GOP Leader Claims Labor Department Wasting Taxpayers Money

The chairman of a House panel is asking Labor Secretary Thomas Perez to turn over to Congress documents and information he alleges will show ``a pattern of wasteful spending and mismanagement'' at the Labor Department.

GOP Rep. Darrell E. Issa of California, who chairs the House Oversight Committee, says the department ``frivolously spends taxpayer money on unnecessary items,'' including elevator posters changed each week in the 23 passenger elevators at its headquarters. Issa said the agency spent over $600,000 on such posters over five years.

He also criticized frequent travel by department officials.

The Labor Department issued a statement defending the spending as a valid morale booster for employees.