postal Service has an obligation to deliver mail to every part of the country — but this isn’t mail. Ordinary pieces of mail can weigh up to 70 pounds, but these pallets often weigh well over 1,000 pounds, yet the postage is calculated based on Standard Post prices, per pound.
