[Senate Report 117-213]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]


                                                     Calendar No. 566
117th Congress        }                          {          Report
                                 SENATE
 2d Session           }                          {          117-213
_______________________________________________________________________

            IMPROVING GOVERNMENT FOR AMERICA'S TAXPAYERS ACT

                               __________

                              R E P O R T

                                 of the

                   COMMITTEE ON HOMELAND SECURITY AND

                          GOVERNMENTAL AFFAIRS

                          UNITED STATES SENATE

                              to accompany

                                S. 4128

               TO REQUIRE THE COMPTROLLER GENERAL OF THE
           UNITED STATES TO PROVIDE CERTAIN INFORMATION WITH
           RESPECT TO UNIMPLEMENTED PRIORITY RECOMMENDATIONS
              AS PART OF THE COMPTROLLER GENERAL'S ANNUAL
             REPORTING TO CONGRESS, AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES

		[GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]


               November 28, 2022.--Ordered to be printed
               
               			__________
               
               	    U.S. GOVERNMENT PUBLISHING OFFICE
               	     
39-010               	    WASHINGTON : 2022
               
               
        COMMITTEE ON HOMELAND SECURITY AND GOVERNMENTAL AFFAIRS

                   GARY C. PETERS, Michigan, Chairman
THOMAS R. CARPER, Delaware           ROB PORTMAN, Ohio
MAGGIE HASSAN, New Hampshire         RON JOHNSON, Wisconsin
KYRSTEN SINEMA, Arizona              RAND PAUL, Kentucky
JACKY ROSEN, Nevada                  JAMES LANKFORD, Oklahoma
ALEX PADILLA, California             MITT ROMNEY, Utah
JON OSSOFF, Georgia                  RICK SCOTT, Florida
                                     JOSH HAWLEY, Missouri

                   David M. Weinberg, Staff Director
                    Zachary I. Schram, Chief Counsel
            Lena C. Chang, Director of Governmental Affairs
         Matthew T. Cornelius, Senior Professional Staff Member
                Pamela Thiessen, Minority Staff Director
            Sam J. Mulopulos, Minority Deputy Staff Director
       Cara G. Mumford, Minority Director of Governmental Affairs
                     Laura W. Kilbride, Chief Clerk




                                                     Calendar No. 566
117th Congress        }                          {          Report
                                 SENATE
 2d Session           }                          {          117-213

======================================================================

 
                   IMPROVING GOVERNMENT FOR AMERICA'S
                             TAXPAYERS ACT

                                _______
                                

               November 28, 2022.--Ordered to be printed

                                _______
                                

 Mr. Peters, from the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental 
                    Affairs, submitted the following

                              R E P O R T

                         [To accompany S. 4128]

      [Including cost estimate of the Congressional Budget Office]

    The Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental 
Affairs, to which was referred the bill (S. 4128), to require 
the Comptroller General of the United States to provide certain 
infomation with respect to unimplemented priority 
recommendations as part of the Comptroller General's annual 
reporting to Congress, and for other purposes, having 
considered the same, reports favorably thereon with an 
amendment, in the nature of a substitute, and recommends that 
the bill, as amended, do pass.

                                CONTENTS

                                                                   Page
  I. Purpose and Summary..............................................1
 II. Background and Need for the Legislation..........................2
III. Legislative History..............................................2
 IV. Section-by-Section Analysis of the Bill, as Reported.............2
  V. Evaluation of Regulatory Impact..................................3
 VI. Congressional Budget Office Cost Estimate........................3
VII. Changes in Existing Law Made by the Bill, as Reported............5

                         I. PURPOSE AND SUMMARY

    The purpose of S. 4128, the Improving Government for 
America's Taxpayers Act, is to streamline how the GAO informs 
Congress of the status of unimplemented recommendations by 
requiring the GAO to submit an annual report listing 
unimplemented matters for congressional consideration and, in 
GAO's annual letters to agencies and congressional committees, 
to identify congressional actions that can help agencies 
implement open priority recommendations.

              II. BACKGROUND AND THE NEED FOR LEGISLATION

    The GAO, through its individual reports and Recommendations 
Database, provides information on unimplemented 
recommendations, but under current reporting requirements, does 
not submit a report consolidating and listing all unimplemented 
matters for congressional consideration, nor do their current 
annual letters to committees list actions Congress can take to 
help agencies implement open GAO recommendations. S. 4128 
requires the GAO to submit an annual report listing 
unimplemented matters for congressional consideration, 
organized by policy topic, and including the amount of time the 
matters have been unimplemented. It also requires that the 
GAO's annual letters to agencies and congressional committees 
identify congressional actions that can help agencies implement 
open priority recommendations and publish any known costs of 
unimplemented priority recommendations.

                        III. LEGISLATIVE HISTORY

    Ranking Member Rob Portman (R-OH) introduced S. 4128, the 
Improving Government for America's Taxpayers Act, on May 3, 
2022, with Chairman Gary Peters (D-MI). The bill was referred 
to the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs.
    The Committee considered S. 4128 at a business meeting on 
May 25, 2022. Senator Portman offered an amendment in the 
nature of a substitute to change a phrase, ``as applicable,'' 
to ``if applicable.'' The substitute amendment was adopted by 
voice vote en bloc. The bill, as amended, was ordered reported 
favorably by voice vote en bloc. The Senators present were 
Senators Peters, Hassan, Sinema, Rosen, Padilla, Ossoff, 
Portman, Lankford, Romney, Scott, and Hawley.

        IV. SECTION-BY-SECTION ANALYSIS OF THE BILL, AS REPORTED

Section 1. Short title

    This section cites the short title of the bill as the 
``Improving Government for America's Taxpayers Act.''

Section 2. Government Accountability Office unimplemented priority 
        recommendations

    This section requires the Comptroller General of the United 
States to, as part of the Comptroller General's annual 
reporting to committees of Congress,
    (1) consolidate Matters for Congressional Consideration 
from the Government Accountability Office in one report 
organized by policy topic that includes the amount of time such 
Matters have been unimplemented and submit such report to 
congressional leadership and the oversight committees of each 
House;
    (2) with respect to the annual letters sent by the 
Comptroller General to individual agency heads and relevant 
congressional committees on the status of unimplemented 
priority recommendations, identify any additional congressional 
oversight actions that can help agencies implement such 
priority recommendations and address any underlying issues 
relating to such implementation;
    (3) make publicly available the information described in 
paragraphs (1) and (2); and
    (4) publish any known costs of unimplemented priority 
recommendations, if applicable.

                   V. EVALUATION OF REGULATORY IMPACT

    Pursuant to the requirements of paragraph 11(b) of rule 
XXVI of the Standing Rules of the Senate, the Committee has 
considered the regulatory impact of this bill and determined 
that the bill will have no regulatory impact within the meaning 
of the rules. The Committee agrees with the Congressional 
Budget Office's statement that the bill contains no 
intergovernmental or private-sector mandates as defined in the 
Unfunded Mandates Reform Act (UMRA) and would impose no costs 
on state, local, or tribal governments.

             VI. CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE COST ESTIMATE

                                     U.S. Congress,
                               Congressional Budget Office,
                                  Washington, DC, November 9, 2022.
 Hon. Gary C. Peters,
Chairman, Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs, U.S. 
        Senate, Washington, DC.
    Dear Mr. Chairman: The Congressional Budget Office has 
prepared the enclosed table summarizing estimated budgetary 
effects and mandates information for some of the legislation 
that has been ordered reported by the Senate Committee on 
Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs during the 117th 
Congress.
    If you wish further details, we will be pleased to provide 
them. The CBO staff contact for each estimate is listed on the 
enclosed table.
            Sincerely,
                                         Phillip L. Swagel,
                                                          Director.
    Enclosure.

           SUMMARY ESTIMATES OF LEGISLATION ORDERED REPORTED

    The Congressional Budget Act of 1974 requires the 
Congressional Budget Office, to the extent practicable, to 
prepare estimates of the budgetary effects of legislation 
ordered reported by Congressional authorizing committees. In 
order to provide the Congress with as much information as 
possible, the attached table summarizes information about the 
estimated direct spending and revenue effects of some of the 
legislation that has been ordered reported by the Senate 
Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs during 
the 117th Congress. The legislation listed in this table 
generally would have small effects, if any, on direct spending 
or revenues, CBO estimates. Where possible, the table also 
provides information about the legislation's estimated effects 
on spending subject to appropriation and on intergovernmental 
and private-sector mandates as defined in the Unfunded Mandates 
Reform Act.

                                                  ESTIMATED BUDGETARY EFFECTS AND MANDATES INFORMATION
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                                                                                       Increases
                                                               Direct                 Spending Subject   Pay-As-You-   On-Budget
   Bill        Title        Status      Last      Budget     Spending,    Revenues,          to              Go         Deficits    Mandates    Contact
  Number                               Action    Function    2023-2032    2023-2032    Appropriation,    Procedures    Beginning
                                                                                          2023-2027        Apply?       in 2033?
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
S. 4128    Improving      Ordered     05/25/22  800         0            0            Not estimated     No            No           No          Matthew
            Government     reported                                                                                                             Pickford
            for
            America's
            Taxpayers
            Act
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
S. 4128 would require the Government Accountability Office to provide a consolidated report to the Congress on priority recommendations that remain
  unimplemented and share information publicly on the potential costs of those recommendations. CBO estimates that enacting S. 4128 would not affect
  direct spending or revenues. CBO has not estimated the discretionary costs of implementing the bill. The bill contains no intergovernmental or private-
  sector mandates as defined in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act.

       VII. CHANGES IN EXISTING LAW MADE BY THE BILL, AS REPORTED

    This legislation would make no changes in existing law, 
within the meaning of clauses (a) and (b) of paragraph 12 of 
rule XXVI of the Standing Rules of the Senate, because this 
legislation would not repeal or amend any provision of current 
law.

                                  [all]