In 1978, the Feds Spent $8.4 Million on a Never-Completed Police Car

In 1978, the feds spent $2 million on developing a prototype police patrol car – equal to $8.4 million in 2021 dollars. However, they never completed the project.

The U.S. federal agency, Law Enforcement Assistance Administration – part of the U.S. Department of Justice –  earned a Golden Fleece Award by U.S. Senator William Proxmire (D-Wis.) to highlight the folly of spending such an outrageous sum on a prototype that was never completed.

If completed, the car was to be filled with gadgets and would have cost $49,078 each — $205,497 in 2021 dollars!

Let’s look at the police cars used in New York City, the largest and one of the oldest police departments in the country.

Patrol cars can be Chevrolet Impalas, costing as much as $31,620; Chevrolet Volt (discontinued in 2019) which was as high as $38,995; Dodge Charger as high as $30,755; Ford Crown Victoria (discontinued in 2012) was as high as $29,905; Ford Fusion Hybrid as high as $28,000; Ford Police Interceptor Sedan (discontinued in 2019) was as high as $28,360; Nissan Altima as much as $34,250 and Toyota Prius as much as $32,650.

The patrol cars that would have come from the prototype would have cost more than five times as much as the most expensive patrol car used by the NYPD in 2021.

Sen. Proxmire gave Golden Fleece awards to wasteful and nonsensical spending, handing out 168 awards between 1975 and 1988.

Proxmire was right to turn on the flashing lights and sirens on this taxpayer boondoggle.

The #WasteOfTheDay is presented by the forensic auditors at OpenTheBooks.com.