Report: US Spending on Law Enforcement Training Fell by 12% Over 5 Years

US federal discretionary spending on programs like training police officers as well as workers protection fell by 12 percent between 2010 and 2015, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) said in a report on Tuesday.

WASHINGTON (Sputnik) — The decreased spending used to fund activities like law enforcement training and worker protection programs, the report states.

However, opportunities exist for top management at selected government agencies to take additional actions to ensure they maintain capacity to achieve their missions and avoid costs, the GAO observed.

Some government agencies had reported that the cuts they had been forced to carry out had affected timeliness and service level for some programs, the report acknowledged.

"Some organizations working with the agencies that had been forced to implement the cutbacks noted that some actions had negative effects on individuals, businesses, states [and] localities," the GAO said.

The effects they cited included delays in receiving unemployment benefits and disruptions to businesses, the report added.