Why not address this problem head on?  Do not present plans to Congress for upgrades, new capabilities, etc. unless the plan includes appropriate funding for maintenance and upgrades.

When I entered grad school, 45 years ago, we had a new building under construction for us.  An observation was made that getting a donation for a building used to create exactly this problem for the University and that now the donation also needed to cover ongoing expenses for operating it.

d/

-- 
Dave Crocker
Brandenburg InternetWorking
bbiw.net
mast:@dcrocker@mastodon.social