Washington, D.C. — Today, U.S. Congresswoman Kat Cammack (FL-03) released the following statement after the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform passed her bill, the Unauthorized Spending Accountability (USA) Act:
“I’m grateful to Chairman Comer and my colleagues for advancing this critical bill,” said Congresswoman Cammack. “For too long, Washington has allowed billions of taxpayer dollars to flow to programs that haven’t been reviewed or reauthorized in years—sometimes decades. The USA Act restores accountability by forcing Congress to do its job: examine these programs every three years, determine whether they are effective, and ensure that federal funds are being used responsibly. This is a commonsense, necessary step to rein in wasteful spending and return real oversight to the American people.”
Chairman James Comer (KY-01) praised the legislation, saying: “It is not too much to ask that Congress provide the appropriate level of scrutiny over the federal programs it has established and find the time every three years to ensure that federal funds are being used responsibly and effectively. The timeframe under the USA Act forces that to happen. Ensuring that every federal program is properly authorized gives Congress the oversight and budgetary tools to increase government efficiency, improve the effectiveness of federal agency programs and missions, and help reduce government spending.”
The USA Act puts all unauthorized programs on a pathway to sunset in 3 years and requires any new authorizations or reauthorizations to include a sunset clause. This means every government program will be routinely scrutinized and updated by the People’s representatives.
In its latest report, CBO found 1,264 authorizations that expired before fiscal year 2024 began and 25l that are set to expire before the end of the fiscal year. Additionally, it reported that $516 billion in appropriations for 2024 is linked to 491 expired authorizations. Two decades ago, this figure was $35 billion marking an 1,374% increase of unauthorized programs and agencies that are still taxpayer funded.
Congresswoman Kat Cammack represents Florida’s Third Congressional District, covering 12 counties across North Central and Northeast Florida. She serves on the House Agriculture and Energy and Commerce Committees and chairs both the Republican Women’s Caucus and the Republican Study Committee’s Emerging Tech Task Force.
