Congressman Yakym and colleagues introduce bipartisan bill to combat improper government payments

Tuesday, Congressman Rudy Yakym (R-IN-02), along with Congressman Jack Bergman (R-MI-01), Congressman Jimmy Panetta (D-CA-19), and Congressman Scott Peters (D-CA-50) introduced bipartisan legislation to strengthen transparency and accuracy in improper payment reporting that will reduce waste and fraud.

The Improper Payments Transparency Act (H.R. 1771) would direct the President's budget request to Congress to include the amounts and rates of improper payments at each executive agency, year-over-year trends, a detailed explanation of trends, and a summary of any corrective actions taken to address improper payments. Including this key data in the budget would correct the gaps in improper payment reporting, which in turn would streamline funding to essential government programs and reduce wasteful use of taxpayer dollars.

"Government waste and fraud continue to drain taxpayer dollars at an alarming rate, undermining public trust and fiscal responsibility. I'm proud to reintroduce this common sense, bipartisan bill to increase transparency and combat improper payments," Rep. Yakym said. "The American people deserve full transparency and accountability in how their hard-earned money is spent, and this legislation is a crucial step toward ensuring responsible stewardship of taxpayer funds."

“I’m proud to join Rep. Yakym in introducing this vital legislation to rein in out-of-control spending of taxpayer dollars in Washington,” Rep. Bergman said. “To get our country back on a fiscally responsible track and ensure Americans are keeping more of their hard-earned money, we must quickly eliminate waste within the federal government. The Improper Payments Transparency Act is a great step in the right direction, and I encourage all of my colleagues to join this effort.”

“Over the past two decades, the federal government has made more than $2.8 trillion in improper payments, errors that waste taxpayer dollars and undermine public trust,” Rep. Panetta said. "Our bipartisan Improper Payments Transparency Act would ensure the President’s annual budget request provides detailed reporting on these payments, giving Congress and the American people a clearer picture of where and why these mistakes happen.  This is the right way to go about increasing transparency and by shedding light on improper payments, we take another step toward responsible stewardship of taxpayer funds.”

"According to the Government Accountability Office, federal agencies have made $2.8 trillion in improper payments since 2003. Some have used this to claim we spend trillions on fraud and justify firing inspectors general who do real oversight," Rep. Peters said. "In reality, many improper payments happen because well-meaning doctors miscode services when submitting mountains of paperwork to Medicare, or because a Social Security beneficiary didn't receive their check in the correct amount. We do need government efficiency, but we need to do it in a way that is within the bounds of the law. The Improper Payments Transparency Act will ensure future Presidents' budget requests include more detail on what is actually happening with improper payments — so Congress can start doing its job."

Full text of the legislation can be found here. 

Background:

Since 2003, the federal government has made $2.8 trillion in improper payments. In Fiscal Year 2023 (FY23), 14 federal agencies reported a total of $236 billion in improper payments across 71 government programs, leading to reduced funding to programs and people in need.

Improper payment reporting requirements are severely lacking. In FY23, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) identified eight programs as susceptible to significant improper payments that were required to report improper payment estimates but did not do so. GAO also found that 10 of the 24 largest executive branch agencies did not fully comply with reporting criteria as governed by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) and the Payment Integrity Information Act. Not every government program is required to report estimated improper payments each year. By law, agencies make the determination for their own programs in accordance with guidance from the OMB.