IFPTE Asks House Appropriations Committee to Fund GAO and CRS So Congress Can Support Robust Oversight and Good Governance
This week, IFPTE sent a letter requesting the House Appropriations Committee and the Legislative Branch Subcommittee of the House Appropriations Committee provide funding for the Government Accountability Office and the Congressional Research Service at adequate levels that allow these agencies “to provide nonpartisan, objective, and authoritative research and analysis that Members of Congress from across the political spectrum can trust.”
These requests were made ahead of Legislative Branch appropriators’ markup of bill text that includes cutting GAO’s budget by almost 50% for fiscal year 2026 (FY26). The proposed cut, which was adopted by the Legislative Branch Appropriations Subcommittee and then the full House Appropriations Committee this week, would
The letter makes clear that the funding amounts that Appropriators are approving to cut from GAO’s budget would “would result in over $50 billion of waste, fraud, and abuse in the federal government left undetected each year.” Because GAO’s work and it’s workforce returns $123 dollars for each dollar of federal spending, the lost cost savings to the public and the unfulfilled service requests to Congress, which continues to increase requests for GAO investigations, expert testimony, and mandated reporting, would be significant. IFPTE’s letter requests $933.9 million for GAO for FY26, which is consistent with the budget request from GAO to Congress.
IFPTE’s letter also notes the important services that CRS provides Congress and requests $144.6 million in funding for FY26, which is the requested level that CRS has asked Congress for. The letter notes that the “requested funding supports the interdisciplinary services and products that CRS provides to Congress and invests in improvements to data analytics, modeling capabilities, expanding access to information, and cloud-and web-based systems that improve the timely delivery of requestors’ information.”
The Legislative Branch Appropriations Act for FY26 has not yet been scheduled for a floor vote in the House and the Senate has not released a draft of their text. IFPTE intends to make sure Congress supports necessary funding on a bipartisan basis for the work, workforce, and resources that GAO and CRS need. These agencies make sure that “Congress has the resources and support to carry out its decision-making and oversight responsibilities on behalf of the American people,” and that it does so with authoritative, nonpartisan, and objective information and analysis.