the full Committee to consider the following

The committee will please come to order. A quorum is present. Without objection, the chair is authorized to declare a recess at any time. Pursuant to Committee Rule 5B and House Rule 11, Clause 2, the chair may postpone further proceedings today on the question of approving any measure or matter or adopting an amendment on which a recorded vote or the yeas and nays are ordered. The committee will continue to use electronic system for recorded votes on amendments and passage of the bills before the committee. Of course, should any technical issues arise, which I do not anticipate, we will immediately transition to traditional roll call votes. Any procedural or motion-related votes during today's markup will be dispensed with by a traditional roll call vote. The first order of business is ratifying the new subcommittee roster. The clerks have distributed the roster electronically. I ask unanimous consent that the committee's approve the appointments and assignments as shown on the roster. Without objection, the subcommittee roster is approved. I'd like to welcome Representative Rick McCormick from Georgia to the committee. I look forward to working with him. Our next item for consideration is H.R. 8463, the Pre-Payment Fraud Prevention and Treasury Data Access Act. The clerk will please designate the bill.

H.R. 8463, the Pre-Payment Fraud Prevention and Treasury Data Access Act, a bill to establish government-wide requirements for pre-payment fraud prevention actions, to provide the U.S. Treasury appropriate data resources to facilitate participation in government-wide anti-fraud data sharing and for other purposes.

Without objection, the bill should be considered as read and open for amendment at any point. Without objection, so ordered. The chair recognizes himself to offer an amendment in the nature of substitute. The clerk please designate the amendment.

An amendment in the nature of substitute to H.R. 8463 is offered by Mr. Comer of Kentucky.

Without objection, the amendment is considered as read and the substitute would be considered as original text for the purposes of further amendment. I now recognize myself for a statement on my bill and the amendment. The federal government loses hundreds of billions of dollars to improper payments, including fraud, every year. The Government Accountability Office estimates that the federal government has lost over $2.8 trillion since 2003 to payments that should not have been made or were made incorrectly. Annual improper payments ballooned to nearly $236 billion in fiscal year 2023, more than six times the amount in 2003. The Government Accountability Office also estimates that the federal government loses between $233 billion and $521 billion annually to fraud across the government. Taxpayers are footing the bill for fraud while criminals get rich. These losses represent meaningful costs to our constituents. Fraud at these levels costs each tax filer between $1,000 and $3,000 per year. This should alarm our constituents and call us to action here today. Each one of these fraudulently spent dollars was taken at the expense of a hardworking, tax-paying American. This severely undermines the public's trust in government. Today, the Oversight Committee has the opportunity to do something about this problem by advancing serious solutions. These bills we are considering today will bolster existing fraud prevention resources to help federal agencies and states better prevent and address fraud in the programs they administer. Combined, these solutions will end the current pay-and-chase model by requiring agencies to conduct anti-fraud checks before money goes out the door. The reforms will provide permanent Treasury and Inspector General anti-fraud functions across the government and will refocus agency improper payment reporting on actually reducing financial loss to the government. This legislation will ensure that states have the tools and information they need to prevent fraud when they are administering benefit programs on behalf of the federal government. I want to thank Ranking Member Garcia and his staff for engaging with me on this crucial topic. Our first bill today is H.R. 8463, the Pre-Payment Fraud Prevention and Treasury Data Access Act that I am revising in agreement with the ranking member. This bill enhances and expands government financial integrity controls by requiring anti-fraud risk evaluations to identify suspicious payments before agencies request a payment is issued by the U.S. Treasury. These reforms are centered around increasing the use and effectiveness of Treasury's existing Do Not Pay system. It is currently only utilized by a mere 4 percent of eligible programs across the government. Clearly, Congress's intent in establishing the Do Not Pay system is not being met. This bill will address the procedural hurdles agencies face in using the system. It brings agencies into compliance with their required anti-fraud Do Not Pay system checks. The bill also enables Treasury to bring additional necessary data sets into the Do Not Pay system. It does all of this with appropriate data protection safeguards to ensure that personal and sensitive information is strictly protected, as we closely coordinated with privacy stakeholders in drafting this legislation. The reforms in this legislation are common sense and very long overdue. And I am confident that ensuring more agencies use the Do Not Pay system is one of the most effective policy reforms Congress can pursue to meaningfully curb fraudulent payments before such funds go out the door and are lost forever. I encourage my colleagues to support this critical legislation and I recognize Mr. Walkinshaw for his statement.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Very happy to support the bill as you laid out. The Pre-Payment Fraud Prevention and Treasury Data Access Act would help prevent improper payments from making it out the door in the first place. It would require that agencies verify information about payments to Treasury before those payments are made, helping to ensure that payments are going to the right people and organizations to begin with, instead of relying on investigations after the fact to claw back misspent dollars. I want to thank Chairman Comer and his staff for working closely with our team in a bipartisan way on this legislation. I think that work helped to improve the privacy protections and the transparency provision in the ANS that we have before us today. I plan to support the bill. Thank you, Mr. Chairman, and I yield back.

Gentleman yields back. I ask unanimous consent to enter into the record a letter of support from the Data Foundation for H.R. 8463. Without objection, so ordered. Do any other members wish to be heard on this legislation? Seeing none, the question is now on the amendment in the nature of a substitute. All those in favor signify by saying aye. Aye. All those opposed say no. And the opinion of the chair the ayes have it, the amendment is agreed to. The question is now on favorably reporting H.R. 8463 as amended. All those in favor signify by saying aye. Aye. All those opposed say no. For what purpose does the gentleman from Texas?

Mr. Chairman, I'd like to ask for a recorded vote.

A recorded vote is ordered by Mr. Sessions from Texas. As previously announced, further proceedings on the question will be postponed. Our next item for consideration is H.R. 8464, the Stopping Fraudulent Payments Act. The clerk will please designate the bill.

H.R. 8464, the Stopping Fraudulent Payments Act, a bill to amend Title 31, United States Code, to authorize pausing and segmenting payments and for other purposes.

Without objection, the bill should be considered as read and open for amendment at any point. Without objection, so ordered. The chair recognizes himself to offer an amendment in the nature of substitute. The clerk will please designate the amendment.

An amendment in the nature of a substitute to H.R. 8464 is offered by Mr. Comer of Kentucky.

Without objection, the amendment is considered as read and the substitute would be considered as original text for the purposes of further amendment. I now recognize myself for five minutes for a statement on the bill and the amendment. Fraud in federal programs is rampant across the country. And it happens in every state. For example, the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee's investigation into Minnesota's social services programs uncovered a whopping $9 billion in potentially stolen taxpayer dollars by fraudsters. These criminals enriched themselves by stealing taxpayer dollars meant to feed children, support autistic kids, and house low-income seniors and Americans with disabilities. Americans are fed up with this abuse and expect action from the government entrusted with their money. Just yesterday, federal authorities raided more than 20 locations in Minneapolis as part of ongoing federal fraud investigation. It's reported that it includes the Quality Learning Center, a so-called childcare center with no actual children. I applaud the Justice Department's efforts to hold these fraudsters accountable and recover taxpayer dollars. But taxpayers demand that we stop the theft of their tax dollars before it happens. Congress needs to pursue serious reforms that stop the pervasive pay-and-chase model of expending federal funds once and for all. The Stopping Fraudulent Payments Act adds critical safeguards to the processing of federal payments to ensure they are made in the right amounts and to the right people before an agency awards funds or requests a payment be dispersed. Our federal laws currently lack such direct requirement in the administration of federal financial assistance and benefit programs. Additionally, the Treasury Department is not fully empowered to stop payments requested by federal programs that show elevated risk for fraud. They can only process payments that agencies issue. Under current law, agencies can issue payments despite flags received from Treasury's Do Not Pay system or other tools that might indicate fraud. This legislation requires U.S. Treasury to pause and return suspicious payments to agency programs based on fraud risk signals obtained from checking the Do Not Pay system. It also requires agencies to expedite and address payments flagged as having an elevated risk of fraud without impacting existing laws. This provides additional assurance to the American taxpayer that money is being paid to the right recipient and for the right amount. It will also help agencies and the American public understand when a legitimate recipient identity is being stolen and used for fraudulent activities by criminals. Lastly, to help Congress oversee progress made in addressing payments with elevated fraud risk, the U.S. Treasury will summarize the number of returned payments, corrective outcomes, and associated cost savings achieved by this bill. I encourage my colleagues to support this critical bill and I recognize the ranking member for his statement.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I oppose H.R. 8464. The American people rely on critical federal programs to make ends meet. And this is a bill that could make it harder for some Americans due to process delays it would create. It aims to stop improper payments, which we all agree is important. Unfortunately, it uses vague criteria which could be used to stop many legitimate payments, creating more red tape, delays, dysfunction, and costs. The American people want the programs they pay for to work. They don't want unnecessary red tape, delayed legitimate payments, or more dysfunction. I oppose the bill and I yield back.

Gentleman yields back. I ask unanimous consent to enter into the record letters of support for various anti-fraud bills we are considering today from GovCon Navigators, National Taxpayers Union, Program Integrity Alliance. Without objection, so ordered. Do any other members seek recognition on this bill? Seeing none, the question is now on the amendment in the nature of a substitute. All those in favor signify by saying aye. Aye. All those opposed say no. No. In the opinion of the chair the ayes have it, the amendment is agreed to. The question is now on favorably reporting H.R. 8464 as amended. All those in favor signify by saying aye. Aye. All those opposed say no. No.

Mr. Chairman, I ask for a recorded vote.

A recorded vote is ordered by Mr. Walkinshaw. As previously announced, further proceedings on the question will be postponed. Our next item for consideration is H.R. 8312, the Fraud Prevention and Accountability Act. The clerk will please designate the bill.

H.R. 8312, the Fraud Prevention and Accountability Act, a bill to establish fraud prevention and program integrity functions and data sharing authorities within the Department of Treasury and a permanent government-wide Inspector General for fraud, accountability and recovery and for other purposes.

Without objection, the bill should be considered as read and open for amendment at any point. Without objection, so ordered. The chair recognizes himself to offer an amendment in the nature of substitute. The clerk will please designate the amendment.

An amendment in the nature of a substitute to H.R. 8312 is offered by Mr. Comer of Kentucky.

Without objection, the amendment is considered as read and the substitute would be considered as original text for the purposes of further amendment. I now recognize the sponsor of the bill H.R. 8312, the Fraud Prevention and Accountability Act, the chairman of the Government Operations Subcommittee, Mr. Sessions.

Mr. Chairman, thank you very much. Mr. Chairman, in the spirit that you have brought a number of these bills to the floor today, so I bring this. And that is that over the last few years on a bipartisan basis, Mr. Mfume and I, myself, as well as our subcommittee and members from both sides, have delved into the problem, the issues, and we are today trying to find a way to give an answer to the tremendous amount of payments that have been misdirected, misapplied, or that turn out to simply be fraud. And so today I bring forward H.R. 8312. Mr. Chairman, we have worked on this together and see the problem together. We also are thinking that we see a better answer today. So for too long, fraud has been tolerated, I believe, across this government as a cost of doing business, an unfortunate sacrifice that has made really government and Congress look bad. And so today, through the work that we are doing, we have one thing that's very clear and that is there are answers to the problems. H.R. 8312 charges forward by empowering government to make sure that it more fully understands and can communicate the problem that we have. So today we give a sense of purpose that every single member of this committee, certainly our subcommittee and of Congress, will be able to say we have done something about misdirected payments, waste, fraud, and abuse to the tune of, as the chairman spoke about, $2 trillion. So what we are proposing today is through the Fraud Prevention and Accountability Act, the steps that are crucial to fundamentally making progress in addressing this and the responsibility of correspondingly government to participate. This bill ensures that the anti-fraud capacities developed during COVID through the Pandemic Response Accountability Committee do not simply fade away. We're trying to create today a permanent Inspector General within the Treasury Department, in essence aligning these capacities closer to Treasury that can reap the most benefit. I understand my Democratic colleagues have some questions about this. And as a matter of fact, Mr. Walkinshaw and I had a conversation just a few minutes ago about making sure we have a clear idea of how this bill works. So I want to be clear that Treasury will play the leading government-wide role in preventing fraud and improper payments. For too long, we have struggled with each other over the issue of who is supposed to have access to privacy information, who is supposed to be able to know Social Security numbers, who is supposed to be having the authority and the responsibility. And the PRAC has done their job to collect data and information about things that we believe point them and should point other government agencies to potential fraud. So this puts in place a permanent fixture. It aligns with the Inspector General of the Treasury Department and it puts all of the agencies in better position where they can not only deal with each other, but look at each other in terms of law enforcement and an opportunity to go and do something about instead of a misdirected payment, let's go catch the fraud. Mr. Chairman, I want to say that the work that's been done on a bipartisan basis over the last year and a half has been critical to this understanding of the problem and I hope the answer today. So Mr. Chairman, I would move forward and yield my time.

Very good. The sponsor of the bill yields back. Chair recognizes Mr. Walkinshaw.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. And I deeply appreciate Chairman Sessions' willingness to engage with me and our side on this. Unfortunately today, I'm going to oppose the bill for a couple of reasons. And one, I think there is bipartisan agreement as to the success of the PRAC. And it is reauthorized through 2034, I believe, thanks to the big, beautiful bill. So it's permanent or as permanent as things are around here. And I think when you look at the success of the PRAC, that success is based on not just the current model, but where the current model is located. And its location within CIGIE has allowed for cross-agency forensic analysis after money flows and the ability to coordinate across dozens of IGs across the government. I'm concerned that locating it in Treasury will weaken its ability to compel cooperation with other IGs across across the country. I wasn't here, as I know the chairman will remind me, for the hearing in 2024, but I did go back and watch it. And one of the witnesses there said that the PRAC's independence, and I believe locating it within CIGIE is the most independent location for it to be located, was quote, "the secret sauce." And I have concerns that locating it within the Treasury IG could weaken that independence. But I know that Chairman Sessions is committed to continuing to engage in dialogue on this and I'm committed to that as well. But in terms of the bill that's before us today, I'm going to have to oppose the bill. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I yield back.

Gentleman yields back. I'll now recognize myself for a statement. The Fraud Prevention Accountability Act will dramatically enhance how agencies prevent fraud during any future national emergency and will ensure the resources created to investigate pandemic-era fraud is permanently preserved. Sophisticated fraudsters know that when the government responds to a crisis, agencies often let their guard down. The COVID pandemic exposed how serious these failures can be, especially for new and expanded financial assistance and benefit programs. Hundreds of billions of dollars were lost because agencies did not build effective fraud protections into their program or did not implement them until the funds were already out the door and long gone. The government also lacked a centralized resource for data and advanced analysis that could have quickly helped shine a light on fraudulent activities. Instead, such a resource represented by the Pandemic Response Accountability Committee, or PRAC, was built on the fly as pandemic relief funds were already being expended by agencies. The delays in implementing fraud prevention processes and taking swift investigative action hurt American taxpayers. It's estimated that if PRAC were established prior to the pandemic, as this bill ensures for future emergency relief efforts, $79 billion in fraud could have been prevented. The Fraud Prevention Accountability Act ensures that there is a permanent government-wide anti-fraud analytics function to assist agency IGs with their fraud work by providing cross-agency fraud detection and data analysis tools. It establishes a permanent IG for fraud accountability and recovery with the valuable resources and functions built by the PRAC. This ensures proper coordination with the government-wide program integrity and improper payment tools maintained by the U.S. Treasury's Bureau of the Fiscal Service. This structure was independently validated by the minority witness at our most recent Government Operations Subcommittee hearing on fraud, where the former executive director of the PRAC talked about how the PRAC quote, "needs to be and is working towards being closer aligned with Do Not Pay and the Department of Treasury," end quote. This eliminates the need to start from scratch in the event of Congress passing a future emergency supplemental spending relief. I thank my colleague Mr. Sessions, chairman of the Government Operations Subcommittee, for introducing this important legislation, which is based on the insights of numerous hearings his subcommittee has held with Ranking Member Mfume to understand what Congress needs to do to combat fraud and improper payments. I encourage my colleagues to support this common sense bill and I yield back. Does any other member seek recognition? Yes, sir. Yes. Okay. The gentleman from Massachusetts, Mr. Lynch, is recognized. Yeah. Well, gentleman from Massachusetts, Mr. Lynch. Yeah. Thank you. Thank you.

Look, I have the deepest respect for the gentleman from Texas, Mr. Sessions, and he is an honorable and a good man and my comments do not necessarily reflect upon the quality of this proposal. However, I do oppose it. But the overall theme of this hearing is going after fraud. And it pains me greatly that we know where there's a lot of fraud. We even know the address: 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue. And we ignore that. That is fraud central. It is fraud central. And the president's conduct, you know, in terms of foisting this fraud that the elections were stolen, even though he went to court 60 times with Mr. Giuliani and every single judge struck that down and said there was no evidence of that, yet he perpetrates that fraud continually and undermines the integrity of our elections and causes people to distrust our electoral process. The fraud that he is now perpetrating on mail-in voting. I mean, we all know, I know in your heart of hearts, you know that mail-in voting is proper and that in a lot of states, including some very red states like Utah, you have huge percentages of the people who are voting by mail and it has integrity and it is solid. And yet the president is describing it as scam voting. That's another fraud that he's perpetrating on. I could go down a long list. His putting his name on the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts. Now, I'm from Boston and, you know, in my childhood I studied greatly. I was in the third grade, I think, when President Kennedy was assassinated. And I know his story. He was a war hero. He's the only president that's ever received the Purple Heart because of his heroism in the Solomon Islands during World War II. And yet this president put his name above and, by the way, President Kennedy and Jacqueline Kennedy raised all the money for that performing arts center. And it's the only building in Washington, D.C. that carries his name, that recognizes him officially. And this president perpetrated a fraud upon the American people by placing his name above President Kennedy's name. Now, there will be a time when this president and my friends on the other side of the aisle who would like to honor President Trump, and it is their right to do so, but you should not take the name of John F. Kennedy off of that or put it in a subsidiary position because he was front and center in terms of creating that performing arts center. There's a lot of fraud going on here in this country and the root of it, the root of it is at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue. And we see it every single day. And it pains me greatly that we do not stand up and call that fraud out. Some of us do. But it's not stereo, it's just from one side of the aisle. And if we're going to take this mission seriously about rooting out fraud, we ought to focus on 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue and go after the, you know, like I said, fraud central and not kid ourselves. We know what this is about. You can look at the Emoluments Clause violations that we've had where foreign governments are pouring money into the Trump family. Pouring money, billions. Not hundreds of thousands, billions. And yet we ignore it. That's wrong. It's not good for the country, for our image in the world, and it is certainly not in harmony with the ideals of our Constitution and laws. Again, I respect the gentleman from Texas and I respect his efforts, but I would just ask us to rethink about our true motives here and our responsibilities to the American people. I yield back.

Gentleman yields back. Do any other members seek recognition? Seeing none, votes have been called. We're going to go ahead and vote on this and then I'll make an announcement about votes. The question is now on the amendment in the nature of a substitute. All those in favor signify by saying aye.

Aye.

All those opposed say no.

No.

In the opinion of the chair, the ayes have it. The amendment is agreed to. The question is now on favorably reporting H.R. 8312 as amended. All those in favor signify by saying aye.

Aye.

All those opposed say no.

No.

In the opinion of the chair...

Mr. Chairman, I ask for a recorded vote.

A recorded vote is requested by Mr. Walkinshaw. As previously announced, further proceedings on the question will be postponed. So, since votes have been called, pursuant to the previous order, the chair declares the committee is in recess subject to the chair. We plan to reconvene 20 minutes after I make the last vote. And I say that because they could hold the vote open for a long time and it could be at the request of some of the people on my side of the aisle. So, we're going to come back in 20 minutes after I vote and I will vote as quickly as they put that last vote on there. So, the committee stands in recess. Mr. Grothman is 8428. Okay, good deal. The committee will come back to order. Our next item for consideration is H.R. 8428, the Federal Fraud Prevention Workforce Training Act. The clerk will please designate the bill.

H.R. 8428, the Federal Fraud Prevention Workforce Training Act, a bill to amend Title 5, United States Code, to establish a mandatory anti-fraud and improper payment training program for federal program administrators, to provide for the availability of such training to state and local entities administering federally funded programs, and for other purposes.

Without objection, the bill should be considered as read and open for amendment at any point. Without objection, so ordered. The chair recognizes himself to offer an amendment in the nature of a substitute. The clerk please designate the amendment.

An amendment in the nature of a substitute to H.R. 8428, as offered by Mr. Comer of Kentucky.

Without objection, the amendment is considered as read and the substitute will be considered as original text for the purposes of further amendment. I now recognize myself for five minutes for a statement on the bill. H.R. 8428, the Federal Fraud Prevention Workforce Training Act. I support this legislation. Billions of taxpayer dollars are lost every year to increasingly sophisticated fraud schemes. Unfortunately, federal agencies working to safeguard these funds are often outmatched by the increasing sophistication of fraudsters and criminals. The Federal Fraud Prevention Workforce Training Act recognizes this growing challenge and helps fortify the financial defenses of our federal programs against bad actors. It requires a government-wide anti-fraud training program for agency officials like grant managers and auditors so they are adequately trained on best practices for preventing and addressing fraud in agency programs. Specifically, the bill requires U.S. Treasury to establish and maintain a government-wide anti-fraud training program for federal agencies and to also provide the training program to state and local entities administering federally funded programs at no cost. This training will ensure agency program management and state-level officials are better equipped to confront the challenges associated with fraud and improper payments by utilizing the tools already in place. Such tools include implementing agency fraud risk prevention frameworks and utilizing Treasury's Do Not Pay system. The fight against fraud in federal programs requires our federal employees to be equipped with the skills and knowledge to combat fraud on the front lines. I want to thank my colleague, Mr. Grothman from Wisconsin, for introducing this important legislation and forward-looking legislation. I encourage my colleagues to support this bipartisan common sense bill, and I now recognize the ranking member for his statement.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I also support the Federal Fraud Prevention Workforce Training Act. This is a bill that establishes training programs to help federal workers. Of course, we are all supportive of identifying fraud and improper risk payments. It would help teach best practices for detecting, preventing, and addressing fraud and improper payments. Better training for federal employees means also better outcomes for the American public, and we support this bill and I yield back.

Ranking member yields back. Does any other member seek recognition? Oh, Mr. Krishnamoorthi from Illinois.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. Thank you, Mr. Ranking Member. I am pleased to strongly support H.R. 8428, the Federal Fraud Prevention Workforce Training Act that I introduced alongside our colleague, Representative Glenn Grothman. This bill would establish a government-wide program to train federal employees to identify and assess fraud risk and improper payments in federal programs. The training program will ensure that employees understand best practices to detect and prevent fraud. By properly equipping the federal workforce with the knowledge they need to uphold program integrity, we are not only safeguarding taxpayer funds. We are also reinforcing public trust and ensuring that eligible Americans receive the benefits they have earned without unnecessary barriers. Folks on both sides of the aisle agree that fraud within government programs must be addressed as soon as it is identified. And I am grateful to lead the charge in accomplishing this purpose. Unfortunately, politically motivated accusations of fraud have often been used to justify sweeping program and grant cancellations that cut off critical safety net programs from entire states, including my own state of Illinois, as well as others who depend on them. Everyone here today understands that rooting out fraud in federal programs is essential, but we must ensure that Americans who need assistance can access it without confusion or disruption. Every dollar lost to fraud is a dollar taken away from the American people. With this bipartisan bill advancing through committee, we are giving federal, state, and local officials the knowledge to detect risks early, strengthen safeguards, and protect taxpayer funds. All while making sure eligible Americans can access the services they have earned. I am proud to work across the aisle to deliver stronger accountability and smarter oversight, and I hope everyone will vote for this bill. Thank you, and I yield back.

Thank you, Mr. Krishnamoorthi. I ask unanimous consent to enter into the record a letter of support from the America First Policy Institute to end pay and chase as my Stopping Fraudulent Payments Act, H.R. 8464, aims to do. Without objection, so ordered. Does any other member seek recognition on the bill? Mr. Palmer, do you have anything to mention about fraud before Mr. Grothman, the sponsor of the bill, gets here?

Fraud is bad.

You are usually not at a loss for words, so I will yield to you.

I thank the chairman. I just said fraud is bad. Now, we have worked on this almost from the time I came into Congress. It is across the board and I think encompasses a broader spectrum than just fraud, the improper payments. I have talked with the Comptroller General on many occasions about these issues and what we can do to resolve them. So I think this legislation puts us in a better position. It is not going to solve it all, but it puts us in a much better position to advance on this, to try to eliminate the fraud as we go along. When I have talked to people about this and I start talking about the amount of money that is involved and the fact that we do everything in 10-year budgets, when you take into account the interest that we are paying on money that is sent out fraudulently, it is just insane that we have continued to allow this to happen. And with that, Mr. Chairman, I will be happy to yield back.

Gentleman yields back. Chair now recognizes the sponsor of the bill, Mr. Grothman from Wisconsin.

Thank you for calling on me. Yes, sir. One thing we can get out of here in addition to this bill is if anybody anywhere in this institution either thinks we need a new federal program or ought to expand an old federal program, they can remember this day and the huge amounts of money that are always fraudulently stolen out of practically every federal program. Now, Mr. Chairman, fraud continues to be a significant challenge across federal programs and addressing it requires a better coordination and stronger oversight at every level. That is why I was pleased to introduce H.R. 8428, the Federal Fraud Prevention Workforce Training Act alongside Representative Krishnamoorthi. At its core, this is a common sense. I was just lecturing one of the staff, they use everything is a common sense thing around here, but I am glad I have got one thing that has got common sense too. At its core, this is common sense bipartisan effort to strengthen oversight and protect taxpayer dollars. Time and again, this committee has heard one of the biggest vulnerabilities in federal programs is not just bad actors, but gaps in training and coordination among those responsible for administering these programs. To better prevent and address fraud, experts have consistently recommended investing some time in the workforce, ensuring that the personnel have the training, tools, and knowledge necessary to identify the risks before they become costly problems. This bill takes that recommendation seriously. H.R. 8428 requires Treasury in coordination with Management and Budget and Personnel Management to establish a government-wide anti-fraud training program so that some of these staff members can see the danger before it makes the newspaper 10 years later. It also directs Treasury to provide technical assistance to state and local partners so they can better align with federal standards when administering federally funded programs. In previous hearings, this committee has heard troubling testimony that some officials responsible for determining eligibility or certifying payments had limited training or experience in identifying fraud risk. It is a problem, and some of them probably just are not that bright either. When individuals are not equipped to spot red flags, it increases the likelihood that the taxpayer dollars will be misspent. This bill addresses the gap directly and ensures that program administrators, managers, and financial officials are better prepared to detect and to prevent fraud while also strengthening coordination across federal, state, and local levels. At the end of the day, preventing fraud is not just about enforcement after the fact. It is about building systems that stop it before it happens. It starts with a well-trained workforce. I urge my colleagues to support this bipartisan legislation. I should point out, I think part of our problem is we have some employees who just do not care either. And I yield back.

Gentleman yields back. Any other member seek recognition? Ms. Tlaib.

Thank you so much, Chairman. I wanted to ask for unanimous consent to submit for the record a letter from the Electronic Privacy Information Center who oppose H.R. 8312, 8463, and 8464, and it is primarily regarding privacy protections and program integrity, the imbalance of it, and the fact that it creates a national data bank, which is incredibly dangerous as they say in the letter. So I wanted to submit the letter again in opposition to all three bills.

Without objection, so ordered. Do any other members seek recognition? Seeing none. The question is now on the amendment in the nature of a substitute. All those in favor signify by saying aye. Aye. All opposed say no. In the opinion of the chair, the ayes have it and the amendment is agreed to. The question is now in favor of reporting H.R. 8428 as amended. All those in favor signify by saying aye. Aye. All those opposed say no. In the opinion of the chair, the ayes have it. Mr. Palmer, for what purpose do you seek recognition?

I request a recorded vote.

A recorded vote is ordered by Mr. Palmer from Alabama. As previously announced, further proceedings on the question will be postponed. Our next item for consideration is H.R. 8467, the Zeroing Out Monetary Benefits Improperly Expended Act or ZOMBIE Act. The clerk will please designate the bill.

H.R. 8467, the Zeroing Out Monetary Benefits Improperly Expended ZOMBIE Act, a bill to reform the Payment Integrity Information Act of 2019 to ensure executive agencies focus on fraud prevention and for other purposes.

Without objection, the bill shall be considered as read and open for amendment at any point. Without objection, so ordered. The chair recognizes himself to offer an amendment in the nature of a substitute. The clerk will please designate the amendment.

An amendment in the nature of a substitute to H.R. 8467 as offered by Mr. Comer of Kentucky.

Without objection, the amendment is considered as read and the substitute will be considered as original text for the purposes of further amendment. I now recognize the sponsor of the bill, Representative Palmer from Alabama, for his statement.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I rise in support of H.R. 8467, the Zeroing Out Monetary Benefits Improperly Expended Act, or the ZOMBIE Act. While Americans across the country struggle to pay their taxes and support their families, the federal government continues to squander their hard-earned money. When I first came to Congress, I made this a top priority. At that time, the improper payments were about $150 billion a year. And I want to remind everybody that we do everything in 10-year windows. That would be $1.5 trillion plus interest because we're sending out money that we're having to borrow because we're in deficit. Now the estimate is somewhere between $230 and $250 billion. Since 2003, the federal government has mismanaged nearly $3 trillion in taxpayer dollars intended to fund programs that serve the people. In talking with the Comptroller General about this and reading their reports, over half of this occurs at the federal level. Failure to verify eligibility for programs, antiquated data systems, which is a huge problem across the federal government. Just six years ago, the COVID-19 pandemic led to what is now known as the greatest misallocation and in some cases outright theft of taxpayer funds in history. These improper payments represent a violation of the public trust, and without systematic reform, we're going to continue to violate that trust to increasingly unsustainable levels. That's why I'm pleased to sponsor the ZOMBIE Act, which represents an important step to laying this broken system permanently to rest. The ZOMBIE Act reforms federal law to proactively prevent improper payments before the money goes out the door. It will replace the current costly practice of completing a yearly improper payment estimate with ongoing risk assessments on a rolling basis. Assessments will focus on a comprehensive review of risk that includes how agencies are implementing fraud prevention best practices. These best practices include the Government Accountability Office's fraud risk framework, which was published in 2015, the year I came into office. In addition to these reforms, a whole-of-government approach is necessary to safeguard the faith and credit of American taxpayers. The bill addresses this by requiring increased coordination among the Inspectors General, the U.S. Treasury, and other partners via annual meetings. These annual meetings will be open to heads of federal agencies or a designee of their choice to help identify and prevent improper payments that result in financial loss to the government. By implementing these reforms, agencies will be able to pivot their focus from compliance activities to mitigating improper payments. I urge my colleagues to support the ZOMBIE Act and I yield back.

Gentleman yields back. Any other members seek recognition? I recognize the ranking member. Yeah.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I support the Zeroing Out Monetary Benefits Expended Act. Improper payments reduce the trust of the American people in the federal government and waste, of course, valuable taxpayer dollars. The bill is simple and we strongly support it. These are common-sense measures to help prevent improper payments and promote accountability when improper payments are actually made. We support this bill and I yield back.

Gentleman yields back. I'll just say I strongly support the bill and I appreciate the sponsor, Representative Palmer. You've been a champion on fiscal responsibility for a long time and appreciate your work on this bill. Seeing no further requests...

Mr. Chairman.

Oh, yes. Recognize Mr. Sessions from Texas.

Mr. Chairman, thank you very much. I want to applaud the gentleman from Alabama. I think that Gary has been a valuable part of watching, learning, listening, and acting. And what I think that what he's doing here is a piece part, an important piece part to what we need. And I want to publicly thank the gentleman not just for his words and actions, but he's also provided me a good bit of feedback about my behavior as it relates to trying to do something about this debt issue that we've got and the unintended payments and the fraud and the all these things. So I strongly support this and I'm pleased to see that he was able to secure that from the minority. And I think this is a great bipartisan bill and I applaud the gentleman.

Very good. Any other members seek recognition? Seeing none. The question is now on the amendment in the nature of a substitute. All those in favor signify by saying aye. Aye. All those opposed say no. In the opinion of the chair, the ayes have it, the amendment is agreed to. The question is now in favor of reporting H.R. 8467 as amended. All those in favor say aye. Aye. All those opposed say no. In the opinion of the chair... For what purpose does Mr. Sessions seek recognition?

Mr. Chairman, I'd like to ask for a recorded vote.

A recorded vote is ordered by Mr. Sessions from Texas. As previously announced, further proceedings on the question will be postponed. Our next item for consideration is H.R. 8466, the Taxpayer Resources Used in Emergencies or TRUE Accountability Act. The clerk will please designate the bill.

H.R. 8466, the Taxpayer Resources Used in Emergencies TRUE Accountability Act, a bill to require certain agencies to develop plans for internal control in the event of an emergency or crisis and for other purposes.

Without objection, the bill shall be considered as read and open for amendment at any point. Without objection, so ordered. The chair recognizes himself to offer an amendment in the nature of substitute. The clerk will please designate the amendment.

An amendment in the nature of a substitute to H.R. 8466 is offered by Mr. Comer of Kentucky.

Without objection, the amendment is considered as read and the substitute will be considered as original text for the purposes of further amendment. I now recognize myself for five minutes for a statement on the bill and the amendment. From the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, there were concerns that the trillions of dollars in relief payments were vulnerable to fraud. Agencies rushed to get money out the door, in some cases loosening guardrails to make access easier and more efficient. The Taxpayer Resources Used in Emergencies Accountability Act, or the TRUE Accountability Act, takes action to ensure agencies are prepared to protect taxpayer dollars from fraud schemes during future national emergencies. Payment integrity stakeholders have recommended that programs assess their susceptibility to fraud, the Office of Management and Budget prepare guidance for emergency funding, and that agencies develop plans to mitigate fraud in these future emergency situations. The TRUE Accountability Act accomplishes this for future emergency legislation by requiring the OMB to issue guidance and for agencies to develop plans for internal controls for use in future emergencies. When an emergency occurs and money needs to get out the door quickly, it's imperative that federal agencies and programs have strong financial controls in place from the start rather than developing them after the fact. I want to thank Representative Biggs from Arizona for his work in developing this important legislation. I now recognize the ranking member for his statement.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Now when emergencies such as natural disasters or pandemics strike, the government has an obvious responsibility to act quickly to help the American public recover. We've always learned how critical it is to have good emergency plans, particularly during COVID. The TRUE Accountability Act would help develop control plans to prevent fraud and improper payments during national emergencies before they occur. We support this bill and I yield this back.

Gentleman yields back. I know we have an amendment, but before we get to the amendment, does any other member seek recognition to speak on the underlying bill? Seeing none. For what purpose does Mr. Walkinshaw seek recognition?

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I have an amendment at the desk.

Will the clerk please report?

An amendment to the amendment in the nature of a substitute to H.R. 8466 is offered by Mr. Walkinshaw of Virginia.

Mr. Walkinshaw.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I want to thank Mr. Biggs and Mr. Subramanyam for putting together a really solid bipartisan piece of legislation. As you and the ranking member noted, the bill requires agencies to develop internal control plans aimed at preventing improper payments in the wake of emergencies. It's exactly the kind of policy we need to make sure that we prevent fraud and improper payments. My amendment, which is co-sponsored by Mr. Subramanyam, strengthens the underlying bill by requiring agencies to conduct after-action reviews within 180 days of obligating emergency funds and requires OMB to incorporate the findings of those reviews into reports to Congress. The reviews will assess whether internal controls actually prevented improper payments and fraud, identify any gaps or failures in implementation, and produce recommendations to prevent improper payments during future emergencies. The amendment also requires IGs to be consulted in these reviews, adding an independent check on the process. The amendment ensures that the bill as a whole creates a cycle of continuous improvement, requiring agencies to plan ahead to prevent fraud, evaluate what worked and what failed after emergencies occur, and then incorporate those lessons into future planning efforts in a way that better prepares both agencies and Congress for the next emergency. I yield back.

Gentleman yields back. I'll recognize myself. I support this amendment, which will require agencies to do an after-action review of their internal controls and expending emergency funds. This would provide an important check on agency plans and inform updates in preparation for future disasters. We've spoken with Representative Biggs, he supports the amendment as well, so I encourage support of the amendment. Any other member seek recognition on the amendment? Yes, sir, Mr. Subramanyam.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. I support the amendment as well. I think having a review of these internal control plans whenever there's an emergency is a good idea and it'll strengthen the bill, so I support and I yield back.

Gentleman yields. Any other recognition? Seeing none. The question is now on the amendment offered by Mr. Walkinshaw. All those in favor signify by saying aye. Aye. All those opposed say no. In the opinion of the chair, the ayes have it and the Walkinshaw amendment is agreed to. The question is now on the amendment in the nature of a substitute. All those in favor signify by saying aye. Aye. All those opposed say no. In the opinion of the chair, the ayes have it, the amendment is agreed to. The question is now on favorably reporting H.R. 8466 as amended. All those in favor signify by saying aye. Aye. All those opposed say no. In the opinion of the chair... For what purpose does Mr. Timmons seek recognition?

Request a recorded vote.

Recorded vote is ordered by Mr. Timmons from South Carolina. As previously announced, further proceedings on the question will be postponed. Our next item for consideration is H.R. 8340, the Taxpayer Funds Oversight and Accountability Act. The clerk will please designate the bill.

H.R. 8340, the Taxpayer Funds Oversight and Accountability Act, a bill to modify the government-wide financial management plan for other purposes.

Without objection, the bill shall be considered as read and open for amendment at any point. Without objection, so ordered. The chair recognizes himself to offer an amendment in the nature of substitute. The clerk will please designate the amendment.

An amendment in the nature of a substitute to H.R. 8340 as offered by Mr. Comer of Kentucky.

Without objection, the amendment is considered as read and the substitute will be considered as original text for the purposes of further amendment. I now recognize myself for five minutes for a statement on the bill and the amendment. Actually, I'm going to recognize Mr. Timmons. Would you like to speak on your bill since you're the sponsor?

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. And I want to thank my colleague, Mr. Min, for co-leading this important piece of legislation. The CFO Act of 1990 was a landmark achievement that professionalized federal financial management, created accountability structures that didn't exist before, and gave Congress real visibility into how agencies were spending taxpayer dollars. But that was 36 years ago. The federal government has grown dramatically since then. Financial systems have become far more complex and the oversight tools Congress relies on have not kept pace. GAO has repeatedly flagged federal financial management systems as high risk. Improper payments have been a persistent growing problem across the executive branch. And as this committee's investigation into Minnesota made clear, when no senior official is clearly responsible for financial risk management, fraud finds the gaps. The Taxpayer Funds Oversight and Accountability Act closes them. The bill strengthens the role of agency chief financial officers by explicitly assigning responsibility for internal controls over financial reporting, linking costs and performance data, and coordinating across agency leadership on financial management and risk. It also ensures continuity by authorizing the deputy CFO to serve as the acting CFO during vacancies so there is never a leadership gap at a critical moment. It replaces the existing five-year government-wide financial management plan with a stronger four-year plan aligned to the president's management agenda, complete with measurable metrics and strategies to eliminate duplicative systems. That gives Congress a real scorecard rather than a document that sits on a shelf. The bill also requires each agency to develop its own publicly available implementation plan within 120 days. Agency heads will also be required to annually assess the effectiveness of their internal controls, ensuring accountability is ongoing and not a one-time exercise. Every dollar the federal government spends belongs to the American taxpayer. This bill ensures someone at the top of every agency is responsible for protecting it. I want to thank Mr. Min for his partnership and the committee staff for their work. I urge my colleagues to support the Taxpayer Funds Oversight and Accountability Act and I look forward to seeing it move forward today. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I yield back.

Gentleman yields back. Chair recognizes the ranking member.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I support H.R. 8340. The programs that the American people rely on every day require complete, reliable, and timely financial and performance data. Without this information, critical programs cannot function properly. Now, these improvements would strengthen federal programs and improve accountability and oversight of Americans' hard-earned tax dollars. Want to thank, of course, Congressman Min on the Democratic side for introducing this bill and for Congressman Timmons for their bipartisan work on this legislation. I urge my colleagues to support this bill and I yield back.

Gentleman yields back. Chair recognizes Mr. Min from California.

Thank you, Chair Comer. Thank you, Ranking Member Garcia, for holding today's important hearing. I want to thank Representative Timmons for agreeing to co-lead this very important bill to promote efficiency and optimization in our federal agencies. And of course, we all want to reduce waste, fraud, and abuse in our federal government. This has to be a top priority, particularly for those of us who sit on the Oversight Committee, and I think this is an important step in the right direction. And I do want to note that this effort was originally led by former ranking member Connolly before he passed and I am honestly honored and quite proud to be able to carry the torch and continue this work, his work, in improving our government's efficiency. This bill's designed to modernize how federal agencies track spending, strengthen financial oversight, and improve accountability in how our taxpayer dollars are managed across the federal government. It does so by updating the decades-old Chief Financial Officers or CFO Act of 1990, incorporating long-standing recommendations from GAO to ensure that agencies have reliable finances to make better management decisions, improve efficiency, and prevent waste. And of course, one of the challenges we face in trying to oversee the federal government is finding the right balance between that localized control that is so important in optimizing efficiency, but also trying to maintain some semblance of accountability across our very diverse federal agencies. And I think this bill does that, including by requiring federal agencies to annually assess financial reporting and internal controls, linking agency performance and cost data to enhance financial evaluations, and prioritizing the elimination of duplicative systems and unnecessary spending. Again, I want to thank my colleague, Rep. Timmons, for leading this with me and urge both sides to hopefully support this bipartisan bill that is meant to improve waste, fraud, and abuse. With that, I yield back.

Gentleman yields back. Any other member seek recognition on the bill? Seeing none, the question is now on the amendment in the nature of a substitute. All those in favor signify by saying aye. Aye. All those opposed say no. In the opinion of the chair, the ayes have it. The amendment is agreed to. The question is now in favor of reporting H.R. 8340 as amended. All those in favor signify by saying aye. Aye. All those opposed say no. In the opinion of the chair, the ayes have it and the bill... Mr. Sessions, for what purpose do you seek recognition?

Mr. Chairman, I'd like to ask for a recorded vote.

Recorded vote is ordered by Mr. Sessions from Texas. As previously announced, further proceedings on the question will be postponed. Our next item for consideration is H.R. 1755, the Timely and Accurate Benefits Act. The clerk will please designate the bill.

H.R. 1755, the Timely and Accurate Benefits Act, a bill to require an income verification platform for certain federal benefit funds and for other purposes.

Without objection, the bill shall be considered as read and open for amendment at any point. Without objection, so ordered. The chair recognizes himself to offer an amendment in the nature of a substitute. Clerk, please designate the amendment.

An amendment in the nature of a substitute to H.R. 1755 as offered by Mr. Comer of Kentucky.

Without objection, the amendment is considered as read. I now recognize myself for five minutes to speak on the bill. I support the Timely and Accurate Benefits Act. To fully confirm award eligibility, states that administer federally funded programs must have complete and accurate information on award recipients and not rely solely on alleged recipient vouching for their own eligibility. As the committee has heard through many subcommittee hearings, Treasury's Do Not Pay system is a critical tool that can prevent improper payments and fraud before the money goes out the door. Despite the fact that state and local governments administer more than a trillion dollars of federal funds annually, states do not have access to this essential tool. Since states are more familiar with programs they administer, it's important that they know what additional information may be needed and have the ability to access such information to ensure that proper eligibility checks are conducted. This bill ensures that states have access to the U.S. Treasury's Do Not Pay system so they can run eligibility checks and prevent taxpayer dollars from going to fraudsters. This bill also requires states to develop and submit a plan to enhance their eligibility determinations and payee verifications for covered federal programs. These plans would include an assessment of tools and data assets the state needs in order to check for eligibility and afford an opportunity to make requests to the federal government for additional system or data access necessary to ensure program integrity. I applaud the efforts of Representative Timmons from South Carolina for leading this bill in the House and bringing it before the committee. I encourage my colleagues to support this bipartisan common sense bill and I now recognize ranking member for his statement.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I support H.R. 1755 as well. The bill would allow states and local governments to access the Treasury's DNP list. This is a common sense change that would help states and localities to identify and combat fraud. So I support the bill and I yield back.

I recognize now the sponsor of the bill, Mr. Timmons from South Carolina.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman, and thank you to my colleague from Florida, Mr. Frost, for co-leading this piece of legislation. When federal benefit programs determine eligibility based on income, that income verification needs to be accurate. Right now, it often is not. States rely on outdated fragmented data systems that miss significant sources of income, such as gig economy earnings, self-employment income, rental income, recurring cash contributions, and more. The result is that benefits go to people who don't qualify for them at the expense of the taxpayers funding those programs and the people who actually need them. In fiscal year 2025, improper payments in Medicaid alone totaled 37.4 billion, an increase of 6.3 billion from the prior year, due in part to errors in program eligibility determinations. These failures were not inevitable. They were the predictable result of states accepting recipient self-attestation for key eligibility criteria instead of verifying that information independently. This committee's investigation into Minnesota's social services programs showed exactly what that looks like in practice and the cost it imposes on taxpayers and legitimate beneficiaries alike. The Timely and Accurate Benefits Act addresses this directly. It authorizes Treasury to make the Do Not Pay system available to states administering federally funded programs for fraud prevention, eligibility determinations, and payee verifications. As this committee has heard through multiple subcommittee hearings, the Do Not Pay system is a critical tool that can prevent improper payments and fraud. This bill ensures states administering federally funded programs have access to it and are required to use it. The bill also requires states to develop and submit plans documenting their capabilities for conducting eligibility checks, including verifying identity, living status, banking information, and financial eligibility. If a state identifies gaps in its data systems or capabilities, it must identify those gaps and commit to addressing them. Importantly, the TABS Act definition of income in this bill is comprehensive by design. Wages, tips, contract work, social security, rental income, royalties, and trust distributions are all included. So if money is available to a household to meet their needs, it should be considered when determining eligibility for federally funded benefits. Existing systems were never built to capture all of that and this bill ensures they do. The American people expect that federal dollars go to the people who need them and the Timely and Accurate Benefits Act helps make that happen. I urge my colleagues to support it and I look forward to seeing it advance. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I yield back.

Gentleman yields back. Chair recognizes the co-sponsor of the bill, Mr. Frost from Florida.

Thank you so much, Mr. Chairman. And I'm grateful to Representative Timmons for his leadership on this important act and I'm proud to co-lead this bill. Our bill would require Treasury to make their Do Not Pay system available to the states. Do Not Pay has been helping agencies address fraud and improper payment for over a decade. In fiscal year 2025, Treasury and Do Not Pay helped agencies prevent, detect, and recover 11.7 billion dollars in potential fraud and improper payments. Earlier this year, the Subcommittee on Government Operations held a hearing about federal programs. The hearing was specifically focused on detecting and preventing improper payments. At that hearing, I was able to ask directly about the Treasury's Do Not Pay system. I was also able to ask about what other agencies might learn from their model, which has been proven to be effective. As I said at that hearing and I'll say now, we must support innovation to tackle fraud as long as it's executed safely. That includes recognizing and expanding the successful tools that we already have. Our bill would authorize Treasury to make their Do Not Pay system available to state and local governments to identify, prevent, and improper payments. It provides incentives for states to address gaps in their ability to conduct verification and eligibility checks. Our bill would also require federal agencies to submit implementation reports to relevant committees, the OMB director, Secretary of the Treasury, Comptroller General, and respective inspectors general to so that way there's robust oversight and that can continue. I ask my colleagues to support this important bipartisan bill and I yield back.

Gentleman yields back. Any other member seek recognition on this bill? Seeing none, the question is now on the amendment in the nature of a substitute. All those in favor signify by saying aye. Aye. All those opposed say no. In the opinion of the chair, the ayes have it and the amendment is agreed to. The question is now in favor of reporting H.R. 1755 as amended. All those in favor signify by saying aye. Aye. All those opposed say no. In the opinion of the chair, Mr. Sessions.

Mr. Chairman, I'd ask for a recorded vote.

Recorded vote is ordered by Mr. Sessions from Texas. As previously announced, further proceedings on the question will be postponed. Our next item for consideration is H.R. 8107, the Government Audit and Accountability of Federally Funded State-Administered Programs Act. The clerk will please designate the bill.

H.R. 8107, the Government Audit and Accountability of Federally Funded State-Administered Programs Act, a bill to require the establishment of a list identifying program areas and administrative practices presenting the greatest risk to the integrity of the federal funds administered by states and local governments.

Without objection, the bill shall be considered as read and open for amendment at any point. Without objection, so ordered. The chair recognizes himself to offer an amendment in the nature of a substitute. The clerk will please designate the amendment.

An amendment in the nature of a substitute to H.R. 8107 as offered by Mr. Comer of Kentucky.

Without objection, the amendment is considered as read and the substitute will be considered as original text for the purposes of further amendment. I recognize myself for five minutes for a statement on the bill and the amendment. I support H.R. 8107, the Government Audit and Accountability of Federally Funded State-Administered Programs Act. Assessments of the integrity of federal funds are generally agency and program specific. Bringing together those assessments will help Congress and officials at all levels of government identify common risk and best responses. H.R. 8107 will make sure Congress and others are fully informed of fraud risk in federally funded programs run by state and local governments. It requires the GAO assess program areas and administrative practices that present the greatest risk to the integrity of federal funds administered by state and local governments. Importantly, it ensures that this assessment is thorough and independent. With this information, Congress can enhance its oversight of agencies and states' efforts to strategically manage fraud risk, including payment integrity controls needed to effectively respond. As a result, we will be better, we will be in a better position to help federal agencies and state and local governments get the counter-fraud resources they need. The requirement of this legislation align closely with the work that the ranking member and myself have already requested of the GAO. I applaud the efforts of Representatives Ro Khanna and Tim Burchett for bringing this bill for consideration before the committee. I encourage my colleagues to support this legislation and I recognize the ranking member.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I support this bill, of course, which requires the Government Accountability Office to perform an assessment on how states are currently working to identify and prevent fraud and improper payments. It would also look at the assistance that the federal government provides to states in combating fraud in these programs. It's essential that the committee develop and advance bipartisan efforts to find comprehensive evidence-based approaches to addressing fraud. So we fully support this. This review is going to help us understand how federal dollars are dispersed by states to ensure that American taxpayers and their dollars are spent appropriately. I urge my colleagues to support this bill and I yield back.

Any other member seek recognition? Seeing none, the question is now on the amendment in the nature of a substitute. All those in favor signify by saying aye. Aye. All those opposed say no. In the opinion of the chair, the ayes have it, the amendment is agreed to. Question is now on favorably reporting H.R. 8107 as amended. All those in favor signify by saying aye. Aye. All those opposed say no. In the opinion of the chair, the ayes have it. Mr. Sessions.

Mr. Chairman, I'd ask for a recorded vote.

A recorded vote is ordered by Mr. Sessions from Texas. As previously announced, further proceedings on the question will be postponed. Our next item for consideration is H.R. 8193 to designate the facility of the United States Postal Service located at 189 East Main Street in Xenia, Ohio as the Gilman Gill Whitney Post Office Building. The clerk will please designate the bill.

H.R. 8193, a bill to designate the facility of the United States Postal Service located at 189 East Main Street in Xenia, Ohio as the Gilman Gill Whitney Post Office Building.

Without objection, the bill should be considered as read and open for amendment at any point. Without objection, so ordered. The chair recognizes himself to offer an amendment in the nature of a substitute. Clerk please designate the amendment.

An amendment in the nature of a substitute to H.R. 8193 as offered by Mr. Comer of Kentucky.

Without objection, the amendment is considered as read and the substitute will be considered as original text for the purposes of further amendment. Do any members wish to speak on the bill? Seeing none, the question is now on the amendment in the nature of a substitute. All those in favor signify by saying aye. Aye. All those opposed say no. In the opinion of the chair, the ayes have it, the amendment is agreed to. Question is now on favorably reporting H.R. 8193 as amended. All those in favor signify by saying aye. Aye. All those opposed say no. In the opinion of the chair, the ayes have it, the bill is ordered favorably reported as amended. Next bill. Ask for unanimous consent that H.R. 2488 be added to the en bloc package that will be considered later in today's markup. Without objection, so ordered. So pursuant to the previous order, the chair declares the committee in recess subject to the call of the chair. We plan to reconvene at 3:00 PM. The committee stands in recess. ...day and we look forward to working with you to keep up that tradition. We'll hold this first vote open a little longer because I know there are some members rolling in here, but the question is on favorably reporting H.R. 8463. Members will record their votes using the electronic voting system. The clerk will now open the vote on favorably reporting H.R. 8463. Have all members been recorded who wish to be recorded? Does any member wish to change their vote? The clerk will close the vote and report the vote total.

Mr. Chairman, on this vote, the ayes are 35, the nays are one.

The ayes have it and the bill is ordered favorably reported. Without objection, the motion to reconsider is laid upon the table. The question is now on favorably reporting H.R. 8464. Members will record their votes using the electronic voting system. The clerk will now open the vote on favorably reporting H.R. 8464. Have all members been recorded who wish to be recorded? Does any member wish to change their vote? The clerk will close the vote and report the vote total.

Mr. Chairman, on this vote, the ayes are 23, the nays are 17.

The ayes have it and the bill is ordered favorably reported. Without objection, the motion to reconsider is laid on the table. The question is now on favorably reporting H.R. 8312. Members will record their votes using the electronic voting system. The clerk will now open the vote on favorably reporting H.R. 8312, the Fraud Prevention and Accountability Act. Have all members been recorded who wish to be recorded? Does any member wish to change their vote? The clerk will close the vote and report the vote total.

Mr. Chairman, on this vote, the ayes are 23, the nays are 17.

The ayes have it and the bill is ordered favorably reported. Without objection, the motion to reconsider is laid on the table. The question is now on favorably reporting H.R. 8428. Members will record their votes using the electronic voting system. The clerk will now open the vote on favorably reporting H.R. 8428, the Federal Fraud Prevention Workforce Training Act. Have all members been recorded who wish to be recorded? Does any member wish to change their vote? The clerk will close the vote and report the vote total.

Mr. Chairman, on this vote, the ayes are 40, the nays are zero.

The ayes have it and the bill is ordered favorably reported. Without objection, the motion to reconsider is laid upon the table. The question is now on favorably reporting H.R. 8467. Members will record their votes using the electronic voting system. The clerk will now open the vote on favorably reporting H.R. 8467, the Zeroing Out Monetary Benefits Improperly Expended Act. Have all members been recorded who wish to be recorded? Does any member wish to change their vote? The clerk will close the vote and report the vote total.

Mr. Chairman, on this vote, the ayes are 40, the nays are zero.

The ayes have it and the bill is ordered favorably reported. Without objection, the motion to reconsider is laid upon the table. The question is now on favorably reporting H.R. 8466. Members will record their votes using the electronic voting system. The clerk will now open the vote on favorably reporting H.R. 8466, the Taxpayer Resources Used in Emergencies Accountability Act. Have all members been recorded who wish to be recorded? Does any member wish to change their vote? The clerk will close the vote and report the vote total.

Mr. Chairman, on this vote, the ayes are 40, the nays are zero.

The ayes have it and the bill is ordered favorably reported. Without objection, the motion to reconsider is laid on the table. The question is now on favorably reporting H.R. 8340. Members will record their votes using the electronic voting system. The clerk will now open the vote on favorably reporting H.R. 8340, the Taxpayer Funds Oversight and Accountability Act. Have all members been recorded who wish to be recorded? Does any member wish to change their vote? The clerk will close the vote and report the vote total.

Mr. Chairman, on this vote, the ayes are 40, the nays are zero.

The ayes have it and the bill is ordered favorably reported. Without objection, the motion to reconsider is laid on the table. The question is now on favorably reporting H.R. 1755. Members will record their votes using the electronic voting system. The clerk will now open the vote on favorably reporting H.R. 1755, the Timely and Accurate Benefits Act. Have all members been recorded who wish to be recorded? Does any member wish to change their vote? The clerk will close the vote and report the vote total.

Mr. Chairman, on this vote, the ayes are 41, the nays are zero.

The ayes have it and the bill is ordered favorably reported. Without objection, the motion to reconsider is laid on the table. The question is now on favorably reporting H.R. 8107. Members will record their votes using the electronic voting system. The clerk will now open the vote on favorably reporting H.R. 8107, the Government Audit and Accountability of Federally Funded State-Administered Programs Act. Have all members been recorded who wish to be recorded? Does any member wish to change their vote? The clerk will close the vote and report the vote total.

Mr. Chairman, on this vote, the ayes are 41, the nays are zero.

The ayes have it and the bill is ordered favorably reported. Without objection, the motion to reconsider is laid on the table. Pursuant to notice, I now call up the following en bloc postal naming bills, which were distributed in advance of this markup: H.R. 6099, 7809, 8225, and 2488. Without objection, the bill is considered read. If any member would like to speak on the measure, they may do so now. Chair recognizes Mr. Turner from Ohio.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I'd like to thank the committee for its support of H.R. 8193, my bill to name the Xenia, Ohio post office in honor of WHIO weatherman Gil Whitney. On April 3, 1974, an F5 tornado formed and was projected to make landfall and cross through heavily populated areas in Xenia, Ohio. The tornado destroyed a significant portion of the buildings in the city. Gil Whitney recognized the immediate danger to the community, took control of broadcasting for WHIO-TV Channel 7, and warned the citizens of Xenia to take cover immediately. Although we tragically lost over 30 lives that day, Gil Whitney's warning undoubtedly saved countless more. He was and is a true hero. Many residents and families of Xenia credit Gil Whitney with saving them and their families. Renaming this post office, which was one of the buildings damaged in the tornado, is one of the many ways our community in Southwestern Ohio can honor Gil Whitney's service to Xenia and thank him for his actions. I thank the chairman for including this measure in today's markup. Additionally, I'd like to thank all of my Ohio delegation colleagues, especially our fellow Oversight Committee members, Mr. Jordan and Ms. Brown, for co-sponsoring this measure. This support is a meaningful testament to the impact Gil Whitney had on the Miami Valley. Thank you, and I yield back.

Gentleman yields back. Do any other members seek recognition on the en bloc bill? Mr. Who? Mr. Perry.

Thanks, Mr. Chairman. I appreciate everybody's effort and generally have no opposition to the bills except for one. The gentleman named Mr. Gatlin was a speaker at a Communist Workers World Party rally and while I appreciate everybody's right to free speech, I don't think that we should be naming public buildings after Communist Party officials and people that speak on behalf of the Communist Party and communist ideals. They are incongruent with the Constitution of the United States and the beliefs of the American people. And so, unfortunately, I'm going to have to register my vote as no on the entire en bloc because I do not support communism. I yield balance.

Gentleman yields back. Any other members seek recognition on the en bloc postal naming bills? The question is now on favorably reporting the en bloc package. All those in favor signify by saying aye. All those opposed say no. In the opinion of the Chair, the ayes have it and the en bloc measures are favorably reported. The motion to reconsider is laid on the table. Following this last vote, we will be having a briefing in this room with the United States Secret Service about the shooting incident that took place over the weekend at the White House Correspondents' Dinner. This briefing is closed door and only for committee members and committee staff. I will ask all others in the room to please exit the committee room right now. So pursuant to House Rule 11, Clause 2, I ask that committee members have the right to file with the clerk of the committee supplemental, additional, minority, and dissenting views. Without objection, so ordered. Additionally, the staff is authorized to make necessary technical and conforming changes to the committee print subject to the approval of the minority. Without objection, so ordered. If there's no further business before the committee, without objection, the committee stands adjourned.

Is the briefing going to be right now?

Right here.