The ‘Let Me Google That For You Act’ could save U.S. taxpayers $1m

By David Nield Published April 12, 2014

A U.S. senator is aiming to cut down on wasteful government spending by dismantling the National Technology Information Service (NTIS). According to Senator Tom Coburn (R-Okla), many of the documents that the NTIS provides for a fee can be found on Google free of charge — as a result, he’s called his bill the ‘Let Me Google That For You Act.’

First established in 1970, the NTIS is part of the Department of Commerce and its purpose is to supply technical, scientific, engineering and business data. According to Coburn, much of the material that the NTIS packages and sells can now be found on the Internet and shouldn’t cost the government a dollar. His position is backed up by a 2012 Annual Report from the Government Accountability Office.

Recommended Videos

“Nearly all of the reports being sold are already available for free on other government websites, including my own,” says Coburn in his official statement, which calls on the NTIS to be phased out as a “top priority” to prevent further money being wasted.

The bill is supported by several other senators, including Claire McCaskill, Chairman of the Senate Subcommittee on Financial & Contracting Oversight. “This agency has clearly outlived its usefulness,” she said. “I find it staggering that the agency is selling government reports both to the public and to other federal agencies that are widely available for free and easy to find with a simple Google search — and the agency is still losing money.”

Should the bill succeed, the essential functions of the NTIS will be spread out through the Commerce Department. Whatever the politics and ultimate fate of the bill, its name has certainly brought it plenty of attention.

[Story via The Verge, image via Wikimedia Commons]

Topics

Google

Former Digital Trends Contributor

Dave is a freelance journalist from Manchester in the north-west of England. He's been writing about technology since the…

Computing

How to change margins in Google Docs

Laptop Working from Home

When you create a document in Google Docs, you may need to adjust the space between the edge of the page and the content -- the margins. For instance, many professors have requirements for the margin sizes you must use for college papers.

You can easily change the left, right, top, and bottom margins in Google Docs and have a few different ways to do it.

Computing

What is Microsoft Teams? How to use the collaboration app

A close-up of someone using Microsoft Teams on a laptop for a videoconference.

Online team collaboration is the new norm as companies spread their workforce across the globe. Gone are the days of primarily relying on group emails, as teams can now work together in real time using an instant chat-style interface, no matter where they are.

Using Microsoft Teams affords video conferencing, real-time discussions, document sharing and editing, and more for companies and corporations. It's one of many collaboration tools designed to bring company workers together in an online space. It’s not designed for communicating with family and friends, but for colleagues and clients.

Computing

Microsoft Word vs. Google Docs

A person using a laptop that displays various Microsoft Office apps.

For the last few decades, Microsoft Word has been the de facto standard for word processors across the working world. That's finally starting to shift, and it looks like one of Google's productivity apps is the heir apparent. The company's Google Docs solution (or to be specific, the integrated word processor) is cross-platform and interoperable, automatically syncs, is easily shareable, and perhaps best of all, is free.

However, using Google Docs proves it still has a long way to go before it can match all of Word's features -- Microsoft has been developing its word processor for over 30 years, after all, and millions still use Microsoft Word. Will Google Docs' low barrier to entry and cross-platform functionality win out? Let's break down each word processor in terms of features and capabilities to help you determine which is best for your needs.
How does each word processing program compare?
To put it lightly, Microsoft Word has an incredible advantage over Google Docs in terms of raw technical capability. From relatively humble beginnings in the 1980s, Microsoft has added new tools and options in each successive version. Most of the essential editing tools are available in Google Docs, but users who are used to Word will find it limited.