DOGE lawmaker drafts new bill to crack down on improper federal payments
A groundbreaking new bill focusing on the issue of overpayments by the federal government is set to be introduced on Monday. The bill, known as the Payment Integrity Information Reform Act (PIIA), will work in conjunction with the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) to identify and eliminate waste, fraud, and abuse within the federal government. Representative Dan Meuser, a Republican from Pennsylvania, who is spearheading the bill, revealed that overpayments by the federal government have accumulated to trillions of dollars since the George W. Bush era.
Meuser, who serves as the chairman of the oversight panel of the House Financial Services Committee and is a member of the House DOGE Caucus, disclosed that the DOGE team has already unearthed $55 billion in wasteful spending in just one month. The PIIA Reform Act aims to delve even deeper into the issue of improper payments, which totaled $236 billion in the previous year alone. These improper payments are a result of fraud, errors within government agencies, and a lack of eligibility integrity maintenance. Meuser emphasized that this level of mismanagement is unacceptable and that taxpayers deserve greater accountability from their government.
If passed, the bill could potentially uncover nearly a quarter of the $1 trillion target set by the DOGE initiative to identify and recover taxpayer funds. The act will focus on enhancing payment integrity laws, with a specific emphasis on addressing overpayments within social safety net programs. In 2023, federal agencies reported $236 billion in improper payments across 71 different government programs, with over $44 billion classified as “unknown payments.”
Meuser highlighted that the Payment Information Integrity Reform Act aims to put an end to careless mismanagement within federal agencies by strengthening oversight, imposing stricter penalties for noncompliance, and demanding accountability at all levels. The GAO also reported significant improper payments in Medicaid, Medicare, and COVID-19 unemployment assistance programs. Despite a decrease from the previous year, the total improper payments since 2003 amount to approximately $2.7 billion.
Meuser expressed concerns that the actual figures could be higher due to agencies’ lack of compliance with payment integrity laws. The bill has garnered support from both DOGE leader Elon Musk and former President Donald Trump, who have raised issues regarding inaccurate Social Security beneficiary data. Musk highlighted discrepancies in the ages of beneficiaries, with some listed as older than the oldest known humans.
The House DOGE Caucus, which now boasts over 100 members, remains committed to addressing wasteful spending and ensuring that taxpayer dollars are spent responsibly. The introduction of the PIIA Reform Act signals a significant step towards achieving greater financial accountability within the federal government.
