Bill of the Month — November 2023: Defense Spending Oversight Act

Taxpayers Protection Alliance’s Bill of the Month for November 2023 is H.R. 6187, the Defense Spending Oversight Act, introduced by Reps. Maxwell Frost (D-FL) and Cory Mills (R-FL). Inspectors General across the nation are the first line of defense for taxpayers, and their important work often achieves rightful restitution for misused funding and prevents future issues. Understanding the benefits relative to costs associated with stamping out waste, fraud and abuse is critical for the DoD to prepare its annual budget and Congress to appropriate effectively.

Background:

Pursuant to the Inspector General Act of 1978 (P.L. 95-452), the Department of Defense (DoD) Office of the Inspector General (OIG) prepares a semiannual report on its activities to inform the Department and Congress. In their October 2021 to March 2022 report, the OIG reported recovering $13.9 million from the OIG’s Hotline, $13.2 million of which came through investigations into fraud, waste, and abuse within the DoD’s Contractor Disclosure Program. In the same period, there were over 8,000 allegations of wrongdoing submitted to the hotline, 3,485 cases opened, and 3,000 cases closed (including rollover from previous reporting periods).

In fiscal year (FY) 2023, the DoD had a $1.52 trillion budget, distributed between its six sub-components (Army, Marine Corps, Navy, Air Force, Space Force, and Coast Guard). The DoD’s funding comprises 12.8 percent of the U.S. federal budget.

Defense Spending Oversight Act:

The Defense Spending Oversight Act would require the DoD-OIG to submit an annual report to Congress and the Comptroller of the United States on the total cost of oversight investigations into waste, fraud and abuse conducted by the DoD-OIG and Offices of Inspector General in each of the military’s departments. The aggregate data collected in such a report would provide lawmakers with insight into the financial input and outcomes of oversight investigation activities.

It is for these reasons, among others, that TPA is pleased to make the Defense Spending Oversight Act, introduced by Reps. Maxwell Frost (D-FL) and Cory Mills (R-FL), its Bill of the Month for November 2023.