Bonuses for Cost-Cutters and Fraud Preventers Act of 2026
Officially: “Bonuses for Cost-Cutters and Fraud Preventers Act of 2026” Read the full text
What it does
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1Short title
This section would let this Act be cited as the 'Bonuses for Cost-Cutters Act of 2025.'
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1. Short title This Act may be cited as the Bonuses for Cost-Cutters Act of 2025 .
2Cost savings enhancements
This section would change the federal law on cash awards for employees who report wasteful government spending, in 5 U.S.C. sections 4511 and 4512.
It would add a new defined term to section 4511, 'wasteful expenses': money in an agency's salaries-and-expenses accounts, operations-and-maintenance accounts, or similar accounts counts as wasteful expenses only if an employee of the agency identifies it as wasteful under section 4512(a), and the agency's Chief Financial Officer also determines the money is not needed for the purpose it was provided for. Section 4511's own heading would change from 'Definition' to 'Definitions,' and the law's table of contents entry for section 4511 would be updated to read 'Definitions and general provisions' to match.
It would also add new authority to section 4512: the head of an agency could pay a cash award to any employee of that agency whose identification of wasteful expenses to the agency's Chief Financial Officer led to cost savings for the agency. The dollar cap on cash awards under section 4512(a) would rise from $10,000 to $20,000. Wherever the law already referred to the Inspector General in connection with these awards, in paragraph (2) of subsection (a) and in the text that follows it, it would now also refer to the Chief Financial Officer, and wherever it referred only to a 'disclosure,' it would now also cover an 'identification' of wasteful expenses; the employee involved would be called simply the 'designated employee' rather than 'employee designated under subsection (b).' A separate existing rule in subsection (b) of section 4512 currently refers broadly to 'awards permitted under this section.' This section would narrow that language to 'awards for the disclosure of fraud, waste, or mismanagement under this section,' so that rule stays tied to the existing disclosure awards rather than to the new wasteful-expense awards this Act creates.
The section would add several new requirements to section 4512. If an agency's Chief Financial Officer determines that expenses an employee identified meet the definition of wasteful expenses, meaning the money is not needed for the purpose it was provided for, the agency head must notify the President so the expenses can be proposed for rescission under title X of the Congressional Budget and Impoundment Control Act of 1974. If an agency has no Chief Financial Officer, the agency head must designate an employee to make that determination instead. Each agency head must publish information on wasteful-expense disclosures, in the same manner and form as the reporting already required under 31 U.S.C. 1116, including a description of each disclosure the agency determines has merit and the number and dollar amount of cash awards the agency has paid under subsection (a). A person could not receive a cash award under this subchapter if the person is an officer or employee of an agency's Office of Inspector General, or if section 4509 already makes the person ineligible for a cash award. The Director of the Office of Personnel Management must ensure that each agency's cash award program follows this section and must certify to Congress each year whether it does. The Comptroller General of the United States must report to Congress on how the cost-savings and awards program is working, including any recommended legislative changes; the first report is due no later than 3 years after this Act is enacted, and another report is due every 3 years after that for the following 6 years.
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2. Cost savings enhancements (a) Definitions Section 4511 of title 5, United States Code, is amended— (1) in the section heading, by striking Definition and inserting Definitions ; and (2) in subsection (a)— (A) by striking the period at the end and inserting ; and ; (B) by striking this subchapter, the term and inserting the following: “this subchapter— (1) the term ; and (C) by adding at the end the following: (2) the term wasteful expenses means amounts made available for salaries and expenses accounts, operations and maintenance accounts, or other equivalent accounts— (A) that are identified by an employee of the agency under section 4512(a) as wasteful; and (B) that the Chief Financial Officer of the agency determines are not required for the purpose for which the amounts were made available. . (b) Authority Section 4512 of title 5, United States Code, is amended— (1) in subsection (a)— (A) by inserting The head of an agency may pay a cash award to any employee of such agency whose identification of wasteful expenses to the Chief Financial Officer of the agency has resulted in cost savings for the agency. after the first sentence; (B) in paragraph (1) by striking $10,000 and inserting $20,000 ; (C) in paragraph (2)— (i) by inserting Chief Financial Officer, after Inspector General, ; (ii) by striking employee designated under subsection (b) and inserting designated employee ; and (iii) by inserting or identification after disclosure ; and (D) in the matter following paragraph (2)— (i) by inserting , Chief Financial Officer, after Inspector General ; and (ii) by inserting or identification after disclosure ; (2) in subsection (b) by striking awards permitted under this section and inserting awards for the disclosure of fraud, waste, or mismanagement under this section ; and (3) by adding at the end the following: (c) (1) If the Chief Financial Officer of the agency determines that potential wasteful expenses identified by an employee meet the requirements of section 4511(a)(2)(B), the head of the agency shall notify the President for purposes of proposing the expenses for rescission under title X of the Congressional Budget and Impoundment Control Act of 1974 ( 2 U.S.C. 681 et seq. ). (2) In the case of an agency for which there is no Chief Financial Officer, the head of the agency shall designate an agency employee who shall have the authority to make the determinations for identification of wasteful expenses under this section. (d) The head of each agency shall make available, along with, and in the same manner and form as, the provision of information required under section 1116 of title 31, information on disclosures of wasteful expenses under this section, including— (1) a description of each disclosure of possible wasteful expenses identified by an employee and determined by the agency to have merit; and (2) the number and amount of cash awards provided by the agency under subsection (a). (e) An individual may not receive a cash award under this subchapter if the individual is— (1) an officer or employee of the Office of the Inspector General of an agency; or (2) ineligible for a cash award under section 4509. (f) The Director of the Office of Personnel Management shall— (1) ensure that the cash award program of each agency complies with this section; and (2) submit to Congress an annual certification indicating whether the cash award program of each agency complies with this section. (g) Not later than 3 years after the date of enactment of the Bonuses for Cost-Cutters Act of 2025 , and every 3 years thereafter for 6 years, the Comptroller General of the United States shall submit to Congress a report on the operation of the cost savings and awards program under this section, including any recommendations for legislative changes. . (c) Technical and conforming amendment The table of sections for subchapter II of chapter 45 of title 5, United States Code, is amended by striking the item relating to section 4511 and inserting the following: 4511. Definitions and general provisions. .
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