Should Political Appointees Personally Repay the Gov’t if They Misuse Funds? (H.R. 6295)

What is H.R. 6295?

(Updated February 29, 2020)

This bill — the Cut the Perks Act — would requires political appointees to personally repay taxpayer-dollars that they misused following a determination of misused by either the agency’s inspector general (IG) or the Government Accountability Office (GAO).

Argument in favor

Taxpayers should not foot the bill for Washington bureaucrats’ illegal expenses. This bill ensures that the government is repaid personally by officials who misuse public funds.

Argument opposed

While there are occasional misuses of funds, there aren’t enough cases of misuse to justify the additional strain this legislation will put on agency IGs and GAO.

Impact

Political appointees; agency inspector generals; and Government Accountability Office.

Cost of H.R. 6295

A CBO cost estimate for this bill is unavailable.

Additional Info

In-Depth: Sponsoring Rep. Krysten Sinema (D-AZ) introduced this bill to ensure that political appointees personally reimburse the government for illegal expenditures of public money:

“No taxpayer should ever foot the bill for Washington bureaucrats’ illegal expenses.”

Cosponsor Rep. Rod Blum (R-IA) added that, under current regulations, there are insufficient restrictions on politicians’ use of public funds:

“There are currently no restrictions on flying first class on the taxpayer’s dime, and Members of Congress can spend up to $1,000 of tax dollars a month leasing a luxury vehicle of their choice. This is ridiculous and needs to stop now. Being in Congress should be about public service, not enjoying perks funded by Americans’ taxes.”

This bill has five cosponsors, including four Republicans and one Democrat.

Of Note:

Under current law, if a political appointee’s political expense is found to be illegal, there is no legal requirement that they personally pay it back, or that the money be refunded to taxpayers.

In practice, appointees often refund money because of public pressure — but even when they do, they don’t always pay the full sum back. For example, President Donald Trump’s original Health and Human Services Secretary, Tom Price, only refunded taxpayers about one-eighth of the cost of the private flights which forced his resignation.

Media:

• Sponsoring Rep. Krysten Sinema (D-AZ) Press Release