The 2000 GAO Report Of The 2002 Olympics' Cost To The Taxpayer

The DNC recently began attacking Mitt Romney for the large amount of government money provided to the 2002 Olympic Games, of which Romney was the President and CEO. In 2000 the GAO prepared a report in response to accusations of pork-barrel spending on the Salt Lake Games. The report, entitled Olympic Games Federal Government Supplies Significant Funding and Support, was prepared in response to inquires from Senator John McCain and Rep. John Dingell. The 103 page reports highlights that the 1.3 billion dollar 2002 Olympics cost almost a billion dollars more than the 1984 Games in Los Angeles, and more than 600 million dollars less than the Games in Atlanta in 1996. Of the 1.3 billion dollars cost, about $254 million was for planning and staging the Games. The remaining $1 billion was planned or had been used for highway and transit projects.