Improper Payments Transparency Act
- Bill Number
- S. 747
- Origin Chamber
- Senate
- Congress
- 119th Congress, Session 1
- Policy Area
- Economics and Public Finance
- Status
- Introduced
- Latest Action
- 2025-02-26: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs.
- Last Updated
- 2025-05-07T14:21:19Z
AI-Generated Summary
Purpose
The Improper Payments Transparency Act aims to improve transparency and accountability in federal spending by requiring detailed information on improper payments—such as overpayments, underpayments, or payments made in error—in the President's annual budget submission to Congress. This helps identify issues in government programs and track efforts to fix them.
Key Provisions
- Reporting Requirement: The President's budget must include specific data on improper payments for executive agency programs and activities that are required to report under existing federal laws (subchapter IV of chapter 33, title 31, U.S. Code).
- Narrative Description: For each relevant program or activity, the budget must explain:
- Why improper payments occurred.
- Trends over the previous three years, including those that increased, decreased, or stayed the same on average.
- Corrective Actions: The budget must detail any ongoing or incomplete fixes (from corrective action plans under section 3352(d)) and outline steps the agency will take to reduce improper payments.
Significant Changes to Existing Law
- Amends Section 1105(a) of title 31, U.S. Code, which outlines what must be included in the President's budget submission.
- Adds a new subsection (39), mandating improper payment information for the first time in this annual document. Previously, such details were reported separately under laws like the Improper Payments Elimination and Recovery Act, but not integrated into the main budget overview.
Potential Impacts
- Government Agencies: Executive agencies will face increased administrative burdens to compile and analyze improper payment data for inclusion in the budget, potentially leading to better internal controls and reduced waste in programs like Social Security, Medicare, or welfare.
- Citizens: Enhances public oversight of how taxpayer dollars are spent, promoting fiscal responsibility and potentially saving billions by addressing payment errors more proactively.
- International Relations: No direct impacts, as the bill focuses on domestic federal spending.
Main Stakeholders Affected
- Executive Agencies: Primarily those with large programs prone to improper payments (e.g., Departments of Health and Human Services, Treasury, and Defense), as they must provide the required data.
- Congress: Gains more detailed insights during budget reviews to hold agencies accountable.
- Taxpayers and the Public: Indirectly benefits from greater transparency and potential reductions in government waste.
Notable Legal, Constitutional, or Political Implications
- Legal: Strengthens existing frameworks for improper payment reporting without creating new enforcement mechanisms; relies on definitions from section 3351 (improper payment means any payment not for intended purposes or ineligible recipients). No conflicts with constitutional separation of powers, as it builds on Congress's budget oversight authority.
- Constitutional: Aligns with Congress's power of the purse (Article I, Section 9) by enhancing informational requirements for executive budget proposals.
- Political: Promotes bipartisan fiscal accountability (introduced by Senators Ricketts and Rosen from different parties), but could spark debates over agency compliance burdens or the effectiveness of self-reported data in curbing waste.
This summary was generated by AI and may contain inaccuracies. Refer to the official source document for the authoritative text.
Sponsor
Cosponsors (1)
Recent Actions
- 2025-02-26: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs.
- 2025-02-26: Introduced in Senate
Bill Versions
- Improper Payments Transparency Act — issued 2025-02-26 — PDF (2 pages)