Ernst, Bean Work to Eliminate Billions in Bogus Payments

WASHINGTON – DOGE Caucus Chairs Joni Ernst (R-Iowa) and Aaron Bean (R-Fla.) are codifying one of the Department of Government Efficiency’s (DOGE) largest cost savings actions to identify and stop fraudulent and improper payments after more than $160 billion occurred in Fiscal Year 2024.

Before any expenditure goes out the door, the Delivering On Government Efficiency (DOGE) in Spending Act will require the Department of Treasury to have a description of the payment, link it to a budget account, and crosscheck the payment against government databases to ensure accuracy and eligibility.

“Requiring the government to answer basic questions before spending tax dollars will save billions over the next decade,” said Ernst. “Enacting safeguards to spending has been one of the Trump administration’s and DOGE’s greatest triumphs, and I am determined to codify it and make it permanent. At $36 trillion in debt, the cost of inaction is too high, and I will continue to lead the fight in Washington to root out waste, fraud, and abuse.”

“For too long, improper and fraudulent payments have drained resources and undermined trust in government spending,” said Bean. “The American people deserve responsible stewardship of their tax dollars, and this bill delivers exactly that. By ensuring federal payments are accurate, transparent, and verifiable, we are eliminating waste, fraud, and abuse in the federal government. This legislation takes the first critical step toward codifying DOGE efforts into law—bringing real oversight and integrity to the way taxpayer dollars are managed.” 

The bill is cosponsored in the Senate by Senators Tim Sheehy (R-Mont.), Cynthia Lummis (R-Wyo.), Markwayne Mullin (R-Okla.), Mike Lee (R-Utah), Jim Risch (R-Idaho), Tommy Tuberville (R-Ala.), Kevin Cramer (R-N.D.), Roger Marshall (R-Kan.), Ted Budd (R-N.C.), Steve Daines (R-Mont.), James Lankford (R-Okla.), Katie Britt (R-Ala.), and Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa.).

“The American people sent a clear message by electing President Trump,” said Grassley. “They’re fed up with the wasteful spending and bloated bureaucracy. Since my first term in the Senate, I’ve worked to root out waste, fraud and abuse, and I’m glad to support this legislation to boost transparency, strengthen internal controls and improve the stewardship of taxpayers’ hard-earned money.”

“With America $36 trillion in debt, we cannot afford a system with no accountability over where billions in taxpayer dollars are going,” said Lummis. “We are buried in red ink, but thanks to President Trump’s historic push to root out waste, fraud, and abuse, we now have a path forward. I am proud to join Senator Ernst in making critical cost-saving reforms permanent.”

“The federal government must be held accountable for every tax dollar spent,” said Lee. “The DOGE In Spending Act will codify part of President Trump’s fiscal plan by ensuring payments are properly reported and tracked. Increasing transparency, cutting waste, and preventing fraud are what hardworking American families deserve.”

“With Washington D.C.’s long history of out-of-control spending and a growing national deficit, we need to identify every opportunity to cut waste, fraud, and abuse,” said Britt. “This legislation codifies a key element of President Trump’s DOGE agenda by creating a mechanism to ensure every dollar across our government agencies is accounted for. I’m proud to be a cosponsor to help to prevent billions in improper payments and provide transparency to the American taxpayer.”

“From the moment he took office, President Trump laid out a clear agenda: eliminate waste, reduce unnecessary spending, and restore fiscal sanity to Washington,” said Cramer. “The Department of Government Efficiency has delivered—cutting through layers of bureaucracy. This agency has taken a scalpel to the federal government, slashing misspending, and eliminating fraudulent and improper payments. By codifying DOGE’s best practices, we safeguard the taxpayer dollars of North Dakotans and Americans across the country.”

"For decades, Washington bureaucrats have burned through hard-earned taxpayer dollars without a concern or care for how those dollars are spent," said Mullin. "Oklahomans elected President Trump to streamline government efficiency, and we're working with the administration to secure major savings for the American people. As one of the first steps in codifying the DOGE cuts, this bill will ensure accountability and restore sanity to how we do things in Washington. I'm proud to join my colleagues in this effort."

“Kansans expect their government to be accountable and responsible when it comes to spending Americans’ hard-earned tax dollars,” said Marshall. “The DOGE in Spending Act will help bring discipline to Washington by making sure federal payments are verified and traceable before going out the door. I’m proud to support this effort to fight waste, fraud, and abuse.”

In addition to the preventative measure, every expenditure will be made available for public inspection on the USAspending.gov website, with annual updates for ongoing transactions.

Click here to view the bill and here to view a section-by-section breakdown.

Background:

Beyond the astronomical cost to taxpayers, a new report exposed how ongoing improper payment issues resulted in veterans with serious disabilities, like amputations, being short-changed anywhere from $132.74 to $4,170.59 in their monthly disability checks.

Ernst previously exposed how thousands of government employees were potentially double-dipping by collecting paychecks from the taxpayers while also receiving unemployment payments at the same time.

DOGE is currently in the process of consolidating 47 of the government’s financial management systems, some of which cannot even speak with each other. Information sharing between some of these still requires printing out information on paper from one and then manually entering it into another.

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