Congresswoman Randall Introduces Bill to Protect Taxpayer Dollars: Office of Management and Budget Inspector General Act

WASHINGTON, DC - Today, Congresswoman Emily Randall, Member of the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, introduced her first bill, the Office of Management and Budget Inspector General Act, which will create an Office of Inspector General within the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) to ensure proper stewardship of taxpayer funds. 

As the Trump Administration continues to systematically dismantle our government institutions and weaponize OMB to carry out these actions and circumvent Congress to do so, it is urgent to ensure nonpartisan oversight of OMB. Project 2025’s architect, Russell Vought, was confirmed by the Senate to lead the Office of Management and Budget, giving him free reign to implement Republicans’ extreme agenda as spelled out in Project 2025, sowing further chaos and discord.  

“This administration has spent the last three months talking about rooting out waste, fraud, and abuse in the federal government while cutting critical programs our communities rely on without providing any legitimate evidence of waste, fraud, and abuse,” said Congresswoman Randall. “The nonpartisan Offices of Inspectors General (IGs) were created by Congress for this exact purpose, but OMB notably does not have an IG. Having a nonpartisan watchdog to provide independent and objective oversight of OMB is becoming increasingly critical.”  

"The Trump Administration is implementing the Project 2025 playbook by using the Office of Management and Budget to weaponize the budgeting process and unilaterally freeze spending that is required by law. These actions are harming every day Americans - from veterans who can't obtain benefits to medical patients who can't access drug trials as scientific research is shuttered from coast to coast," said Debra Perlin, Vice President for Policy at Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW). "Rep. Randall's Office of Management and Budget Inspector General Act would place guardrails on this unprecedented power grab by creating an Inspector General within the Office of Management and Budget whose job it is to root out waste, fraud, and abuse. We applaud Rep. Randall for introducing this important common-sense legislation, and we urge Congress to pass it as soon as possible."

The Office of Management and Budget Inspector General Act is co-led by Representative Gerry Connolly, Ranking Member of the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, and was introduced with the following Representatives who have signed on as original cosponsors: Ro Khanna, Eleanor Holmes Norton, Mary Gay Scanlon, Al Green, Scott Peters, Seth Moulton, Greg Stanton, Lauren Underwood, Suzan K. DelBene, Hank Johnson, Jr., and Nikema Williams.

You can read the full bill text here.